Resources for Students and Educators

At Microsoft Learning, we aim to help you succeed. Whether you are a student in high school or graduate school, or an instructor at a training center or in higher education, you need the right training and resources to differentiate yourself in today's competitive IT market. We are here to help—offering a range of programs, classes, events, and other resources to provide the tools, skills, and experience you need.

Programs for Students

Microsoft IT Academy
Advance your skills and employability with industry-recognized education and certification offered through the Microsoft IT Academy.
IT Academy Student Pass
University students interested in extending their IT or developer skills with Microsoft technologies may qualify for the Microsoft IT Academy Student Pass, which provides free e-learning courses.
Microsoft Education
Microsoft Education offers products, services, lesson plans, how-to articles, webcasts, and more to help students, educators, and administrators succeed.
Microsoft Student Experience
Find the tools, information, and resources you need to get ahead in school, work, and life.
Microsoft DreamSpark
DreamSpark provides students who are studying science, technology, engineering, and math at education institutions throughout the world with free access to professional software development, gaming, and design tools. Eligible students simply need access to a computer with an Internet connection to download the products and free access keys.
Imagine Cup
High school and college students from around the world—tomorrow's software designers, IT professionals, programmers, game developers, photographers, and filmmakers—compete to find solutions to real-world problems. The 2009 competition includes nine categories for individuals or teams.

Programs for Instructors

Microsoft IT Academy
If you are associated with an academic learning institution, you can acquire new technology skills, tackle real-world challenges in a classroom setting, and access Microsoft curriculum and software tools through local Microsoft IT Academies worldwide. The IT Academy program also helps institutions and instructors provide students with the skills they need in today's job market.
Developer Academic Alliance
The Developer Academic Alliance (formerly known as MSDN Academic Alliance Membership) is a cost-effective software subscription program for academic departments that use technology in support of science, technology, engineering, and math courses. Subscriptions are available through Microsoft IT Academy.
Microsoft Education
Microsoft Education offers products, services, lesson plans, how-to articles, webcasts, and more to help students, educators, and administrators succeed.

Instructional Resources

We offer the following to help instructors and institutions facilitate technology training and certification for high school through university students. Courses can be tailored to the appropriate academic level.

Microsoft Official Courseware (MOC)
MOC is professionally developed courseware used to train IT professionals and developers in how to build, support, and implement solutions by using Microsoft products and technologies. Microsoft IT Academy members can purchase MOC at a discount.
Official Microsoft E-Learning
Microsoft E-Learning enables self-paced learning on your own schedule. Hands-on virtual labs and courses help students improve skills, prepare for projects, or earn certifications. Microsoft IT Academy members receive access to more than 250 e-learning titles.
Microsoft Official Academic Course (MOAC)
Designed for semester-based or quarter-based academic programs, these textbooks provide a foundation upon which faculty and students can expand their knowledge of Microsoft technologies and acquire real-world skills. These books are published by John Wiley and Sons in partnership with Microsoft.
Microsoft Press Books
Microsoft Press books and reference materials are written by industry experts for a range of users—from IT professionals who need to master an advanced technology to beginners who want to learn a specific skill. Special offers are available to instructors and academic bookstores.
- Order examination and desk copies
- Order books for academic bookstores
Microsoft Certifications
More than 3 million professionals worldwide have Microsoft Certifications, which are highly valued within the IT industry. Microsoft Certifications validate your technical skills and real-world experience and span the breadth of Microsoft technologies.
- Learn about academic discounts on Microsoft Certification exams
- Explore available certifications
Learn about the value of Microsoft Certification in today's workforce, the steps to set up a testing center, or how to provide specially priced certification exams to students, faculty, and staff by downloading the Microsoft Certification Readiness Guide for Academia.
- Download the Microsoft XPS file
- Download the PDF file
Microsoft TechNet
TechNet provides instructors with a wealth of technical information, news, and events to stay current on IT concepts and skills. Monthly updates provide the latest authoritative technical information on Microsoft solutions, straight from the source. Microsoft IT Academy members receive a promotional discount for the TechNet Plus membership.

Microsoft is dedicated to helping people throughout the world access free and low-cost resources to attain the skills, training, and certifications they need to compete in today's job market. Explore these programs.

Microsoft Digital Literacy Curriculum
The goal of the Microsoft Digital Literacy Curriculum is to provide people with computer skills to help them embrace new social and economic opportunities for themselves, their families, and their communities. Training materials are available in 19 languages.
Microsoft Education Competencies
If you are an administrator, teacher, student, or parent, you can use the Education Competencies to define a job profile, assess candidate competence, and plan for personal and professional growth. Also learn about professional development tools you can incorporate into your development and hiring processes.

