Best Microsoft Certification 2021: Top Technical Exams
Best Microsoft certification 2021: Top technical exams
Acquiring a firm grasp on technologies developed by technology giants is one of the most effective ways to stay ahead of the curve, redefine your career, and contribute to your development as a star employee. Microsoft certifications are one way to do so, and they can be extremely beneficial for both you and your employer.
Microsoft continues to be at the forefront of the information technology industry and its technologies, from cloud computing to identity and authentication, cybersecurity, enterprise resource planning, and customer relationship management. For the foreseeable future, Windows 10 desktops and servers will continue to be widely deployed.
Microsoft's Azure and Microsoft 365 cloud businesses are thriving, owing to the acceleration of digital transformation projects in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. And that means there is work to be done, which frequently involves a combination of Microsoft technologies across Dynamics ERP/CRM, Azure AI, and IoT in the enterprise.
Cybersecurity is also a major concern for the world's top CEOs, and investment in Microsoft's Defender-branded technologies is likely to increase in the coming years. SolarWinds' massive supply chain hack changed the game for US technology companies and government agencies. Add to that attacks on Microsoft Exchange Server flaws and ongoing attacks on popular enterprise VPNs — a critical tool for remote work.
As technology advances toward machine learning and artificial intelligence, programmers familiar with the programming languages C#, C++, Java, and Python – as well as frameworks such as.NET – will find themselves in good stead.
Microsoft is a pioneer in the field of machine learning. It even hired Python creator Guido van Rossum to address the most popular programming language for data science and machine learning's performance issues. Additionally, it has a significant stake in front-end web development through TypeScript and is a strong supporter of Rust, an emerging language for systems programming.
The company offers a variety of certifications for IT professionals, engineers, administrators, and developers interested in advancing their careers. Notably, participants who successfully complete its courses receive a Microsoft certificate, which they can show to current and future employers.
Here are five noteworthy certifications that should help you hone your skills in organizations that rely on Microsoft's Azure cloud and the tools it makes available for business transformation.
Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Fundamentals
Data science is one of the hottest areas of technology to work in right now, and Microsoft's Azure cloud hosts numerous machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) workloads.
Microsoft's Azure AI Fundamentals certification is one way to advance in the field while earning a Microsoft certificate, as well as familiarize yourself with how to implement AI and machine learning workloads on Azure.
It is a "fundamentals" certification geared toward individuals with technical and non-technical backgrounds who have some programming experience. However, experience with data science and software engineering is not required.
Participants must demonstrate an understanding of AI workloads, including forecasting them, spotting features of anomaly detection, and identifying workloads in key areas of AI, such as computer vision, natural language processing (NLP), and conversational AI.
Additionally, participants will need to become familiar with web chat bots and key natural language processing workloads such as key phrase extraction, sentiment analysis, speech recognition, and translation.
Participants must also be able to articulate key concepts relating to Microsoft's "responsible AI" principles, which include fairness, reliability and safety, privacy and security, inclusivity, transparency, and accountability.
The Fundamentals certification is delivered through a combination of instructor-led instruction and online materials delivered via the Microsoft Learn platform. There is a complimentary online preparation course as well as an instructor-led course.
The modules are divided into short, bite-sized chapters that explain concepts using text and video, such as 'What is machine learning? '
Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Solution Architect Expert
Microsoft is betting big on Power Platform being a low-code success and recently launched Power Fx, a new platform-specific programming language.
Microsoft positions Power Platform as a solution to the developer shortage, as it enables business users to quickly build web or mobile applications connected to backend databases.
By honing your Power Platform skills, you can help the business address developer skills shortages and information-sharing challenges. This is not a certificate for beginners. Participants should have a minimum of three years' experience as a Power Platform architect or a maximum of ten years as a senior consultant with extensive knowledge of the Power Platform architecture.
Applicants must hold a Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Functional Consultant Associate or a Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Developer Associate certification.
Participants must demonstrate functional and technical proficiency with the Power Platform, Dynamics 365 customer engagement apps, Microsoft cloud solutions, and third-party technologies.
Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst Associate
Significant supply chain hacks, such as SolarWinds', and ongoing state-sponsored cyberattacks have heightened the urgency for many organizations to strengthen their security operations.
Enterprise Microsoft IT shops are almost certainly utilizing tools such as Azure Sentinel, Azure Defender, and Microsoft 365 Defender.
The Microsoft Certified: Security Operations Analyst Associate certification may help make defenders more valuable not only during the course of a cyberattack, but also followingward, during incident response, triage, and forensic investigations.
The certification is intended for security engineers and security operations analysts, indicating that it is intended for experienced defenders.
The examination is $165. There is a free online learning pathway for those interested in preparing for the course, as well as a paid option for those interested in having an instructor lead the course material.
This is a well-established certification that requires completion of multiple Microsoft Learning Path sessions prior to sitting for the exam. The modules cover how to defend against threats with Microsoft Defender for Endpoint (formerly ATP), Microsoft 365 Defender, and Azure Defender, as well as various aspects of Sentinel SIEM usage.
Microsoft 365 Certified: Teams Support Engineer Associate
There are dozens of Microsoft 365 certifications available, but one that stands out right now is the "Microsoft 365 Certified: Teams Support Engineer Associate."
Teams has established itself as a critical tool for hosting video meetings for remote workers during the pandemic and will continue to do so as hybrid work arrangements emerge for organizations with thousands of employees, some of whom will work remotely and others in the office.
This Microsoft Certified Associate exam is designed for support engineers and administrators who keep large Microsoft Teams environments running smoothly.
The exam requires candidates to have significant exposure to the field of unified communications as well as hands-on experience with Teams. Also, knowledge of Azure networking and experience with telephony, PowerShell, data storage, application security, authentication and authorization, security, compliance, debugging, and performance tuning and monitoring are required.
Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365: Finance and Operations Apps Developer Associate
This certification is intended for developers who are cost conscious, as well as those who collaborate with IT consultants and architects who use Dynamics 365.
It costs $165 in the United States and requires developers to plan architecture and solution design, use developer tools, develop and test code, implement reporting, integrate and manage data solutions, as well as implement security and performance optimization.
The course is designed for experienced developers who are familiar with the ins and outs of Dynamics 365 development and have real-world experience developing finance and operations applications.
To enroll in this course, candidates must have passed the Exam MB-300: Microsoft Dynamics 365: Core Finance and Operations and the Exam MB-300: Microsoft Dynamics 365: Core Finance and Operations. It is not for everyone in IT, but it may be advantageous for those who have specialized in finance-related IT.
