Considering learning java in college. Open if you did.

[superbonzo]

...but the purpose would be the same, to ensure a high standard among practitioners.

I agree, in principle. The problem is who does certificate the certificators (and their associated costs) ? it could seem the chicken-or-the-egg story, but suppose we're lucky and we find an indipendent group of people effectively capable of judging other people's academic education; wouldn't be simpler putting those people directly into universities ?

For this reason, ensuring a high standard should be a prerogative of academic institutions and if for some reason they fail to achieve that it seems unlikely that you'll find better alternatives elsewhere.

They're forced to demonstrate that they meet a minimum professional standard. Great!

If you're speaking of a minimum professional standard then I totally agree with you.