Its been a while

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Hi there all

I have let my IT certification side slide in the last 6 years due to alot of personal issues.

I last studied towards the MCDST and gained the 70-271 certification along with a small known one called IC3.

I was on a study course provided by Zenos Acadamys at the age of 16 (now 22) To gain MCDST, then MCSA as well as CompTIA N+ and NVQ level3

I still have my study books for the MCDST and also N+ but feel like i have missed out on an eternaty of potential Certifications and am kinda flabergasted at where i should start.

Would it be worth gettin the MCDST as i only need to sit the exam for the 70-272 module or would the sylabus have changed in the 6 years i have been away from it?

Also N+ i take my guide will be out of date too its the 4th edition. Books are all Microsoft Learning academy

Thanks for the time to read and i look forward to replies.

 

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MCDST is over. Infact they are retiring the W7 Quals in 2013 I believe.

Do you work in IT?

If not get your W7 and Enterprise Desktop Support cert, 70-680 / 70-685. N+ A+ and ITIL Foundation are all certs which may help get you in the door for entry level jobs.

 

No im not currently working in IT but have wanted to do so since i left school.

I dont see why MS retire certifications as some people may still use the software those certifications are graded towards.

If i was to self study what are likely course materials and then exam fees?

 

Can i still do the 272 as i had a look but can only see the option to do the 270

 

Hi, no sorry. The 272 was retired last year (although it seems that if you were attending a Microsoft accredited college it was still available to sit until June of this year).

The 270 is now the only XP MCP course left but it cannot be used to gain the MCDST.

 

I take it the 680 & 685 would be similar to 271 & 272?

Also to do N+ would I need to look at gettin a new study guide or would my 6 yr old one do?

What sort of cost am I looking to take those 3 exams?

 

In that it is aimed at desktop support, yes. In difficulty, definitely not!
Unfortunately Microsoft saw fit to remove this 'first rung' of the tech-support certification ladder by pushing the MCITP at all levels. But I'd definitely look at doing the 680 and see how you feel about it as it's a very good introduction to the current MS certs. I'd say that this MCTS alone has about the same (if not a little higher) expectations than the whole MCDST.

HTH

 

Do you reckon that I could do the 680 & 685 with little study time as I've sideline Tech supported for friends and family for a few years so reckon I could breeze it.

 

kilasuit: If you've been out of IT - it might be worthwhile to catch up on the latest A+. Things have moved on a fair way since 2006. Professor Messer does some free videos you could have a look at. If you're comfortable with that then the N+ could be a good idea - again, there has been some evolution since 2006, notably 802.11n and the security landscape - again, Professor Messer has free videos.
The thing I like about the A+ is it's broadness. Most IT enthusiasts have stuff they like and know a lot about, and a few thing's they've barely heard of. The A+ ensures some knowledge of everything, so is good for filling in the gaps.

I like the confidence, but I have doubts here. The Win 7 MCITP-EDST is quite a bit harder, and not nearly as practical as the MCDST. I wouldn't take it without study. It goes into stuff most home users would never see (group policies and VPN) and quite a lot of stuff most first line staff will never be asked to do (how many first liner's gonna create, sysprep and update system image .wim files for mass deployment?!)
The first part of the MCITP-EDST is the MCTS 70-680. This one is okay. Again, Professor Messer's free 680 videos would be a good place to start.

I'd recommend using these videos to figure out where you are, and what would be best way forward, before spending any money.

 

Nope.

Unless the "sideline tech support for friends and famliy" involved lots of BranchCache, DirectAccess, Bitlocker and image deployment.

 

Starting thru the prof's videos so hopefully get exam booked for end of month.

 

Does anyone know of any exam vouchers or discounts as it seems the exam costs for the 680 & 685 are £99 each

 

Yes, they are...

and Microsoft have not offered their 'Exam Packs' this year with discounts and free resits (thus far). You can always find a 15% discount Voucher inside the MS Press books though.

 

Well time has seen me land an Apprenticeship supporting Sharepoint 2003, 2007, and 2010 in a global corporation.

Looks like i best be looking Sharepoint certs now.

Where would be the best place to start?