New Microsoft Technology Associate Certification Now Available

It launched today, the MTA will offer students a certification in the fundamentals of IT and development. Unlike more advanced Microsoft certifications, the MTA targets students with no prior IT or development experience or employment. It is available exclusively in educational settings and is designed to easily integrate into the curricula of existing computer classes.

The MTA offers three IT certifications, three development certifications and one database certification. The IT section includes tests in Networking Fundamentals, Security Fundamentals and Windows Server Administration Fundamentals. The development certification offers tests in Software Development Fundamentals, Windows Development Fundamentals and Web Development Fundamentals. The database certification covers Database Administration Fundamentals. Students can pursue as many or as few certifications as they choose.


Participating teachers can continue to use their favorite courseware to teach fundamental technology concepts, and also use the included MTA Certification Exam Review Kits (ERKs) to complement existing textbooks. For each exam, 20 hours of instructional material is available. The MTA will eventually be available in thousands of high schools, vocational programs and colleges in the U.S. and other countries. Some colleges are considering making the MTA a mandatory part of their freshman curricula in IT and development. Testing will be conducted by Certiport, a commercial testing service, at participating schools.