Last week, Microsoft announced (See full press release here) a new hierarchy to the Certification model. The previous model was based upon fulfilling the needs of "IT Generalist" to ensure the individual had a solid foundation of knowledge of the internal working of the Microsoft Servers,networking, and application infrastructure.
Under the new structure, Microsoft certifications are composed of four broad functional areas: technology specialists (technology-specific certification focused on configuration), IT professionals or software developers (job-role certifications that are general in technology focus), the Master’s training and certification program, and systems architects (dual focus on mastery of technical skills and strategy).
Microsoft Certification Structure
- Master Series: Master certifications identify individuals with the deepest technical skills available on a
- particular Microsoft product.
- Professional Series: Professional credentials validate the skill set required for a particular job.
-
- Technology Series: Specialist certifications train IT pros in implementation, building, troubleshooting, and
- debugging of a specific Microsoft technology.
The new Master-level training and certification program is designed to help IT professionals attain a “master” level of proficiency in specific products – something previously only available internally to Microsoft employees and select partners. The programs will focus on design, build, and troubleshooting skills, and will require three weeks of mandatory training per track, delivered exclusively by top subject matter experts and industry-renowned instructors. The initial plan is to roll out the program for Exchange Server 2007, SQL Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, with additional server products being added in the future.