Microsoft Visual Studio Certification

Microsoft Visual Studio Certification

Make sure hiring managers and project leads notice you. By earning a Microsoft Certification in Microsoft Visual Studio, you gain hands-on experience and industry-recognized validation of your understanding of features and key technologies. Certifications are available for Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008.

The Microsoft Visual Studio certifications offer you choices and simple paths to achieve your goals. These certifications—Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) and Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD)—are designed to validate your skills in Visual Studio 2008 and the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5.

Take the next step in your career—get certified

No matter what your developer certification history or technology background, we offer a certification path that makes sense for you, aligning to your current role or career goals.

Use the following recommendations to help navigate your way.

Your profile

Recommendations

New to Microsoft Certification

Pass Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation. This exam is the foundation prerequisite for all Visual Studio 2005 and Visual Studio 2008 MCTS and MCPD certifications.

Note If you pass this exam, you do not earn a certification, but you do earn access to the Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) member site, your Microsoft transcript, and other MCP community benefits. You only need to pass this exam once.

Working toward MCTS or MCPD on Visual Studio 2005

Continue your learning track on Visual Studio 2005 so that you have the prerequisites to upgrade to Visual Studio 2008 in the future.

Hold MCTS or MCPD on Visual Studio 2005; plan to work with Visual Studio 2008

Since you already hold a certification on Visual Studio 2005, you can now prepare to upgrade to a Visual Studio 2008 certification.

Hold MCAD or MCSD certification

There is no upgrade path from MCAD or MCSD to Visual Studio 2008. We recommend that you upgrade your skills to Visual Studio 2005 by taking two exams, and then explore the upgrade paths to Visual Studio 2008.

Alternately, you can bypass getting certified in Visual Studio 2005 and take the full exam path for Visual Studio 2008.

When you earn a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certification, you validate your in-depth technical knowledge and skill in using the features and functionality of key technology areas in Microsoft Visual Studio and the Microsoft .NET Framework to design software applications.

You can earn a single certification to show your depth of knowledge in a specific Visual Studio technology, earn multiple certifications to demonstrate your breadth of understanding across different specialties, or build on your MCTS certification to earn a Professional Series credential.

Each MCTS certification requires two exams: a core exam and one additional, specialized exam. Use the following table to determine the certification that best fits your current role and career goals.

Note You need to pass Exam 70-536 only once for MCTS or MCPD certification.

Individual MCTS certifications will be retired when Microsoft discontinues mainstream support for the related technology.

Technology

Usage

Certification

Exam

Visual Studio 2005

Developing Windows-based applications that include Windows Forms technology and data access

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Windows Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-526: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 - Windows-Based Client Development

Visual Studio 2005

Developing Web-based applications that run on ASP.NET and the .NET Framework 2.0

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Web Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70–528: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 - Web-based Client Development

Visual Studio 2005

Developing distributed applications that demonstrate a knowledge of Web services, .NET remoting, Enterprise Services, and Message Queuing technology

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Distributed Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-529: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 - Distributed Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating applications that run on the Windows platform and compelling user interfaces with Windows Presentation Foundation

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Presentation Foundation Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-502: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Presentation Foundation Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating distributed applications that communicate with servers or other applications in a connected or disconnected state

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Communication Foundation Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-503: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 – Windows Communication Foundation Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating applications that host workflows for your organization

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Workflow Foundation Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-504: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 – Windows Workflow Foundation Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating Windows-based applications that run on corporate servers or user desktop computers

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-505: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating data-driven applications that access data from various sources, such as SQL Server, Oracle, Microsoft Office Access, object data sources, XML, or other flat-file sources

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-561: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Application Development

Visual Studio 2008

Creating Web-based applications that run on the ASP.NET platform and are hosted on Internet Information Server

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications

Exam 70-536: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework – Application Development Foundation

and

Exam 70-562: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Application Development

When you earn the Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) credential, you demonstrate your expertise in using Microsoft Visual Studio and the Microsoft .NET Framework to excel in a specific, market-relevant job role.

We offer three professional certification paths that build on the MCTS certifications.

