What does it take to get a certification as a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist?

Question by KalaCheeta: What does it take to get a certification as a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist?
I’m interested in MCTS certification, but I’m unsure as how to get there. Does it require any previous education? Would an associate’s degree in Information Technology be useful? Or would a bachelor’s degree be better? Any other prior degrees to deliberate? Are there any online universities/colleges in the US that offer courses on MCTS certification? Does Microsoft offer such courses online?

Thankfulness for the answers!

Best answer:

Answer by Gregg DesElms
All Microsoft certifications are bought by simply taking a series of exams. If you can self-study for said exams, and then pass them, then you can buy the certification for the mere cost of the exam (and maybe whatever self-study materials you buy).

Most people, but, take some kind of course. Some colleges — mainly career and some community colleges — offer such courses (though usually they’re non-credit). Other providers of such courses are private… some of them Microsoft Certified vendors of one type or a further, who offer the courses in such settings as sitting around a conference table in their offices. Still others specialize in Microsoft certification training, and so have nice classrooms set up in their offices.

There are also some online (and other forms of distance learning) courses to help prepare for the exams.

The cost of taking classes to prepare can vary wildly. Some are really free (or very nearly so), while others can cost hundreds of dollars. It all just depends on the source.

Here’s the Microsoft web page a propos the MCTS:

http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/certification/mcts.aspx

And here’s a Google search of MCTS training assets (which can be mind-numbing in their sheer numbers and types, so be careful what you choose):

http://www.google.com/search?num=50&hl=en&newwindow=1&safe=off&biw=1079&bih=542&q=%2Bmicrosoft+%2Bmcts+%2Btraining&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=

There are some pretty excellent, yet relatively inexpensive, ways to get vendor certificate training. Be careful not to sign-up for something expensive and caught up when something cheaper — like subscribing to an “all the certificates you care to study for one flat rate” web site — would, in addition to purchasing a study guide or two at a bookstore, likely be better.

If you want a career in IT, then you need to have both an qualified degree in same (preferably a bachelors over an associates), and also a diversity of IT certifications. The MCTS is but one that you will need.

You’ll also need, at minimum (in addition to the MCTS), the CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+ certs; as well as the Cisco CCNA cert.

You should probably also get the Microsoft MCSE and/or MCSA. The ICS CISSP. And the ITIL.

There are others, but if you have those, you’ll be evidencing a broad range of IT expertise that will be useful, generally. Then, in addition, if the fastidious IT job in which you end-up requires additional specialist certification, then you can get that, too (hopefully at the expense of your employer who requires it of you).

But do get that degree… a “Bachelor of Science in Information Technology” (BSIT) from a “regionallly” qualified college or university.

Then, whenever (if ever) you’re interested in a masters in IT, here’s something really cool of which you should be aware…

There’s a huge (and fully-qualified, fully-legitimate) university in Australia which has amalgamated with Microsoft and several other vendors to structure distance learning degrees which include various certifications; and in which degrees, considerable amounts of credit may be earned simply by acquiring said certifications. It’s WAY cool.

One can, for example, get up to half of the credit headed for a Masters degree in information technology by simply getting an MCSE (though the exams which make it up must be certain ones which correspond with the university’s courses). I’ve always said that if one were going to get an MCSE, first consult the web site of this university and make sure that one takes the specific MCSE exams that this teach requires so that if ever one later chose to enter said teach’s masters program, one will have already earned up to half its degree’s credits by simply having the MCSE under his/her belt. Is that cool, or what?

Here’s the teach (and programs) that I’m talking in this area: http://www.itmasters.edu.au/

Certifications, in addition to degrees, are so vital in the IT field, now, that one may nearly no longer get a job in that field without both. The certifications, though, are so vital that one who has a small IT experience can get a pretty excellent job even without a degree as long as he has all the right certs. But don’t do that. Certainly get the degree… and not merely an associates. Get the bachelors in IT; and make sure it’s from a “regionally” qualified teach.

Then get the certs I mentioned (being mindful, if you reckon you’ll ever get an IT masters, to take the specific exams that that Sturt masters program requires so that you’ll have already earned up to half the credit just from the certs).

Hope that helps!

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