HaroCrafton192

Microsoft is revamping its certification tracks, and will eventually retire the common MCSE certificatons. The new certification setup is a lot like Cisco's, where you can find expert certifications to go with the more general CCNA, then mid-level certifications including the CCNP, and then a more-advanced practical assessment made somewhat following the desirable CCIE certification.

Microsoft's new specialist exams would be the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) exams. At the time of March 2006, there were five separate MCTS Tracks. Three of them deal with.NET Framework 2.0; these are the Web Application, Windows Applications, and Distributed Applications certifications. The candidate is required by each of these separate certifications to pass two tests. There's also a SQL Server 2005 certification, along with a Server 2006 single-exam certification.

The first question is "Why is Microsoft doing this?" In accordance with their website, MS feels that IT hiring administrators today have a difficult time deciding which computer qualifications best establish job candidates who best meet their needs. I understand it's easy-to take verbal shots at Microsoft (it will be an Olympic sport one-day), but this new series of certs does have appeal for hiring managers, which could only help qualified candidates. Rather than the more-general MCSE, which does still suffer from the overcertification of NT 4.0 MCSEs back the day, these more-specific qualifications will make it easier for the job candidate to show that they'll do the job - and easier for the hiring manager to make an informed decision.

Microsoft has not reported the track that will eventually change the MCSE, but this track will be revealed with all the next client-server Windows release. It's as much as you to keep informed of these changes, so I would suggest you visit Microsoft's accreditation website usually. "I didn't know" is not much help once an accreditation ends! thumbnail