Microsoft Certification Guide: A Complete Guide
4 min readMicrosoft holds the largest market share in the IT sector. Its products and applications are the most widely used, with hundreds of new businesses adopting them daily. Therefore it is no surprise that any Microsoft certification course is highly in demand and a standard of quality and expertise.
The demand for Microsoft product and application experts is high in the market today. An IT professional with a Microsoft certification is a credible expert in deploying, managing and troubleshooting different applications and network programs.
Microsoft offers the certifications and exams you need to improve your skills. To prepare you for the certification exam, Microsoft Gold Partner platforms like Koenig offer online one-to-one learning and flexible time slots so that you can prepare at your pace.
There are 5 different levels of certification:
- Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA)
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Associate (MCSA)
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert (MCSE)
- Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer (MCSD)
- Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS)
The Microsoft Certification Program is divided into several parts. But which certification is the right one for you? Once you have all the information you need, you can make an informed decision.
Microsoft Certification Program Categories
MICROSOFT CLOUD CERTIFICATION:
This cloud certification track equips you with MTA and MCSA credentials. The MTA program teaches you everything about Cloud Fundamentals. To get the MTA: Cloud Fundamentals certification, aspirants must pass an exam that tests their knowledge and skills using basic Microsoft cloud services.
The prerequisite for this certification is experienced with firewalls, network ports, Office 365, and Microsoft Intune. The certification includes BI Reporting, SQL 2016 BI Development certs, and Windows Server 2012 and 2016 credentials.
MICROSOFT MOBILITY CERTIFICATION:
The Microsoft Mobility Certification includes 3 levels of expertise. The MTA certification teaches you everything you need to know about Mobility and Device Fundamentals. It requires you to have practical knowledge of Active Directory, Windows devices, Windows-based networking, network topologies and firewalls and other anti-malware products.
At the MCSA level, you are equipped with Windows 10 credentials, which requires you to pass two exams.
The highest level of certification is the MSCE: Mobility. It requires an MCSA certification and an additional exam clearance that deals with either desktop and enterprise applications, or administering System Centre Configuration Manager and Cloud Services Integration.
MICROSOFT DATA CERTIFICATION:
This track includes 3 levels of certification – MTA, MCSA and MCSE. The MTA certification gets you only one credential, database fundamentals. The MCSA level offers 6 certifications –
- SQL BI Development
- SQL Database Administration
- SQL Database Development
- SQL Server 2012/14
The MCSE Data track includes only one certification, which is in data management and analytics. The specialisations and topics that you get qualified in are cloud data platform solutions, big data analytics, developing and designing SQL server databases, analysing big data with Microsoft R, cloud data science and data engineering with Azure, and other business intelligence and big data solutions.
MICROSOFT PRODUCTIVITY CERTIFICATION:
This certification track has a wide range of certifications, from Office 365 services to competency in a single Office offering. Even the range of specialisations is wider than the former categories as it offers a MOS level certification as well.
At the MCSA level, you get certified in Office 365. Office 365 is software designed for large organisations to keep them connected even when they’re on the move. The topics covered at this level are (for multiple versions of the platforms)
- Exchange Server
- Sharepoint Server
- Skype for Business
There is also a MOS Office certification for each application in MS Office. Besides that, there is a MOS 2016 Expert certification that certifies expert skills in MS Office. The MOS 2016 Master is the highest level of certification and requires the clearance of 6 exams for this certification.
Additional Read: CCNA certification in Delhi
MICROSOFT BUSINESS APPLICATIONS CERTIFICATION:
This certification gives you the expertise to manage and work with Microsoft Dynamics 365 technologies. You can get certifications at 2 levels – MCSA and MCSE. The MCSA certification covers Dynamics 365 for customer engagement online deployment as well as customisation and configuration.
The MSCE level certifies you in Business Applications. The topics covered are Dynamics 365 for sales, customer service, trade, finance, retail, talent, and field service.
MICROSOFT APP DEVELOPMENT CERTIFICATION:
This certification includes MTA, MSCA and MSCD levels. The MTA level recognises entry-level developers.
The MCSA level has 2 credentials – Universal Windows Platform and Web Applications. Applicants need to pass examinations that test skills in ASP.NET web applications, programming in either HTML5 with Javascript/ CSS3 or C#.
The MCSD level gives you the App Builder certification. The topics covered include training with Microsoft Azure, developing mobile apps, programming in HTML5 with JavaScript and CSS3, and C#, among others.
Conclusion
Besides the above-mentioned categories, you can also train in Microsoft Core Infrastructure or get Microsoft trainer/ educator certifications. You can easily get study materials online to prepare for your exams. Training your skills and expertise in Microsoft applications opens you up to new career growth paths and opportunities. With Koenig, you get the extra edge as you prepare. Give your career the boost it needs and enrol today.
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