Students, faculty, and IT support staff of academic institutions and Microsoft IT Academies are eligible to receive academic pricing on select Microsoft Certification exams. In some regions, the academic pricing can be up to 50 percent off the commercial price. Take advantage of the cost savings today and become certified to display your expertise on Microsoft technologies.

Registering for an academic exam is easy. First, select the exam from the following list. Then, call or visit your Prometric testing center to register for your academic exam.

Note Currently, online registration is not available for academic exams. Microsoft academic exams are identified with the "72" prefix. The exam content is the same as that of the commercial exams, which have a prefix of "70."

All Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist exams are available in academic versions.

View a list of available Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS) certifications

Microsoft Certified Applications Developer (MCAD) exams

Learn more about MCAD certification requirements

Exam number	Academic exam number	Exam title	Exam languages
70-229	72-229	Designing and Implementing Databases with Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-230	72-230	Designing and Implementing Solutions with Microsoft BizTalk Server 2000 Enterprise Edition Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-235	72-235	TS: Developing Business Process and Integration Solutions Using BizTalk Server 2006	English, Japanese, German, French
70-305	72-305	Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-306	72-306	Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-310	72-310	Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and the Microsoft .NET Framework Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-315	72-315	Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Microsoft Visual C# .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-316	72-316	Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with Microsoft Visual C# .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-320	72-320	Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft Visual C# and the Microsoft .NET Framework Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-330	72-330	Implementing Security for Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, Japanese, German, French
70-340	72-340	Implementing Security for Applications with Microsoft Visual C# .NET Note This exam is retired, but if you already passed it, you can apply it toward this certification.	English, German, French

Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician (MCDST) exams

Learn more about MCDST certification requirements

Exam number	Academic exam number	Exam title	Exam languages
70-271	72-271	Supporting Users and Troubleshooting a Microsoft Windows XP Operating System	English, Russian, Greek
70-272	72-272	Supporting Users and Troubleshooting Desktop Applications on a Microsoft Windows XP Operating System	English, Russian, Greek
70-623	72-623	PRO: Microsoft Desktop Support – Consumer	English, French, Spanish, German, Japanese

Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) exams

Learn more about MCSA certification requirements

Exam number	Academic exam number	Exam title	Exam languages
70-089	72-089	Designing, Implementing, and Managing a Microsoft Systems Management Server 2003 Infrastructure	English
70-270	72-270	Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows XP Professional	English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Korean
70-284	72-284	Implementing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2003	English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish
70-290	72-290	Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment	English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Korean, Greek
70-291	72-291	Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure	English, Japanese, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Korean, Greek
70-299	72-299	Implementing and Administering Security in a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network	English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish
70-350	72-350	Implementing Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration (ISA) Server 2004	English

Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist (MCTS) exams

Select MCTS exams are required for earning Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP) and Microsoft Certified Professional Developer (MCPD) certifications.

