value of certification

I’m pondering whether or not I should get certified. I’m a jack of all trades with skills in programming, tech support, networking, and databases and have almost 6 years of experience with a BS degree in Info Systems. I thought about going through the certifications process and getting the A+, MCSE, and MCDBA. This would take an entire year and cost around $2000 for training materials and tests (employer will not pay). Is it worth the time and money investment? Why not just study the books, go through the material I’m not familiar with (skipping stuff I’ll never use), and forget about taking the tests? Wouldn’t the be better spent working on side jobs and/or getting another degree to fall back on?