Are you ready to become a Microsoft Master?

New Microsoft Master certs are pricey, but lucrative in the right situation

As you may have heard, Microsoft has designed a new "Master"-level certification for IT pros who really need to specialize in a particular product, like Exchange, SQL Server or Windows Server. Microsoft's Per Farny, director of advanced training and certification, gave a rundown of the new certifications in a recent Webcast, a recording of which is available at this Microsoft blog. 

Farny promised that becoming a master will be “mentally and physically exhausting,” and it won’t be cheap, either. Candidates will have to pay $18,500 for three weeks of mandatory training, and will take three written tests and one qualification lab. Retakes of written tests will cost $250 each, and lab exam retakes will be $1,500.

It’s not the most expensive Microsoft exam. Candidates must shell out $25,000 for the Microsoft Certified Architect Technology program (MCA), for example. But with $18,500 on the line, you’ll want to think long and hard about whether you’re qualified for the master program and whether the career benefits make the expenditure of time and money worthwhile.

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As you may have heard, Microsoft has designed a new "Master"-level certification for IT pros who really need to specialize in a particular product, like Exchange, SQL Server or Windows Server. Microsoft's Per Farny, director of advanced training and certification, gave a rundown of the new certifications in a recent Webcast, a recording of which is available at this Microsoft blog. 

Farny promised that becoming a master will be “mentally and physically exhausting,” and it won’t be cheap, either. Candidates will have to pay $18,500 for three weeks of mandatory training, and will take three written tests and one qualification lab. Retakes of written tests will cost $250 each, and lab exam retakes will be $1,500.

It’s not the most expensive Microsoft exam. Candidates must shell out $25,000 for the Microsoft Certified Architect Technology program (MCA), for example. But with $18,500 on the line, you’ll want to think long and hard about whether you’re qualified for the master program and whether the career benefits make the expenditure of time and money worthwhile.

A Certified Master designation will be an attractive credential to many consulting companies, Farny said. These certifications identify IT pros with the deepest technical skills available on specific Microsoft products. “For those individuals who are the right audience for this, it is very valuable and they can recoup that cost very quickly,” he said.

Registration will open on or near Sept. 1 at this page. Early birds will get a special deal. The program fee will be cut in half for those who take advantage of the very first sessions, which take place in October and November.

Before we get to more details on the Certified Master program, there’s one more note on pricing that you may be interested in. Microsoft just announced a Second Shot offer, which gives you a chance to take an exam again for free if you fail the first time. More information can be found here. 

Back to the Master program, all candidates must have at least five years hands-on experience with the respective technology for each certification, specifically Exchange Server 2007, SQL Server 2008, and Windows Server 2008 – Directory.

In addition to hands-on experience, each Master candidate must have a few specific certifications to qualify, the full list of which can be found here. 

Master candidates can expect long days of instruction, usually from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., followed by individual and group study each night.

“It really is mentally and physically exhausting. That’s no lie,” Farny said. Candidates in beta trials have consistently told Microsoft “I had no idea what I didn’t know.”

“It can be a humbling experience,” Farny said.

Exchange candidates will be met with a lab assignment in their first week requiring them to build a front-end and back-end architecture, including 10 virtual machines, two mailbox servers, two client access servers, two ISA (Internet Security and Acceleration) servers, two domain controllers, one external SMTP host and one client machine.