Exam number	Academic exam number	Exam title	Exam languages
Support Technician
70-620	72-620	TS: Configuring Windows Vista Client	English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Chinese (Traditional), Korean, Italian, Russian, Portuguese (Brazil)
70-621	72-621	PRO: Upgrading your MCDST Certification to MCITP Enterprise Support	English, Spanish, German, Chinese (Simplified)
70-622	72-262	PRO: Microsoft Desktop Support – Enterprise	English, Russian, Korean, French, Italian, German, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Greek, Chinese (Traditional)
Microsoft BizTalk Server
70-235	72-235	TS: Developing Business Process and Integration Solutions Using BizTalk Server	English, German, French, Japanese
Microsoft Forefront Server
70-557	72-557	TS: Microsoft Forefront Client and Server, Configuration	English, Japanese
Exchange Server 2007
70-236	72-236	TS: Exchange Server 2007, Configuring	English, Japanese, German, Spanish, French, Russian
Microsoft Office Live Communications Server
70-262	72-262	TS: Microsoft Office Live Communications Server 2005 – Implementing, Managing, and Troubleshooting	English
Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007
70-638	72-638	TS: Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, Configuring	English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish
Microsoft SQL Server 2005
70-431	72-431	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 – Implementation and Maintenance	English, Japanese, Spanish, Russian, Chinese (Simplified), German
70-445	72-445	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Business Intelligence – Implementation and Maintenance	English, German, Japanese
Windows Small Business Server
70-653	72-653	TS: Windows Small Business Server 2008, Configuring	English
Windows Essential Business Server
70-654	72-654	TS: Windows Essential Business Server 2008, Configuring	English
Windows
70-620	72-620	TS: Configuring Windows Vista Client	English, Spanish, German, French, Japanese, Greek, Chinese (Traditional), Chinese (Simplified), Korean, Italian, Russian, Portuguese (Brazil)
70-500	72-500	TS: Microsoft Windows Mobile Designing, Implementing, and Managing	English, Spanish, German, Japanese, Chinese
70-501	72-501	TS: Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Hosted Environments, Configuring, and Managing	English
70-540	72-540	TS: Microsoft Windows Mobile Application Development	English, Greek, Japanese, German, Spanish
70-571	72-571	TS: Windows Embedded CE 6.0 Development	English, French, German, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Korean
70-656	72-656	TS: Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, Configuring	English, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Italian, Portuguese (Brazil)
70-660	72-660	TS: Windows Internals	English
Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 and .NET 2.0
70-510	72-510	TS: Visual Studio 2005 Team Foundation Server	English, German, Japanese, French
70-526	72-526	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Windows-Based Client Development	English, Greek, Japanese, German, French
70-528	72-528	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Web-Based Client Development	English, Japanese, German, Greek, French
70-529	72-529	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Distributed Application Development	English, German, Japanese, French
70-536	72-536	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 – Application Development Foundation	English, Greek, Japanese, German, French
Office 2007 and SharePoint Services
70-541	72-541	TS: Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0 – Application Development	English, Chinese (Simplified), French, Japanese, Spanish
70-542	72-542	TS: Microsoft Office SharePoint Server 2007 – Application Development	English, Chinese (Simplified), French, German, Japanese, Spanish
70-543	72-543	TS: Visual Studio 2005 Tools for the Microsoft Office System	English
70-544	72-544	TS: Microsoft Virtual Earth 6.0, Application Development	English
70-545	72-545	TS: Microsoft Visio 2007, Application Development	English
70-555	72-555	TS: Microsoft Office Groove 2007, Configuring	English
70-556	72-556	TS: Microsoft Office PerformancePoint Server 2007, Applications	English
70-624	72-624	TS: Deploying and Maintaining Windows Vista Client and 2007 Microsoft Office System Desktop	English
70-630	72-630	TS: Office SharePoint Server 2007, Configuring	English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), German, French, Russian, Spanish
70-631	72-631	TS: Configuring Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services 3.0	English
70-632	72-632	TS: Microsoft Office Project 2007 – Managing Projects	English, Chinese (Simplified), German, French, Japanese, Spanish
70-633	72-633	TS: Microsoft Office Project Server 2007, Managing Projects	English, French, German, Japanese
70-639	72-639	TS: Microsoft Office Project Server 2007, Configuring	English, French, German, Japanese
70-638	72-638	TS: Microsoft Office Communications Server 2007, Configuring	English, French, German, Japanese, Spanish
Windows Server 2008
70-640	72-640	TS: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring	English, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Simplified), French, Japanese, Korean, Russian, Spanish
70-642	72-642	TS: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuring	English, French, German, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian
70-643	72-643	TS: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuring	English, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), German, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil)
70-652	72-652	TS: Windows Server Virtualization, Configuring	English
Microsoft Systems Center
70-400	72-400	TS: Microsoft System Center Operations Manager 2007, Configuring	English, French, German, Japanese
70-401	72-401	TS: Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager 2007, Configuring	English
Microsoft ISA Server
70-351	72-351	TS: Microsoft Internet Security and Acceleration Server 2006, Configuring	English
Microsoft SQL Server 2008
70-432	72-432	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Implementation and Maintenance	English
70-433	72-433	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Database Development	Exam in development
70-445	72-445	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Business Intelligence – Implementation and Maintenance	English
70-448	72-448	TS: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Business Intelligence Development and Maintenance	English
Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 and .NET 3.5
70-502	72-502	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 - Windows Presentation Foundation Application Development	English, Chinese (Simplified), French, German, Japanese
70-503	72-503	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 – Windows Communication Foundation Application Development	English, Chinese (Simplified), French, German, Japanese, Spanish
70-504	72-504	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 – Windows Workflow Foundation Application Development	English, Chinese (Simplified), German, French, Japanese, Spanish
70-505	72-505	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application Development	English
70-561	72-561	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, ADO.NET Application Development	English
70-562	72-562	TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, ASP.NET Application Development	English
Upgrade exams
70-558	72-558	Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCTS Windows Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework	English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), German, French
70-559	72-559	Upgrade: MCAD Skills to MCTS Web Applications by Using the Microsoft .NET Framework	English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), German, French
70-648	72-648	TS: Upgrading Your MCSA on Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008, Technology Specialist	English
70-649	72-649	TS: Upgrading Your MCSE on Windows Server 2003 to Windows Server 2008, Technology Specialist	English

Resources for Students and Educators

Programs for Students

Programs for Instructors

Instructional Resources

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Microsoft Certified Applications Developer (MCAD) exams

Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician (MCDST) exams

Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) exams

Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist (MCTS) exams

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