Mcsa

If you are an IT professional or wish to start a career in Information Technology, you may want to get Microsoft certified. Microsoft certifications will help you land a job and if you already have an IT position, will help you advance. An certification such as an MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator) or MCSE Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer) should also give you the advantage of a higher salary.  In order to get any certifications from Microsoft, you must first pass a very stringent MCSA exam.

Actually, the MCSA certification is not just one MCSA exam, but rather it is a series of exams on different but related Microsoft technologies. In order to achieve the MCSA certification, you must attain the following:

Pass 3 Core Exams

Two networking system exams

One client operating system exam

And

One elective exam

The list of elective exams you need to pass are rather extensive, but the list of core exams is limited to the following (remember you must pass both of these MCSA exams to qualify for an MCSA). The networking exams are:

Exam 70-290: Managing and Maintaining a Windows Server 2003 Environment

Exam 70-291: Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure

The operating system exams are (and you must pass one of these):

Exam 70-620: TS: Microsoft Windows Vista Client, Configuring

Exam 70-270: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows XP Professional

Exam 70-210: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional

As far as the elective exams, you must pass one of these:

Exam 70-089: Designing, Implementing, and Managing a Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 Infrastructure

Exam 70-2271: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2000, Enterprise Edition

Exam 70-228: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition

Exam 70-235: TS: Developing Business Process and Integration Solutions Using BizTalk Server 2006

Exam 70-236: TS: Microsoft Exchange Server 2007, Configuring

Exam 70-262: TS: Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 - Implementing, Managing, and Troubleshooting

Exam 70-284: Implementing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2003

Exam 70-299: Implementing and Administering Security in a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network

Exam 70-350: Implementing Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2004

Exam 70-431: TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 – Implementation and Maintenance

Exam 70-445: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Business Intelligence – Implementation and Maintenance

Exam 70-500: TS: Microsoft Windows Mobile 5.0, Implementing and Managing

Exam 70-501: TS: Windows Server 2003 Hosted Environments, Configuring, and Managing

Exam 70-620: TS: Microsoft Windows Vista Client, Configuring

Exam 70-624: TS: Deploying and Maintaining Windows Vista Client and 2007 Microsoft Office System Desktops

Exam 70-630: TS: Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007, Configuring

Exam 70-631: TS: Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, Configuring

As you start on your certification process, you will become an MCP (Microsoft Certified Professional) along the way. When you pass the Windows 2003 Server exams, you will earn the MCP for Windows 2003 Server. If you take and pass Exam 70-270 on Windows XP Pro, you will achieve MCP status on Windows XP Pro. Finally, once you pass all four exams, Microsoft will give you the coveted title of MCSA.

Once you achieve MCSA status, you will be given your very own MCSA ID number. This number can be used by others to verify your MCSA status. For example, you can use it on your business card if your are an IT consultant, use it in marketing, or you can include it in your resume if you are seeking employment. Prospective employers can enter your MCSA number into a searchable database on the Microsoft website where they can see which MCSA exams you have taken and passed. (It will not show, fortunately, any exams that you have taken and failed!)

The best way to get started is to get some study materials and practice exams to begin studying for the MCSA exams. It takes most people several weeks to several months to learn all the details about the Microsoft operating systems and network systems in order to pass their exams.