How to get a microsoft electronic certificate. Information about Microsoft certification programs
Start by asking yourself, “Which Microsoft technology am I most familiar with?”
Look for the technology exam here: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/view-by-technology.aspx, prepare for it and pass it successfully.
As a rule, I recommend taking Exam 70-271 and then Exam 70-272 as your first exams. With these two exams you complete your MCDST status.
Why is this so? I answer. These exams are on a fairly old OS, with which almost everyone has experience. Exams are available in Russian, which, as I understand, is not unimportant for you. If you add together the two previous bonuses, then the third follows from them; you will begin to get used to the environment while taking the exam. Control on camera (some people find this very distracting). Limited time slot for taking the exam. After such “training” it will be easier to concentrate and not waste time.
After receiving the MCDST, you can try to move on.
Again, I recommend continuing to take the client OS exams. Currently, this exam is Exam 70-680.
If you are still not comfortable with Windows 7, then try to pass Exam 70-621. This is a Windows Vista exam. Please note that it is "transitional". If you have MCDST status, by passing it, you will be protected by two statuses at once. In terms of finances, it is also more profitable to pass 2v1 in one go than to do two approaches for two exams.
Regarding your further choice, WS 2003 or WS 2008. Depends on what you are currently working with or planning to work with in the next six months or a year.
Exam line for WS 2003.
After successfully passing it, start watching Exam 70-290, Exam 70-291. These are Windows Server 2003 exams as a basic exam, and they are very good. Having passed them, you can start looking at Exam 70-293 and further, Exam 70-294.
As a logical conclusion, you can take Exam 70-297.
To obtain MCSE 2003 status, you will need to take another exam. Which? I am sure that using the experience and knowledge I have received, you will answer this question for yourself. If you can’t, I’m always ready to help.
Upgrade from WS 2003 to WS 2008.
Further certification on Windows Server 2008 will be a little easier.
If you have MCSE 2003 status, you will need to pass the “transitional” exam Exam 70-649 3in1, pass exams from the PRO Exam 70-646 or Exam 70-647 series. You can do both, to get both statuses according to WS 2008.
Line of exams for WS 2008.
If WS 2003 is not relevant for you now, then use the advice of your colleagues in this post.
Only I would change the order of passing the WS 2008 exams like this:
70-680
(70-620, 70-624)
70-642 -> MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure Configuration
70-640 -> MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory Configuration
70-643 -> MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure Configuration
70-646 ->MCITP: Server Administrator
70-647 -> MCITP: Enterprise Administrator
Regarding “to go or not to go” to courses. Of course, in courses, you can gain the knowledge and skills necessary to pass exams much faster than on your own. But it all comes down to the financial side of the issue. Make yourself an overview of the training centers in your city and their offers. Look at the amount you will have to spend on training and make a decision.
Don’t rush to take the “hard” exams right away! The principle “From simple to complex” works here too!
Good luck in your endeavors!
Microsoft offers several certification programs aimed at IT professionals of various levels working with Microsoft technologies and products, as well as separate certification programs for office application users and for professional trainers. To obtain certification status, you must pass one or more exams (based on the certification level you choose), most of which are computer-based tests.
Microsoft Certification Programs
Certification Programs for Learners
The level for the most experienced IT specialists and IT managers is the Master level("Master") The Microsoft Certified Master certification is designed for IT professionals who can design and implement solutions that meet the highest business requirements. Represented by the MCM (Microsoft Certified Master) certificate and the new MCSM (Microsoft Certified Solutions Master) certificate. These elite level certifications are the next step up from the Expert level. To obtain such a certificate, you must have sufficiently long experience working with Microsoft technologies, undergo three weeks of intensive training and pass exams
Certification program for face-to-face and distance learning instructors
Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) The Microsoft Certified Trainer certification is designed for highly qualified professionals who have not only technical knowledge of Microsoft products and technologies, but also teaching experience. Only MCT Trainers are eligible to conduct Microsoft Technology Training at authorized training centers Microsoft.
