Microsoft Certifications

More Developer Training from Channel 9

2009-11-18T00:35:44Z

Sitting here at PDC this week and watching the loooooonnnng line for the Azure hands-on labs. Wow! Not at PDC, or perhaps you are but you don’t think the camera or mouse is worth the wait? Try out the new training from Channel 9 online. On Tuesday, November 17 th , Channel 9 launches 3 additional online training courses created by developers for developers. Channel 9 has always been about giving direct access to the engineers and future technologies from Microsoft. ...(read more)

New Training on Channel 9

2009-11-09T17:11:20Z

Are you trying to find more information to help you prepare for certifications? Perhaps you would like to go a little deeper on some of the technologies. Channel 9 has always been a great go-to place for developers looking for the latest information and now, they’ve added some great training content as well. Today Channel 9 launched three new training courses created by developers for developers. Channel 9 has always been about giving direct access to the engineers and future technologies...(read more)

Visual Studio 2010 Exams Update

2009-10-30T15:47:32Z

We are just finishing up week two of intense exam design sessions today. Last week we created the outline for the MCTS Windows and Web exams. Lots of great discussion by a group of excellent subject matter experts for each session. Please know that these people are rock stars and they have your best interest at heart. They fight for what is right and what will make a great exam experience for you and the industry. This week, we are finalizing details on the outline for the...(read more)

Win 7 and VS2010 Training Courses LIVE

2009-10-21T19:23:01Z

Want to learn more on the latest versions of Visual Studio and Windows coming out of Redmond? Do you like how-to videos and hands-on labs? Just got word on some Visual Studio 2010 and Windows 7 training from Channel 9. Check out these resources. Explore Visual Studio 2010 Beta 2 with a new training course on Channel 9 The developer evangelists who bring you the 10-4 Show are providing videos and labs for you to get familiar with .NET Framework 4 and Visual Studio 2010. This...(read more)

Dates Set for Visual Studio 2010 Exam Design

2009-08-29T00:01:50Z

October and November will be busy months around here as we start design on the Visual Studio 2010 exams. These sessions will be a little different than what we did for VS2008 as we are working with our Portfolio Design team on a combined effort using our USD 3.0 processes. USD stands for Unified Skills Domain and its main purpose is to ensure alignment across the entire portfolio for exams and training. The sessions create an exam design known as an Object Domain(OD) and a complete portfolio...(read more)

Developer Certification Changes

2009-07-07T21:10:57Z

Early information but at this point, it looks as though there will be two new exams for SharePoint developers coming. An MCTS and an MCPD for Office SharePoint Server. Some of you asked for the MCPD at PDC and I indicated at the time that it would require audience research. The SharePoint folks have provided that and as a result, there will be new exams forthcoming. Unfortunately, it appears as though there always has to be a negative side as well. At this point, unless we...(read more)

Windows vs WPF

2009-06-12T21:10:27Z

Wow, what a lot of feedback on both blogs around the Windows Forms vs WPF debate. All good comments and excellent feedback folks, thanks very much. For those who haven’t read or partaken in the discussions, allow me to provide some background. Our current set of certifications and exams for the developer community contain MCTS exams for Windows Forms and Windows Presentation Foundation. Our MCPD exams currently provide for Windows Developer, Web Developer and Enterprise Developer. ...(read more)

Visual Studio 2010 Exams Are Changing

2009-05-28T21:21:51Z

Well, just a little. After much thought, and then some more, along with discussions with the community, the product groups for Visual Studio and .NET 4, our own internal folks and anyone else who wanted to chime in, we have finally decided on most of the new developer certification plan. Here are the 99% definite exams; MCTS Web Developer MCTS Windows Developer MCTS Connecting to Data (ADO.NET) MCTS WCF MCPD Web Developer MCPD Windows Developer Here are the 50% definite exams; MCTS Workflow MCPD...(read more)

Certification Update and Small Survey

2009-04-14T01:26:11Z

We are almost locked on our Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 certification track. Lots of discussions around this internally and a potential change in the landscape. At this point in time, it’s looking like the MCPD track will change and exam 70-536 will not move forward. That means there will not be a prerequisite for the MCTS developer exams. That’s about all I can offer into that picture for the time being. My second reason for posting today is a small survey. ...(read more)

All is Quiet on the Cert Front

2009-03-06T20:55:25Z

Too quiet actually. I know a lot of people are waiting to see what the new cert plan will be for Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4.0. I can’t tell you yet because we are working on it now. The main reason for this post and the title is more related to a SQL Server exam, 70-433. I know it is no longer in beta which means it’s no longer free but……. If you know of Database Developers who are thinking of certification, give them a little shove that way if you would please. We are looking...(read more)

Exam 70-565 Prep Guide

2009-02-11T19:39:33Z

Some of you are asking about information on what this exam will cover and the prep guides are not updated on the public pages yet. In the meantime, I have posted the prep guide information here. Target Audience Candidates for this exam work on a team in a development environment that uses Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET 2008 and the .NET Framework 3.5 to build enterprise applications. Candidates should have at least one to two years of experience developing enterprise applications by using...(read more)

Career Assist

2009-02-10T23:16:18Z

The current economic situation leaves many people wondering about their careers and future job prospects. The IT industry is not immune to these conditions. We all face many challenges and decisions in the months ahead on how to best position ourselves for success. Microsoft Learning is ready to help, here’s how. Get a second chance to pass your Microsoft Certification exam — free offer! In the real world, you might need more than one chance at certification. With Second Shot, if...(read more)

Keeping Up to Date and Going Backwards at the Same Time

2009-02-10T03:20:32Z

Part of my role as a Product Planner is to keep up with technology changes in the industry as they impact the audiences that I focus on. For me, that means developer technologies and SQL Server trends etc. For the most part, this is an enjoyable aspect of the role but one that can keep you on your toes and not leave much room for down time. Currently, we are in the midst of our planning cycle for our next fiscal year. That means I’m busy deciding what exams to create and what certifications...(read more)

Status Update on Exam Release Dates

2009-02-02T20:42:51Z

A few are asking, so I thought I would post this morning what our current release dates are for the remaining exams. SQL Server 70-433 – February 27, 2009 Visual Studio 70-505 – February 5, 2009 70-563 – February 3, 2009 70-565 – February 23, 2009 70-566 – March 10, 2009 70-567 – March 3, 2009 70-568 – March 26, 2009 70-569 – March 26, 2009 Embedded Standard 70-577 – February 5, 2009 Again, remember that these dates are current but are subject to change without notification. Gerry...(read more)

Designers Are Next

2009-01-20T02:21:46Z

Yes that’s right, I will be looking at what to do with some of the Expression Suite of products in my planning for this next fiscal year. I will be meeting with representatives from the Expression Design team this afternoon to discuss training and certification for that product. Now, I am able to draw a paycheck, but I have no artistic talents whatsoever. I do have Expression Design installed, along with the other products in that suite, but have only opened Expression Blend thus far. ...(read more)