A Guide to Microsoft Project Certification

Date: Dec 20, 2010

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If you are someone who uses Microsoft Project or Microsoft Project Server, you know that Project is one of the more difficult Office products to learn on your own. Like a Swiss army knife, many components exist to help with a range of conditions. Certification is a great way to better understand and take advantage of the all the product’s features, including managing schedules, resources, costs, and collaborating on projects from small to large. Demonstrating that you have documented expertise in this product to your existing or potential employers doesn’t hurt either.

Below, we will take a look at Microsoft’s Project offerings, as well as the exams and certifications available for each.

Enterprise Project Management Solution

Microsoft offers a complete Enterprise Project Management (EPM) solution that consists of more than just your standard Microsoft Project desktop client. This solution consists of these three components:

• Microsoft Project is a desktop client that enables scheduling, cost, and resource management for individual projects. There are two versions, Standard and Professional; there is some additional functionality in the Professional version (especially in 2010), the most significant being that the Standard version will not work with Project Server.
• Microsoft Project Server allows the aggregation of different project plans, along with collaboration, offered through Microsoft SharePoint technologies. Where 2003 and 2007 could use either Windows SharePoint Services or the more full-featured Microsoft SharePoint Server, 2010 requires the Microsoft SharePoint Server 2010, Enterprise Edition platform, along with all of its rich reporting, collaboration, and search functionality.
• Project Portfolio Server provides the ability to capture, define, and select new projects by analyzing them based on the organization’s strategic objectives, resource capacity, and financial constraints. With 2010, Portfolio Server is no longer separate but rather is completely integrated into Microsoft Project Server as a single product.

Microsoft’s EPM solution has matured remarkably over the past three releases, from a loose confederation of products in 2003, through a rebuild of the products in 2007, into the robust and sleek 2010 solution that completely integrated the Project Server and Project Portfolio products into a single product that competes well against almost any other EPM solution.

What certifications are available?

There are currently three Microsoft EPM platforms out in the market today: 2003, 2007, and 2010. There are three sets of exams for each platform. I’m not going to bother describing the 2003 certifications, as they will be retired soon enough.

Microsoft offers a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certification if you pass any one of the Project exams for 2007 or 2010. To obtain a MCITP certification, you will need to pass at least three exams related to Project 2007, and you probably will need either two or three exams related to Project 2010 (though the official word isn’t available at this time). My suspicion is that it will require the two 2010 exams described below, and possibly something related to SharePoint, such as the 70-667 Microsoft SharePoint 2010, Configuring exam. When the word is out, I’ll post an update in the comments below.

If you will only work with Microsoft Project apart from Project Server, or will only be using Project Server (and not administering it), then a MCTS is really all you will need.

Pursue the Microsoft Certified Information Technology Specialist (MCITP) only if you will be a Project Server administrator or providing implementation and configuration services to your own organization or other companies.

2010 Exams

70-177: Configuring Project Server 2010: Project Server 2010 certification exam is already available, released in June, 2010. This exam’s focus is on installing, managing, configuring, and administering the server solutions. Expect questions like how to backup and restore the server, or how to configure OLAP cubes. If you will just be using Project Server, don’t take this exam! If, however, you will be administering a Project Server environment, this exam is just what you need to ensure you have a solid understanding of the product.

70-178: Microsoft Project 2010, Managing Projects: This Microsoft Project 2010 exam enters its beta release in November, and will likely release to the public by the end of the year. Its focus is on using the Microsoft Project desktop client, with questions that relate to both Standard and Professional versions. Expect questions on things like how to build a resource-loaded schedule with dependencies, set up a resource calendar, share the Timeline view, or how to synchronize a project schedule with a SharePoint task list.

2007 Exams

Four Enterprise Project Management exams are available for the Project 2007 suite of products:

• 70-632, Project 2007, Managing Projects: This exam focuses on those who will use only the desktop version of Project Standard 2007 or Project Professional 2007.
• 70-633: Project Server 2007, Managing Projects: This exam focuses on those who will manage individual projects in a collaborative environment using Project Server.
• 70-634: Project Server 2007, Managing Projects and Programs: This exam focuses on how to integrate several different projects into a program (defined as a collection of related projects that are managed together).
• 70-639: Configuring Project Server 2007: This exam focuses on how to install, configure, and support Project Server. Only those people who will serve as Project Server administrators should take this exam.

Know the lingo

In 2007, Microsoft aligned itself with the Project Management Body of Knowledge, or PMBOK Guide®, published by the Project Management Institute (PMI). If you’re not familiar with terms like Earned Value or Work Breakdown Structure, or understand what sorts of actions are taken in Initiation vs. Planning processes, you’ll want to familiarize yourself with those concepts.

Should I certify on the Project 2007 or Project 2010 platforms?

The answer to this question really depends on why you’re seeking certification in the first place. It’s probably best to go with the platform your current or potential employer will be using in the next year or two.

I’d recommend—if you have a choice—focusing on the 2010 platform, as it ushers in a product that will provide the most value to those who implement and use it. With the rich features, and relatively low cost, there will be plenty of need for certified professionals.

Conclusion

There are many options when considering Microsoft Project certification. Now that you know more about what’s available, sign up to take your exam at http://www.prometric.com. If there is enough interest, in a future article I’ll make some recommendations about how to study for each of the exams, along with recommendations for materials that can help.

If you have any suggestions or ideas, please comment below!

Reference: Microsoft Project Certification Matrix

Use this matrix as a guide to all the exams and certifications related to Microsoft Project based on information from Microsoft Learning:

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