Certification programs for home and office users
Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) The Microsoft Office Specialist certification is designed for users who use computers on a day-to-day basis to help evaluate their proficiency in the applications included in the Microsoft Office suite.
For IT organizations and IT departments
Microsoft certification provides significant benefits to IT organizations and IT departments in the form of increased employee productivity, greater efficiency, and reduced costs. Having certified employees allows you to get more work done in less time, with better quality, and at a lower cost, resulting in greater customer satisfaction, service agreement compliance, and differentiation from competitors. The study also showed that certified employees more accurately and quickly identify the sources of problems and solve them more effectively, thanks to the experience and recommendations gained during the courses. And they are more loyal and motivated to succeed.
For staff
For employees themselves, obtaining a Microsoft certificate can serve as an additional incentive in their work, since a certified specialist can count on a higher salary, career growth and participation in interesting and large-scale projects. The acquired new knowledge and skills in accordance with the current or desired position will allow you to work more efficiently and show management your motivation and professional growth. In addition, an international certificate allows a specialist to more accurately position himself in the IT environment and clearly convey to the attention of employers, clients, clients and colleagues his knowledge, skills and abilities in a particular area of information technology.
Also, some Microsoft certifications provide additional bonuses, for example:
- Subscription to Microsoft TechNet;
- Access to a repository of full versions of Microsoft software;
- Early access to beta versions of software;
- Ability to download and use documents from the Technical Library;
- Access to selected Microsoft E-Learning electronic courses;
- Additional information and offers from Microsoft;
- Regular news and specialized mailings.
For HR services
For HR departments, certification from manufacturers is also important and useful. When hiring an employee, certificates can tell about his specializations, level of qualifications, show his ability to learn and perceive new things, set clear goals for himself and achieve them. Among peer candidates, personnel services more often note the advantage of certified applicants over those who do not have certificates. Having current certification shows that a person has the skills to work with modern and advanced technologies. So IT certification is a universal measure that helps personnel service find the most suitable candidates for a particular position, as well as plan employees’ career advancement.
Modern Microsoft Certification Programs
Microsoft certifications exist for most Microsoft technologies and cover all levels of knowledge and skills. One direction of certification is technological, and the second is dedicated to Microsoft Office.
Technology Certifications
Microsoft technology certifications are statuses of several levels, reflecting knowledge and skills in working with some Microsoft software product or technology, as well as the qualifications of developers software products running on Microsoft platforms.
Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) Certification Program
The MTA certification is designed for engineering students to help them navigate and begin a career in a specific technical field, as well as prepare for in-depth product studies. They will be able to demonstrate fundamental knowledge computer equipment, IT infrastructure or software technologies.
MCSA (Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate) Certification Program
This is the basic level of certification for IT professionals and software developers. This certification demonstrates the holder's ability to perform basic installation and maintenance tasks information systems in a particular specialization or knowledge of basic software development tools. Solutions Associate- This is the foundation for a professional career. MCSA certification is prerequisite to move to the next level of certification - MCSE.
For this level of certification there is greatest number training courses and examinations.
MCSE (Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert) Certification Program
Key technical certification in Microsoft technologies for IT professionals. The holder of MCSE status has confirmed his deep knowledge and high qualifications necessary for the successful completion of complex tasks and the implementation of promising projects using latest technologies Microsoft.
To maintain MCSE status, professionals will be required to take a recertification exam every three years.
MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer) Certification Program
Similar to MCSE certification for developers. The Solutions Expert certification is becoming a widely accepted quality standard for IT professionals who demonstrate the ability to create innovative solutions using various technologies both on site and in cloud environments.
To maintain the MCSD level, you will be required to take a recertification exam every two years.
Microsoft Office Certifications
Microsoft Office certifications provide proof of ability to work effectively with Microsoft Office products: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access, One Note, and SharePoint; and use the rich functionality of these products in your work practice.
Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Certification Program
MOS certification demonstrates proficiency in the programs included in Microsoft Office and the ability to effectively perform job responsibilities.
There are several training courses and exams available for this level of certification.
