Should I upgrade my Microsoft Certifications ?

I've been debating lately if it's worth the effort to upgrade my Microsoft Certifications to the latest and greatest.

Credential	Certification / Version	Date Achieved

Microsoft Certified Application Developer		May 07, 2004
	For Microsoft .NET	May 07, 2004
Microsoft Certified Solution Developer		Jun 11, 2001
	For Microsoft .NET	Sep 01, 2004
	Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0	Jun 11, 2001
Microsoft Certified Professional		Apr 10, 2000

Interestingly, my Microsoft Partner link shows:

MCPS
MCSD
MCAD
MCNPS

Not sure where the MCNPS came from... So, yeah... it's been awhile since I took any tests... I'm certified on .NET 1.1, while 2.0, 3.0 and 3.5 are now out. To Upgrade:

Developers who use the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 and Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 should consider the following two credentials:

•	Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS)
•	Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD)

These credentials give developers a simpler and more targeted framework to showcase their technical and on-the-job skills.

I have to take 2 exams to upgrade to VS2005: Exam 70–554 and Exam 70–553 While I do have the experience, I used VS2005 for several years, I'm now using VS 2008 which I would then need:

MCPD: Enterprise Application Development 3.5 and MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications and MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications and MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Communication Foundation Applications and MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Applications

Is it worth it?

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posted on Wednesday, July 30, 2008 3:43 PM

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# re: Should I upgrade my Microsoft Certifications ? 7/30/2008 5:06 PM Kent Sharkey

I'd vote no.

My certs have also been laying idle for quite a while now (I did 3 exams in 2002, and before that it was 1999). I think there is enough on your transcript to show that you can do what you need to do, and that you should have enough years doing it under your belt.

At this point, rather than an exam, I think you can showcase your skills in other ways: perhaps work on an open source project, create a "portfolio app" or even contribute to a book.

# re: Should I upgrade my Microsoft Certifications ? 7/30/2008 5:07 PM Kent Sharkey

Ohyah, I forgot to add: the blog does help, as it can show a potential employer code samples, and your thought processes (plus, it's a great marketing tool)

# re: Should I upgrade my Microsoft Certifications ? 7/31/2008 4:31 AM Lou

I've often debated that myself. My MCSD and MCAD are out-dated as well but I got to a point where I was burned out on certs. For now I'm holding off.

# re: Should I upgrade my Microsoft Certifications ? 8/1/2008 4:11 AM John Workman

I agree with the above, in some ways, but one thing that most developers do not realize is that these certifications lead to a lot of additional licenses (MSDN) to your company (You mentioned the "partner network"). If you exams help your employer cross a certain threshold, it can open up a lot. If they have already met that threshold, or if they have no chance of crossing it even with your certifications, then it's not helping them. I've been basing recommendations on which certs to get for my team based on that.

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