Use the N3 as practice. You can't just jump from N5 to N1 overnight. You gradually learn the language, the more you learn, the higher the score you aim for. So you do N5 one year, the next N4, then maybe you do N3, then N2 etc etc.
N3 might be useful depending on who is hiring you and for what purpose. N3 says to someone, you understand some Japanese, it is not perfect, but you can at least live and communicate vs someone who knew zero.
Yes, I hear a lot of foreigners in Japan say they don't take N3 (or Level 3 in the old days) because its meaningless, and you really need N2 or N1.
First of all, lots of people in Japan have never heard of the JLPT. And I mean people who are hiring foreigners.
Secondly, N3 and Nothing at All---which looks nicer on a resume (or CV)? An N3 tells me, maybe your Japanese is still quite low, but you have learned it since coming here, and you are the type of person who challenges him/herself.
You aren't trying to be a translator, are you? Because then you'd want to ideally be a higher level. And yes, they say N2 is the level you need to enter university or a company, but you will find companies to be quite flexible. Universities--well it depends. Some have crash courses in Japanese to bring you up to a good level I think. So practically, I don't think any of the tests are that useful. Job experience and practical Japanese--this is being able to write a cover letter with your CV in Japanese, or have a job interview or talk to a client in Japanese. These skills are much more important.
However I think just taking the test and showing that you are in the process of learning Japanese is altogether a good thing.