Microsoft Office Specialist Expert (MOS Expert) Certification Program
The MOS Expert certification demonstrates expert skill in using one of the Microsoft Office products: Word, Excel, PowerPoint Outlook or Access. There are several training courses and exams available for this level of certification.
Microsoft Office Specialist Master (MOS Master) Certification Program
MOS Master - Demonstrates a thorough understanding and mastery of the programs included in Microsoft Office, identifying the technical skills to take advantage of the variety of their functions and apply them effectively and efficiently.
To obtain MOS Master status, you must pass expert exams on several MS Office products.
Trainer certification
Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) Certification Program
A Microsoft Certified Trainer is not only a specialist of a very high technical level, but also a professional with the skills to teach Microsoft training courses for technical specialists or developers.
To become an MCT, you must have current technical certifications, complete a Train the Trainer (TTT) course, and pass a special admissions exam.
Past Certifications
Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) Certification Program
A Microsoft Certified Technology Professional is an expert in a specific Microsoft product or technology. He can successfully implement, operate, customize, customize, and troubleshoot Microsoft products such as Windows operating systems, Microsoft Exchange Server, Microsoft SQL Server, Microsoft Visual Studio, or the System Center family of products.
Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) Certification Program
Microsoft Certified IT Professionals (MCITPs) have demonstrated the breadth and depth of their knowledge, skills, and proficiency. These are specialists who can design, build, implement, optimize, operate, and troubleshoot specific Microsoft technologies. They can make design and technical decisions, hold relevant positions and achieve success in implementing complex technical projects.
Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) Certification Program
Microsoft Certified Professional Developers (MCPD) demonstrate their skill and proficiency in using Microsoft technologies used to develop software solutions, such as Microsoft Visual Studio, Microsoft .NET Framework, and others. This validates that the IT professional has end-to-end skills in designing, developing, testing, debugging, and deploying applications.
Microsoft Certified Master (MCM) Certification Program
The Microsoft Certified Master program allows experienced IT professionals to test and validate their skills in designing and implementing solutions that meet the highest business requirements. For this purpose, special in-depth and intensive training courses, computer exams and laboratory tests are offered, the successful completion of which will demonstrate expert knowledge of a particular Microsoft product.
Microsoft Certified Architect (MCA) certification program
The Microsoft Certified Architect program certifies practicing industry-level IT solution architects. These are specialists of the highest technical level who have deep knowledge, extensive experience in designing, developing and implementing IT solutions for corporate customers, and are leaders of teams of professionals with whom they implement complex and large-scale projects.
MCA certification is awarded to a candidate upon successful completion of an MCA Board examination, which includes a three-hour interview with certified architects. During this interview, the candidate must demonstrate technical proficiency, business problem-solving skills, and business acumen.
Nowadays you can hear a lot of talk about the "New Generation of Microsoft Certification". Do you know what this is? Even if you know, you will probably be interested in finding out the details. In addition, you may have a rather vague idea of what certification is and what it is used for. If you have decided to take any test, then you will probably be interested to know what ways there are to prepare for successfully passing the exam. If you have already prepared, then a legitimate question arises: where to take it? If you live in the outback, then this is not a problem: it’s good if you have at least one delivery center in your city. And in the capital there are a great many authorized centers. How to choose? You will find answers to these and many other questions in this article.
What is Microsoft Certification
First, let's figure out what certification is and why it is needed.
Let's take some company: in this case eg Microsoft. This is the vendor. You can take some other company that develops hardware (hardware) and/or software ( software): IBM, Intel, Apple, etc. One day, the company decides that it needs to develop a certification program for its products. This can be done for various reasons: mainly for marketing reasons (advertising your products, etc.). But developing certification programs is a great way to find good specialists in your product, as well as attract specialists from other fields to study it.
