This is a three semester-hour workshop course designed to help you pass at least one Microsoft professional certification exam. You may choose the exam you wish to take, and the course will provide you with a supported self-study opportunity to prepare for the exam. The test you choose to take need not necessarily be a W2K exam. If you have not already done so, please read the introductory material by clicking here.

CONCEPT: This is a supported self-study workshop. That means that you'll receive guidance on selecting which is the most appropriate Microsoft exam for you to take, will be guided in selecting study materials, and will then be grouped with other people who are preparing for that same exam. You will then be coached toward study milestones. The course material will be largely self-taught, but the instructor will be available for coaching (I am NT certified, am a W2K MCP and recently attended a Windows 2000 certification conference). You should have taken "Small Systems Technology" in order to succeed in this workshop, but it can be done successfully if you have Windows 2000 pre-knowledge.

PREREQUISITES: There are no express prerequisites in the current catalog for this course. To do well, you need to have a fundamental understanding of Windows, and very good study habits.

COURSE MATERIALS: There are 30 of us in the course, and each person will individually select a Microsoft exam for which to study. Once you make that selection, you will be required to purchase test preparation software from Transcender, LLC. The Transcender fee is $60 and we'll discuss this in class. Transcender is NOT available in the bookstores. Beyond Transcender, there is no prescribed required set of written study materials. Click here for the list of suggested materials. After you have selected your "target" exam, you'll need to go to a commercial bookstore and buy the written materials appropriate to your particular exam.

TEST FEES: You will be taking the certification exam at a Thompson Prometric Learning Center or other commercial test provider. KSU is not authorized to administer these exams. There is a $125 fee for each test you take, whether you pass or fail.

CONTACTING THE INSTRUCTOR: I'm very responsive to e-mail -- ghoward@kent.edu . I will either be in our classroom or in the labs every Tuesday night during the period of the class, except for 10 and 17 September, until the certification exams have been completed.

ATTENDANCE: Attendance is required on the dates noted below. It is in the fundamental nature of a workshop course that you have to be here to assure that the required study regimen is enforced.

TEXT: Transcender software is required, but your other material will vary -- we'll discuss in class on the first day. If you have not yet done so, click here for text suggestions.

WHY MICROSOFT CERTIFICATION ? There is high demand in the employment marketplace for people who possess formal industry skills certifications. Read "Benefits of Certification" to see how you can benefit from obtaining this credential. Also read the IDC White Paper on benefits of certification. You earn certifications by passing a test or a series of tests that prove the depth of your conceptual and practical knowledge. The most important of these are the two main certifications available from Microsoft: the MCSE ("Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer") and the MCSD ("Microsoft Certified System Developer.") Passing one of the required exams gives you a significant edge in the job market. You may wish to read this paper , dated May 22, 2000, which was the primary announcement of the Windows 2000 MCSE certification track, and which provides good historical background.  

DELIVERABLES: There are no papers, projects, homeworks, or tests except for the certification exam itself. However, you'll need to show up for the classes below in bold, and must turn in three Transcender work products. We'll run the course with the following milestones.

    27 August              Startup
   3 September        Finalize and Place Transcender Order; Finalize Decisions on Exam Selection; Coaching on Test Preperation
    10 September        Unsupervised Study
    17 September        Unsupervised Study
   24 September      Brief Technical Lecture and Turn-In of Transcender Test "A" (Print your score report and bring it to class.)
    1 October               Transcender Test "B" Due in My Office Mailbox
    8 October              Brief Technical Lecture and Coaching on Test Scheduling                   
    15 October             Transcender Test "C" Due in My Office Mailbox
    22 October             Certification Exams Should be Scheduled by this Date
    29 October             Exams Underway
    5 November            Target Date to Have All Exams Taken

GRADING: Course grading is easy: if you pass one or more certification exams during the period of the course, you get an "A." If you take a certification exam, do not pass, but have shown good attendance and good effort, you will get a "B." No exam attempted means a "C," unless you can show extreme financial hardship associated with the cost of the exam.

UNIVERSITY BOILERPLATE

The Following Policies apply to everyone in this course.

A.Students attending the course who do not have the proper prerequisite risk being deregistered from the class.
B.Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes. You are advised to review your official class schedule during
the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section. Should you find an error in your class
schedule, you have until the date shown on the University web site (official academic calendar) to correct it with your advising office. If registration errors are not corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class in which you are not properly registered.
C.Academic Honesty: Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers,
projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit. The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit
is a serious academic offense. It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or
course. Repeat offenses result in dismissal from the University.
D.The official withdrawal date is Saturday, November 2. Withdrawal before the deadline results in a "W" on the official transcript; after the deadline a grade must be calculated and reported.
E.Students with Disabilities: In accordance with University policy, if you have a documented disability and require accommodations to obtain
equal access in this course, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester or when given an assignment for which an
accommodation is required. Students with disabilities must verify their eligibility through the Office of Student Disability Services (SDS) in
the Michael Schwartz Service Center (672-3391).