- Topics Mentioned
- Certification(s):
- Microsoft Certifications
There’s a lot going on in the certification world today. Cisco is introducing a new CCNP path next month, the Linux Professional Institute has recently formed new partnerships with CompTIA and Novell offering some nice certification benefits for Linux candidates, and let’s not forget about the two new wireless networking certs that CWNP is planning to launch later this year.
But that’s not all! While at TechEd I learned about a few new Microsoft certification updates that I thought were worth mentioning including new exams, and a two changes to current exams and certifications:
- Exam 83-640 Reverts Back to 70-640
- MCAS Reverts Back to MOS
- New MCTS: Bing Maps Certification
- New MCTS: Deploying Windows 7 + Office 2010 Certification
- Second Shot Ends in June … and Maybe Forever?
Exam 83-640 Reverts Back to 70-640
Because of some technical difficulties the 83-640 performance based exam is temporarily suspended and replaced by it’s predecessor, Exam 70-640.
The two exams are essentially the same, covering the same objectives and will earn you the same certification: MCTS: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring. The main difference between the two exams is the format — Exam 83-640 is a performance based or lab based exam, whereas Exam 70-640 is a traditional multiple-choice type exams. The Transcender blog has a great article about the difference between the two exams.
So what does all of this mean for those who are registered for the 83-640 exam?
Born to Learn says that all current registrations from 83-640 will automatically change to 70-640 with no required action on your part. Your exam will still be at the same time and location but you will be taking the 70-640 exam instead. You do however have the choice to reschedule your time and location through Prometric if you need to.
MCAS Reverts Back to MOS
Does anyone remember the MOS certification? The Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification was used with the Office 2000, Office XP and Office 2003 versions of Office. With Office 2007 the Microsoft Certified Applications Specialist (MCAS) credential was introduced along with some confusion about the Office certifications.
Starting this month, the MCAS is no more and the MOS designation is now valid for all versions of Office, from 2000 to 2010, including Office 2007.
What does this mean for individuals who earned the MCAS?
MCAS certified individuals are now MOS certified for Office 2007. Born to Learn points out that “your certification is still relevant and valued in the marketplace” and that this change “does not affect your credential.” You can now view and print your updated transcript with the MOS logo and make appropriate changes to your virtual business cards at Microsoft Learning.
New MCTS: Bing Maps Certification
The most surprising certification update I learned about last week is the introduction of the new Bing Maps certification. As you know, Bing is Microsoft’s new search engine which includes the Bing Maps feature.
The new Bing Maps exam (70-544) validates skills such as retrieving, analyzing, and displaying location data, administering location platforms and manipulating the map. The certification is designed for application developers working with Visual Studio 2008 interested in creating solutions environments using Bing Maps. Exam 70-544 will earn you the credential of MCTS: Bing Maps Platform, Application Development.
More information on the new Bing Maps certification can be found at Microsoft Learning.
New MCTS: Deploying Windows 7 + Office 2010 Certification
Although not officially out yet, an upcoming MCTS certification exam will focus on Windows 7 and Office 2010 deployment. The exam numbered 70-681 will go into beta soon.
No word yet on when the exam will be available to the public, but a recent Born to Learn post does confirm that the exam will be available for subject matter experts to participate in beta.
Second Shot Ends in June … and Maybe Forever?
The popular Second Shot offer ends June 30th and this time it might be gone forever, or so I heard. At the moment it’s just a rumor, so please don’t quote me on this, but I’ve heard from a number of individuals that this might be the last second shot offer. Why? I have no idea… so hopefully this is just a rumor and second shot will come back next year.
So… What Else Is New?
What did you learn this week? Got any exciting exam or certification news to share?
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