Once this decision is made, the company begins developing the test(s). What is a test? This is about 40-100 questions (this number can vary greatly in different certification programs, especially among different companies), each of which has several answer options. The task is to choose the correct answer (depending on the question, there may be several answers - this is indicated in it). A strictly limited amount of time is allotted for the test - on average about an hour or two (this number can also vary greatly). If you do not have time to answer all the questions in the allotted time, then all unanswered questions will automatically be counted as incorrectly answered. Each test has its own “passing score” - the minimum number of points required to successfully pass the test. Previously, tests were divided into two categories: formal and adaptive. Adaptive, as the name implies, adapts to each examinee and, depending on how quickly he answers, increases or decreases the time allotted for answering each question. In adaptive tests, you cannot return to questions you have already completed. In formal tests, a common “chunk” of time is given for all questions. In addition, you can return to the questions you went through if you suddenly change your mind. Fortunately, there are practically no monstrous 🙂 adaptive tests left. The vast majority of tests are formal. After passing the test, you will receive a printout indicating your result: pass, if you passed the test, fail - if you failed:(, the number of points scored, as well as some other information. That’s all, then you just have to wait for the certificate. With the latter, however, There are also a huge number of problems involved. Lately There are more and more cases when certificates do not arrive 🙁 The only way out is to write to, and also find out at your delivery center. You can see the appearance of the certificate on the scans.
Let's return to our vendor. Once the test(s) are developed, the vendor company submits it to the certification provider. At the moment, there are actually only two of them: VUE and Thomson Prometric (the most famous). Of course, the test also goes through a beta testing stage and some other stages of preparation. After this, the test becomes available at all authorized centers where you can come and take it. In the vast majority of cases, the test is designed to English language and it surrenders, of course, on it too. Only in fairly rare cases is the test translated into other languages (German, French, etc. Russian is also included in this number). This happens when the test is very popular, as well as due to some other reasons.
Now regarding the cost of the test. Unfortunately, this pleasure is not free - you have to pay on average about $150 for the exam. In fairness and consolation, it is worth noting that Russia ranks first in terms of the cheapness of taking tests. So take it before testing prices in our country reach the world level :) Fortunately, quite often you can try to take a beta test - absolutely free.
Pros and cons of certification
After I have talked in some detail about the various technical nuances of creating and passing the test, it would be nice to answer the question: why do you need to take these tests? And is it even necessary? First of all, taking the test gives you invaluable experience. After all, you will be preparing for the test, which means you will acquire a huge amount of additional knowledge on the product you have chosen - this will never be superfluous. Secondly, if you successfully pass the test, you receive official confirmation of your knowledge and your ability to work with a particular product. But who can appreciate this better than the company that developed the product? In addition, the certificate is to a certain extent a substitute for the experience that is required for admission to 99.9% of vacant positions. How can you get work experience if you won’t hire anywhere without it? The solution is a certificate. You can also present it if you already have Full time job, and demand a promotion, salary increase, etc. This concerns the advantages of passing tests. But there are also disadvantages - you need to prepare for them (for some this may be a minus, and a significant one), you need to pay for them (the same thing). In addition, the issue of depreciation of certificates is now becoming increasingly relevant. This is mainly due to dumps and dumpers. More on this a little later.
Obtaining a certificate
After reading all of the above, such a title may seem stupid, to say the least. However, even in this matter there are nuances that are worth considering.
So, here are the main ways to obtain certificates (we do not consider methods like the banal purchase of the corresponding piece of paper:), especially since now this is already quite irrelevant and of little effectiveness):
- Official educational literature for self-study
- Courses
- TestKing`s (dumps)
The first is books (in our case, Microsoft Press) officially approved by Microsoft. Each of these books has an exact match to a Microsoft test. Each of them comes with a CD with the necessary additional materials and sample tests. It is worth noting that these practice tests in no way have anything to do with dumps - the questions in them are NOT the same as the real certification tests and serve only to check how much a person has mastered the material in the book. I can add from myself that the books are written very well, laboratory works they are compiled competently and the material presented in them correlates well with the topics of the real test (which is very, very important). Thus, it is quite possible to work through these books efficiently and then successfully pass the corresponding tests. However, some difficulties may arise. Which ones? The problem is that, despite a decent correlation, it is impossible to describe everything in a book, and since tests usually have a sufficient number of situational questions that describe real problems, you may not have enough knowledge gleaned from books to solve them. Conclusion (and this is already a transition to point 2, somewhat strange at first glance) - you need experience, experience working with a product/language, etc., experience in solving real problems. But, of course, it is unlikely that in your work you will use ALL the capabilities of the product and encounter all the problems that may arise when using it. And the vendor, when developing a test, does not look at what product options you use most often - he asks about all the capabilities of the product he has developed (of course, this is not an axiom - in all tests there are “distortions”, when one topic is covered very widely to the detriment of another). This is where books can help, covering to one degree or another all the capabilities of the product (or, according to at least trying to do this). Thus, training from textbooks plus experience is the best option for so-called “at-home” training. Of course, you can use only textbooks or rely only on your work experience - but this is fraught with either complete failure of the exam or passing with a very low number of points.
