Best Path Through MCSE in Six Exams

Magnify Your Certifications in Six Exams

Many readers have asked me which exam route they should take in pursuing MCSE certification. This month, I am focusing on that question.

First, there is no single correct path. If you have been working with a particular product for a long time, then it will be easier for you to study for and pass an exam on that product than for a product you have no experience with. Aside from that, many persons will tell you that you should take the Networking Essentials exam first. The idea is that the Networking Essentials exam gives you a solid foundation for all the others, and that you should get the tough exam out of the way first.

I disagree. The Networking Essentials exam is nothing but memorization, which makes it one of the hardest exams out there. It is also the only Microsoft exam for which you do not get certification. Any other exam—if it is your first exam—makes you an MCP automatically. Why wait for two exams to become an MCP?

Here is my ideal path through the process—with certifications gained each step of the way—and my reasons for my choices:


1. Windows NT Server (70-067). You gain MCP status after passing this exam, which is one of the easiest exams available now. Windows NT is a product, and the exams for it have been divided into three parts: Server, Enterprise, and Workstation. The Workstation exam has all the questions about unattended installations, and the Enterprise exam has all the questions on trust relationships and domain models. These facts make the Server exam a good choice for a first test.


2. Windows NT Enterprise (70-068). Only 20% of the Enterprise exam covers material that wasn’t on the Server exam. Learn the new material and take the test while the Server exam is still fresh in your mind.


3. Windows NT Workstation (70-073). This exam is also a subset of the Server exam. Learn the new material and pass the test while the other two NTexams are still fresh in your mind.


4. TCP/IP (70-059). You had to learn a good bit about TCP/IP for the three previous exams. Now focus on the specifics of subnets (DNS, DHCP, WINS, and so forth) and pass this test. There are much harder exams out there than this one.


5. IIS (70-087). You gain MCP + I status after passing this exam. There is a great deal of overlap between TCP/IP and IIS, and there is a slight overlap between NT and IIS. Not only is the IIS exam a good one, but it also gives you a certification that carries value in the marketplace.


6. Network+. Instead of taking Microsoft’s Networking Essentials exam, take CompTIA’s new Network+ exam. Passing this single exam earns you the Network+ certification. What’s more, Microsoft accepts this exam as credit for the networking portion of the MCSE track. (Microsoft is a member of CompTIA.) If you have followed the course I’ve just laid out, you have now fulfilled all the requirements for MCSE status and have earned that certification as well.

These six exams maximize your route through the process and earn you four certifications to put on your business cards. For more information on the Network+ exam, which was scheduled to go live at the end of April, see www.ds-technical.com/ ems.html.