MCSE certification

The MCSE certification from Microsoft is arguably the most widely recognised I.T. certification on the market, both from a candidate’s and an employer’s point of view, but it is also, arguably, becoming one of the most saturated certifications on the market.

While the MCSE certification is definitely a worthwhile and valuable certification to acquire, the MCSE certification is no longer the industry yardstick it used to be. There are perhaps a few reasons for this such as more specialised certifications coming on to the market, more and more people becoming MCSE certified each year, or perhaps the main reason, because of the sheer numbers of ‘paper MCSE’s’ who do nothing more than braindump their way to MCSE certification. Any I.T. employer worth his or her salt will be acutely aware of hiring a potential ‘paper MCSE’ and will therefore be less likely to take the credentials of ‘MCSE certified’ on face value. This extra scrutiny, in itself, is not a bad thing, but it does take away from the effort and commitment required to achieve MCSE certification from those who approach the task in the right way. The MCSE is a major certification and deserves to be approached and treated as such.

The MCSE certification itself has been around, in it’s various incarnations, for many years now and has been upgraded as new platforms and technologies arise. As such, the current flavours of MCSE are as follows:

The two paths of the MCSE certification (Server 2003 and Windows 2000) are independent of each other, and there is an upgrade path available for those people who may have started down the MCSE Windows 2000 certification path and then wish to move over to the Server 2003 path.

The specialisations for each MCSE track offer candidates a way to focus their training into particular niches (Messaging or Security), and carry the same weight and requirements of the standard MCSE tracks. These specialisations were introduced by Microsoft to cater to candidates who wished to demonstrate competence in specific fields, such as security (which is in strong demand right now).

As time goes by, Microsoft continually updates the exams and objectives, as well as introducing new exams and discontinuing others. As the MCSE certification is a reasonably long and arduous certification, it pays to be aware of the life-span of each of the exams you intend on taking and to go into the MCSE certification with a clear plan of how you wish to tackle the certification. You should also consider cross-certification credits to get the most from your money and studying time.

The cost of each of the Microsoft exams is US$125 per exam (depending on where you live), regardless of how many times you take the exam. If you fail, you must pay the money again to retake the exam, but sometimes there are offers for free ‘second shots’. Keep an eye out for promotions and special deals though as they do happen from time to time (check on the Microsoft site or the testing stations themselves), but don’t let the thought of saving a few bucks make you rush your studying or make you sit the exam earlier than you would have otherwise liked to.

Remember also to take advantage of exam vouchers, as the complete MCSE certification track is not cheap. The exams alone won’t give you much change from US$1000 so it pays to use vouchers and get cheaper exams as well as free study material. If you’re not sure what vouchers are, click here, and if you do, then here is a good place to start looking for deals.

If you do need to retake an exam due to a failed first attempt, you can take the exam again anytime you wish (even the same day, as long as you pay the fee), but if you fail the second time you must wait a period of at least two weeks before attempting the exam again. You must wait another 14 days after each failure thereafter. You are allowed to take other exams in the MCSE track during this waiting period though, just not the one you failed twice.

Once you have successfully passed all of the individual exams for the MCSE certification track you elect, then you are officially MCSE qualified.

Click on the links below for detailed information on each of the MCSE tracks:

MCSE Certification