The next point is taking courses. The correlation and exact matching of courses to tests is constantly improving. In addition, this option is convenient because if you are receiving training from any company, then most often the company will pay for these courses for you. If you are a “loner” (or a greedy company 🙂 🙁), then the prices for the courses can be quite impressive. But this, in principle, is not a very big criterion - money is also required for books. Also a good option.
Finally, the last point is the famous TestKing`s (dumps), as well as dumpers - people who pass tests using dumps. What is all this? If you go to take the test (or if you have already taken it, you probably remember), then, regardless of whether you take it at VUE or Thomson Prometric, before you actually take it, you will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement about any information you see /you will hear, etc. 🙂 while taking the test. Without signing this document you will not be allowed to take the test. As you might guess, everyone signs this contract, but not everyone adheres to it. People working for the respective companies remember all the questions they encounter and, leaving the center, write them down. Then all these questions (along with answers and explanations) are packaged into one file and sold (in 99% of cases you don’t even have to buy - everything can be downloaded on peer-to-peer networks, with the possible exception of the most recent tests). One of the most famous companies doing this is TestKing. These questions are sold under the guise of additional materials for preparing for exams, but this worries few people and certainly does not deceive anyone. Such sets of real-life questions are called dumps. People who use them for full or partial preparation for exams are dumpers. These people, often without any experience or deep knowledge, memorize these questions and answers to them and successfully pass the tests. Nevertheless, for people who decided to donate “for free”, I want to say: there is always a chance that other questions will arise (there is still a bank of them, no matter how small). In addition, these dumps are compiled very poorly - often there are no answers to questions, explanations of the answers, or even - the answers are indicated incorrectly. I'm not convincing anyone of anything - I'm just giving an objective assessment. Dumps and dumpers are a matter of great importance for all IT specialists. The appearance of a huge number of people, often without any knowledge at all, with certificates in their hands (and quite serious ones) leads to a colossal devaluation of certificates and the certification program in general. By trading as a dumper, you contribute to this. If you passed some certificates using dumps, then failed at some interview, you have already “contributed” to the devaluation of certification. Even if you then pass honestly, your reputation and the value of the certificates will be ruined. So does the reputation and value of the certificates of millions of honestly certified professionals around the world. Think about it. Do you need a certificate that doesn't have much value?
Of course, it would be a mistake to say that vendors are not trying to combat this. Microsoft, in particular, tried to at least to some extent cope with this by developing and introducing a new certification program. This is what we will talk about now. But first you need to have a good understanding of the old certification program in order to be able to adequately compare both programs.
Old certification program
First of all, I would like to make a small remark. The new certification program was made not only to counteract dumpers (as it might seem from the last paragraph), but also for other reasons. More specifically, in the appropriate section.
Why did the old certification program become so? The main reason is product obsolescence. New products also required new tests. But, pursuing other indirect goals, Microsoft decided not to limit itself to the usual update of tests, but created an entirely new certification program. More details - again in the appropriate section.
Let's take a closer look at the old certification program. All tests included in it can be divided into the following branches:
- System administration
- Programming
- "Custom" branches
- Project and Enterprise Management
- Training "branch"
I emphasize that this division is conditional, unofficial and subjective.
The lowest level of the old Microsoft certification program is the Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) status. To obtain it, you must pass any one certification test.
