It really depends on why and what you want to use the certification for.
A natural choice could be the Sun Certified Java Developer which consists of both written tests and a practical module.
If you have a back ground in web development with Java, then have a look at Sun Certified Web Component Developer (SCWCD) or Sun Certified Business Component Developer (SCBCD).
For more details have a look at the Java certification page:- http://www.sun.com/training/certification/java/index.xml
> > i am from India.
>
> What a surprise. Certifications seems to be important over there.
It is a fact of life there. I asked because racking up certifications
is a good thing or a bad thing depending on location. I'd be
suspicious of someone whose certification outreached his experience --
that sounds like a variation on the "perpetual student" to me.
But as they say, your mileage varies...
Certification is just one part of the software coding career process. It is good to be passionate about programming and contribute to open source projects, write technical articles, speak, etc.
From a career perspective if you plan to be a senior developer, you have to get into the process of turning out good code, at work or in personal life. It is just like having a career with engineering, graphical design, etc.