Microsoft Certifications: I am already an MCITP in SQL 2005 and I want to upgrade. Where do I start?
The second to last posting in the Microsoft Certifications: Where do I Start Series. It's taken me a little while to get them all put up, mostly due to other posts, plans not complete and ready to discuss, or just plain laziness. Of course all the above were contributing factors, but only a small bit of the last reason. :-)
If you are already an MCITP on SQL Server 2005 that is excellent. Congratulations on achieving it. All of your hard won't be in vain when SQL Server 2008 releases. We have changed the landscape a little bit but not too drastically. It is still recognizable.
For example, you still have the following certifications;
MCITP: Database Administrator
MCITP: Business Intelligence
MCPD: Database Developer
The latter is not locked yet but my intention is to focus the audience more correctly around developer skills in lieu of IT Pro skills. After all, you are known as a database "developer".
At any rate, the changes come more in realm of the exams required to get there. In the SQL Server 2005 world, you needed to take exam 70-431 as a prerequisite for any of the Pro level exams. There is an equal prereq in the SQL 2008 world but remember from the previous post on this series, there is now a separate DBA exam (70-432) and a DBD exam (70-433). Each TS exam is a prerequisite for its counter part in the Pro world.
The main thing to note is that we have changed the Pro exams to be a single exam for each certification. In the past, you needed to take 70-441 and 70-442 for your MCITP: DBD or 70-443 and 70-444 for your MCITP: DBA credential. Now, there is just one exam for Pro DBA (70-450) or one exam for Pro DBD (70-451). If you are looking at BI, that remains at one exam, but is a new version for 2008 (70-452).
Also note that for those who are already certified, there is an upgrade path. The upgrade exams will provide you with the opportunity to complete one exam and earn your TS and Pro certifications on SQL Server 2008 at one time. NOTE: You must currently hold an MCITP on SQL Server 2005 to take advantage of this upgrade path.
PLEASE NOTE: the links to the new exams above, 432, 433, 450, 451, and 452 are not all live yet so these links will not lead you to the prep guide pages until they are posted prior to the beta exam.
Gerry
Comments
Anonymous
April 08, 2008
Your previous posts mentioned that 70-448 will be the MCTS level for BI, which is a pre-requisite for MCITP BI PRO - 70-452. Did things change? (you haven't mentioned 70-448 in this post).Anonymous
April 08, 2008
Titus, You are correct. I did forget to mention 70-448. It is indeed the TS for BI and is the prerequisite for 70-452 Pro. See what happens when you stay up all night troubleshooting router problems? :-) Thanks for bringing that up. GerryAnonymous
April 11, 2008
For MCDBA on SQL Server version 7. Is there an upgrade path can be taken to MCITP:DBA on SQL 2005?Anonymous
April 11, 2008
Hi Oliver, There is not an upgrade path from MCDBA SQL Server 7.0 to MCITP: DBA. The upgrade path is only available to those who are an MCDBA on SQL 2000. GerryAnonymous
April 16, 2008
Any dates on the Beta's for the upgrades?Anonymous
April 16, 2008
There are no beta exams for the upgrades. Upgrade exams are compiled from existing TS and Pro level exams which have already had the betas. GerryAnonymous
April 20, 2008
Gerry, Any target dates on the Beta exams? Are these dates still accurate? 70-432 June 2008 70-433 July 2008 70-448 June 2008 DarrilAnonymous
April 21, 2008
HI Darril, About as accurate as I'm willing to commit to at this time. :-) As of right now, we are on track for 432 and 448 but 70-433 will not be available in the June time frame. GerryAnonymous
April 25, 2008
Gerry Is there a time lag between the release of the product (SQL Server 2008) and the corresponding beta exams being launched? Or, is it that both can happen simultaneously? Just curious to know how much time I will get to play with the released product before taking the exam. Any idea when the prep-guides for the Sql Server 2008 exams will be available? I am planning to take the exams. Availability of the prep guides will help in preparation.Anonymous
April 25, 2008
Hi Titus, There are usually some form of lag in one direction or another based on when development of the exam starts. For example, at times, we have exams out almost at RTM of the product, although this doesn't happen often. We strive to balance the release dates with exam content and product release. The beta exams can be out earlier, as you will see with 70-432 and 70-448, then the product release, but this means we delay the release of the final version of the exam until we have refreshed the content of the exam according to the RTM features. The prep guides for the SQL 2008 exams mentioned above should be out in June based on the current development schedule. GerryAnonymous
June 10, 2008
Gerry, Is the 71-432 beta out? Looks like it's available on prometric. Can I please get a coupon for this one, if you have any ? Thanks, PrashanthAnonymous
June 10, 2008
Hi Prashanth, At this time, the beta is not open to the general public. I am sorry but we don't make it publicly available as a rule. The rationale for this is to help ensure that we get qualified candidates taking the exam. If we open it to the public, most people will want to take the exam because it is free. A large precentage of those people will not be properly qualified to take the exam and this will skew the results that we get from the exam data. As a result, we could make decisions on items that are not in the best interest of the industry. Having said that, I need to clarify that I am not saying you are not qualified to take the exam, I don't know that, so I cannot and am not making that claim. I am bound by our official channels and rules around this, sorry. GerryAnonymous
June 11, 2008
Thanks for clarifying it Gerry and taking time to explain the reasons behind the beta not being open to public. On a side note, I was trying to register to receive email updates to this post and for it kept me redirecting to this page: http://blogs.msdn.com/user/CreateUser.aspx?ReturnUrl=/gerryo/archive/2008/04/08/microsoft-certifications-i-am-already-an-mcitp-in-sql-2005-and-i-want-to-upgrade-where-do-i-start.aspx Do I need to be a msdn blogger to recieve the updates? Thanks, PrashanthAnonymous
June 13, 2008
Hmmm, Not sure why that is happening. Has anyone else successfully subscribed to updates? GerryAnonymous
August 12, 2008
I've read several of your earlier posts. I want to get MCPD certifcation (I'm guessing for Net 2.0). Most of my time is spent on wbe development, with the remainder in Window/console/services type development. I'm not focusing beyond 2.0 yet. What is the upgrade path for MCPD? Is it different for MCPD Web and MCPD Enterprise? Thanks, MichaelAnonymous
August 12, 2008
Hi Michael, I'm not clear on what you are asking. You are talking about an upgrade path but you haven't told me if you hold a current certification or what you want to to upgrade to and upgrade from. If you can provide that information, it would make it much easier to direct you in the appropriate certification path. GerryAnonymous
November 07, 2008
Hi, Is the 70-443 exam contains only case study with 12 questions?.Anonymous
November 07, 2008
I'm sorry Anna, That information cannot be given out in public. Gerry