Technology

Certification

Prerequisites

Exam

Visual Studio 2005

MCPD: Web Developer

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Web Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-528)

Exam 70-547: PRO: Designing and Developing Web-Based Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

Visual Studio 2005

MCPD: Windows Developer

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Windows Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-526)

Exam 70-548: PRO: Designing and Developing Windows-Based Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

Visual Studio 2005

MCPD: Enterprise Application Developer

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Windows Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-526)

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Web Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-528)

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0: Distributed Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-529)

Exam 70-549: PRO: Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

Visual Studio 2008

MCPD: Windows Developer 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-505)

Exam 70-563: PRO: Designing and Developing Windows Applications Using Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5

Visual Studio 2008

MCPD: ASP.NET Developer 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-562)

Exam 70-564: PRO: Designing and Developing ASP.NET Applications Using Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5

Visual Studio 2008

MCPD: Enterprise Application Developer 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-505)

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-562)

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-561)

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Communication Foundation Applications (Exam 70-536 and Exam 70-503)

Exam 70-565: PRO: Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications Using the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5

Upgrade from MCAD or MCSD to MCTS or MCPD on Visual Studio 2005

Although Microsoft Certified Application Developer (MCAD) and Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer (MCSD) credentials continue to be recognized and valued by employers and decision makers who use Microsoft .NET 1.0 and Microsoft .NET 1.1, you can now easily upgrade your existing MCAD or MCSD credential to Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) or Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) on Visual Studio 2005. Depending on your current certification, you will need to take one or two exams.

Once you have earned the MCPD on Visual Studio 2005, you can upgrade to MCPD on Visual Studio 2008.

Current certification

Certification goals

Exams

MCAD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Windows Applications

Exam 70-558: Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCTS Windows Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

MCAD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Web Applications

Exam 70-559: Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCTS Web Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

MCAD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Web Applications and MCPD: Web Developer, Visual Studio 2005

Exam 70-551: Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCPD Web Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

MCAD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Windows Applications and MCPD: Windows Developer, Visual Studio 2005

Exam 70-552: Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCPD Windows Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

MCAD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Distributed Applications

MCPD: Enterprise Applications Developer on Visual Studio 2005 certification

Note You must have already passed Exam 70-551 and Exam 70-522.

Exam 70-529: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Distributed Application Development

and

Exam 70-549: PRO: Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework

MCSD

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Web Applications

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Windows Applications

MCTS: .NET Framework 2.0 Distributed Applications

MCPD: Enterprise Applications Developer on Visual Studio 2005

Exam 70-553: Upgrade: MCSD Microsoft .NET Skills to MCPD Enterprise Application Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework: Part 1

and

Exam 70-554: Upgrade: MCSD Microsoft .NET Skills to MCPD Enterprise Application Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework: Part 2

MCSD

After you earn the MCPD: Web Developer and MCPD: Windows Developer certifications, you can earn the MCPD: Enterprise Applications Developer certification with one exam.

Exam 70-554: Upgrade: MCSD Microsoft .NET Skills to MCPD Enterprise Application Developer by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework: Part 2

Upgrade from MCPD on Visual Studio 2005 to MCPD on Visual Studio 2008

If you have already earned the MCPD credential on Visual Studio 2005, you can follow a simple upgrade path to earn the MCPD on Visual Studio 2008.

Current certification

Certification goals

Exam

MCPD: Windows Developer (Visual Studio 2005)

MCPD: Windows Developer 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Applications

Exam 70-566: Upgrade: Transition Your MCPD Windows Developer Skills to MCPD Windows Developer 3

MCPD: Web Developer (Visual Studio 2005)

MCPD: ASP.NET Developer 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications

Exam 70-567: Upgrade: Transition your MCPD Web Developer Skills to MCPD ASP.NET Developer 3.5

MCPD: Enterprise Application Developer (Visual Studio 2005)

MCPD: Enterprise Application Development 3.5

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Applications

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Applications

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Communication Foundation Applications

MCTS: .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Applications

Exam 70-568: Upgrade: Transition your MCPD Enterprise Application Developer Skills to MCPD Enterprise Applications Developer 3.5, Part 1

and

Exam 70-569: Upgrade: Transition your MCPD Enterprise Application Developer Skills to MCPD Enterprise Applications Developer 3.5, Part 2

Visual Studio Resources

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