If you decide to move on and get a more serious status, then you need to choose a direction: system administration or programming. The first branch includes the statuses: MCSA (Microsoft Certified System Administaror - certified Microsoft system administrator for Windows Server 2000 or 2003), MCSE (Microsoft Certified System Engineer - certified Microsoft system engineer for Windows Server 2000 or 2003), MCSA:Security (Microsoft Certified System Administaror - certified Microsoft system administrator with an emphasis on ensuring the security of supported systems), MCSE:Security (Microsoft Certified System Engineer - certified Microsoft system engineer with an emphasis on ensuring the security of supported systems), MCDBA (Microsoft Certified DataBase Admistrator - certified Microsoft database administrator ). It is clear that obtaining the status of a system administrator is much easier than obtaining the status of a systems engineer. The choice of the system by which you will receive status (2000 or 2003) is a business decision. I won’t go into detail about which tests you need to take to obtain which status - it’s pointless. You can find all the necessary relevant information on the sites, links to which I will provide at the end of the article.
The programming branch includes the MCAD (Microsoft Certified Application Developer) and MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solution Developer) statuses. The second status is more difficult to obtain than the first. In addition, both of these statuses can be obtained using .NET technology.
I refer to the so-called “user” branch as MCDST (Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician) statuses. technical support Windows XP) and MOS (Microsoft Office Specialist - Microsoft Office specialist versions 2000, 2003, XP).
Product and enterprise management include the statuses MPS (Microsoft Project Specialist - project management specialist) and MBS (Microsoft Business Solutions - specialist in enterprise management and business solutions) Certified Professional, Master (different levels of this status, respectively).
The “training” branch includes MCT (Microsoft Certified Trainer), MCLC (Microsoft Certified Learning Consultant) certificates. For both of these certificates, it is not enough to just pass exams - you also need to prove your presentation and teaching skills and much more other.
Now let's talk about the new Microsoft certification program.
New certification program
As is easy to understand from the above, the new certification program was made primarily due to the release of new products and to counteract dumpers. New products are, in particular, Visual Studio 2005 .NET, BizTalk Server 2006, SQL Server 2005, etc. As for dumpers, firstly, at least at first, dumpers will not have time to cover all the exams (however, this is only a matter of time), secondly, the bank of questions has been significantly increased (according to unofficial information), which reduces the likelihood of a large number of identical questions from exam to exam. In addition, in order to obtain serious statuses (such as Microsoft Certified Architect) in the new program, it is not enough to just pass: interviews and much more are also required.
I would like to note that the new certification program is still far from its final completion and is constantly evolving. So, a lot can still change. Writing articles about unfinished products is a thankless task and, as David Platt aptly puts it, “it’s like shooting at a target that is constantly moving at high speed.” However, users need information that is at least current this moment, now.
First, let's look at a graphical representation of the new Microsoft certification program (this is a fairly famous diagram and you may have already seen it):
Now I will explain in more or less detail everything that is depicted in this diagram. As you probably already noticed, the new program consists of 3 steps:
Level 1: Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist
1. .NET Framework 2.0 Web Applications
2. .NET Framework 2.0 Windows Applications
3. .NET Framework 2.0 Distributed Application
4. SQL Server 2005
5. BizTalk Server 2006
Level 2: Microsoft Certified IT Professional or Professional Developer (for example, Database Developer or Business Intelligence)
Level 3: Microsoft Certified Architect
In principle, everything is clear. Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist is roughly equivalent to the previous MCP. Level 2 - MCSA and MCAD. Third - MCSE, MCSD. Once again I emphasize the conventionality and subjectivity of such a division. However, it helps to identify many, perhaps not obvious, connections and analogies between the two certification programs.
Besides everything else, it has changed appearance certificates sent by Microsoft (or not sent :)). In the following scans you can compare their appearance:
Now let’s look at several already approved ways to update old certificates to new ones (the number of tests required to pass this is indicated in parentheses):
MCDBA SQL Server 2000, 2003 ==> Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Database Administrator (2 tests)
MCSD ==> Microsoft Certified Professional Developer: Enterprise Application Developer (2 tests)
MCAD ==> Microsoft Certified Professional Developer: Windows or Web (1 test)
Personal experience
Now that I have told you all the most important and interesting things about Microsoft certification, I think you will be interested in the story about my personal experience passing certification exams.
