In the second half of 2016, I enrolled in the Microsoft Professional Program for Data Science, and completed it in early 2017. I have to say that I really enjoyed it overall. It was a bit challenging at times but I don't regret doing it.
If you want to get the certification, you need to enroll in the verified option for each course. Nowadays, that's pretty much $99 USD per course. You can do it for free, and if you're tight on funds, perhaps that's what you should do. I like to support the concept, and like to support both Microsoft and edX for creating these options. They are doing amazing work, so while I hear people say to just do the courses and not contribute to them, I can't say that I agree.
edX and their partners offer an incredible range of world-class courses that you can take for free, but if you want them to continue, you should consider contributing. And that applies to the non-Microsoft ones too.
I think that programs like these are more likely to be the real future for Microsoft certification in general.
Earlier this year, Microsoft created a Professional Program for DevOps. I've had an interest in DevOps for a long time, and I got the opportunity to help create one of the courses DevOps for Databases with the inimitable Steve Jones from Redgate Software. Databases are a specifically-challenging area for DevOps.
A few months back I decided to start pursuing this professional program as well. I've got one course to go (the container one) before the final capstone project. I can finish that container course in the next three months, but unfortunately the capstone project won't be available until April.
Here's the overall program:
Over the last few weeks, I've been involved in enhancing the existing Monitoring and Testing courses, and am looking forward to seeing how people find the updated versions.
To support my continuing interest in DevOps, in the upcoming weeks, you'll see DevOps-related posts from me.
Hey Greg, This sounds very interesting. How would you compare it to the regularly thought of MS Certification paths? The cost of this once you add up some of it would be a fairly hefty investment (although, I could swing it through work perhaps).
I was looking at the IT Support stream and that is $1400 at those rates. Good compared to in-person training, but still quite a bit.
I would think, given my just starting in working specifically with SQL as a full-time job (Db Dev), I would be better placed to look at the MCSA/E stream in SQL than tackling something like this?
I suspect that this is the certification model that will work in the future for Microsoft. I can't see the current model continuing to work. Too many of its assumptions aren't now valid.
I think these new professional programs are much more meaningful than anything else being offered in Microsoft certification right now.
They provide a neat balancing act for Microsoft. The Microsoft product groups just want to give away all the training to get the products and services used. The Microsoft Learning Experience people want to have training/certification as a profit centre. This model lets people learn for free if they want to, and pay some money to be certified if that's of interest to them.