Microsoft recently announced changes to two of its most popular programs focused on the 100-level courses for MD and MS. The MD courses have really become the best place to get on-prem training for Windows and Server Microsoft IT pros. And the MS courses are dedicated on Microsoft 365 IT administration. Both of these tracks represent mainstream training needs for IT pros supporting Microsoft products. That said, both lines had two courses covering the 100-level.
Updates have been announced now for the MD-10x courses and MS-10x, and from the initial look at the classes and certs, the changes should be well received. Firstly, the two-courses to get a single cert pattern seems to be diminishing. Both lines will see a change narrowing down to a singular course at the 100-level. The MD entry-level will condense to the MD-102 course, and MS 100 series will condense to MS-102.
Coming in May 2023, the MD-102 course is interestingly titled as “Endpoint Administrator”. This is a title that hints at the inclusion of Intune as a major focus. A deeper dive into the objectives for this certification reveal heavy focus on Intune and Autopilot, which are aligned with what the needs of the industry. This change should really put the MD courses on the radar for Microsoft IT admins.
Also, in May we will see the launch of the MS-102 course. IT professionals will likely be extremely pleased that they can take a single course to get ready for Microsoft 365 administration and get certified. This is another change that is likely to be well-received and encourage pursuit of formal training.
The reality is that these changes to the MD and MS tracks make Microsoft training and certification more appealing. Changes to certifications made by program managers aren’t always improvements, but both of these changes look to be extremely positive steps towards making Microsoft certification beyond the Azure tracks far more approachable.