I took all my tests in 2005. The first one was 070-210 "Installing, Configuring and Administering Microsoft Windows 2000". My subjective opinion is that the test is very simple. I have read only a few articles on relevant sites (links to them are provided at the end of the article). These articles and, of course, my own experience with this system were quite enough to pass the test the first time with a score of 1000 points out of 1000 possible. And the preparation took no more than two weeks. This is how I received MCP status.
The next stage - obtaining MCSD .NET status (I passed all the exams under the old certification program) - was, of course, noticeably more difficult and responsible. To achieve the goal, it was necessary to pass 5 exams - among them, 4 were mandatory (I chose C#) and one was optional (I chose SQL Server 2000; you could also take BizTalk). I prepared only according to the official educational literature(well, with the help of the materials included with them, as I already said). Of course, I would hardly have been able to pass if I had no experience in programming in general and in C# under .NET in particular. I prepared for about two months. All this taken together helped me pass very well. short term(I took a series of exams almost every day) all the exams with fairly good results - the smallest number of points scored: 802 (with a passing score of 700). Draw conclusions.
http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcp/ - Microsoft Certification Overview
http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcp/newgen/ - The New Generation of Microsoft Certification
http://www.specialist.ru/ – TC “Specialist”
http://www.microinform.ru/ – TC “Microinform”
http://www.certification.ru/ – Club of certified specialists
http://www.certifications.ru/ – RetraTech – on-line certification
Conclusion
Finally, I’ll try to answer the question: is it still worth getting a Microsoft certificate? My opinion is definitely worth it. Firstly, in any case, this is the acquisition of invaluable experience. Secondly, the certificate in any case has not lost its value so much that it has no weight - far from it (this must be taken into account).
The new Microsoft certification program is undoubtedly a big improvement over the old program. I would like to believe (and there is every reason for this) that by the time it is finally completed and finalized, the new certification program will become what it was supposed to be according to Microsoft's plans - high-quality, convenient and professional program certification that meets the requirements of the time. And Microsoft has already done a lot to achieve this result.
The Microsoft certification program is one of the most famous and popular among IT professionals. Obtaining a Microsoft certificate is good start or continuation for career advancement, helps deepen technical knowledge, develop collaboration with other IT professionals and increase job satisfaction.
Microsoft certification levels:
1. MTA: Technology Associate
Demonstrates knowledge of basic technology principles. This certification is optional and is not a prerequisite for other certifications.
2. MCSA: Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate
Initial certification in professional field. Demonstrates that the holder has the basic technical skills required for a career in the IT field.
3.MCSE:Microsoft CertifiedSolutions Expert
Highest professional certification. Globally recognized standard for IT professionals.
4. MCSD: Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer
The certification confirms that its holder has all the necessary skills to create modern mobile and/or web applications and services.
Once you pass your first Microsoft certification exam (excluding MTA exams), you will become Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP).
Each of the three levels includes a division according to various technologies.
New direction of certification - Role-based certifications.
You can also use networking card to have a clear idea of what exams you need to pass to obtain the certificate you have chosen:
You can take any of the Microsoft exams at Pearson VUE testing center. Please read the instructions on this page carefully. When you schedule an exam, you will be redirected to the Microsoft website where you must create an account and register for the exam.
To register for the exam, Microsoft does not have mandatory requirement take preparatory authorized courses, but the Microsoft training program will allow you to most effectively prepare for exams and obtain authorized teaching aids for the preparation of.
Microsoft Technology Certification Tracks: Completing Courses and Related Exams
|
SQL Server |
MCSA: SQL 2016 Database Development Exams: 70-761, 70-762 MCSA: SQL 2016 Database Administration MCSA: SQL 2016 BI Development Exams: 70-767, 70-768 MCSA: SQL Server 2012/2014 Exams: 70-461, 70-462, 70-463 MCSA:BI Reporting Exams: 70-778, 70-779 |
MCSE (Solutions Expert):
Data management and analysis |