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Azure Course Take-aways

Last updated: April 6, 2021

Intro

This is a set of information I discuss with classes as part of my "end of class" summary when I am presenting Azure Microsoft Official Curriculum. These are personal opinions and are not the official position of Microsoft. I update this document on occasion based on new information, class feedback, etc. - you can use the update date at the top to tell you the last change and use the GitHub revision history to see what has changed.

Learning Resources

  • The following resources are in the "standard" opening deck for Azure Technical Trainer deliveries:
  • Skillpipe e-Book access - available "forever" and updated on a regular basis for the life of the course.
  • Most Azure course labs are on GitHub.
  • Azure Courses on EdX is another source of self-paced online learning, but is closer to traditional timing than the shorter-form content on Microsoft Learn.
  • A summary presentation of all Microsoft Training and Certifications is available.
  • In many classes, especially the developer-related ones, there's been a lot of interest in learning Python. Christopher Harrison and Susan Ibach have done a set of great tutorial videos: Python for Beginners (44 videos!)
  • The role-based classes generally require an entry level of knowledge around networking such as IP addressing. Microsoft Learn has a Fundamentals of computer networking module that can help with that.

Study Guides

Exam Tips

  • Details on different question types including videos for them are at the top-level Microsoft Certification Exams web site. There's also a FAQ there with a lot of common questions and answers.
  • Exams are "closed book." In the case of an exam with a practical component, you may have inline help in the CLI and the like, but that's it. You will not have general web access, Skillpipe access, and so on.
  • A blog post about the home testing experience was posted by one of Microsoft's Cloud Advocates, Thomas Maurer.
  • In most cases, you will receive exam results immediately at the end of the exam, after the comment period. For beta exams and some exams that have practical components, there will be a delay - beta exams will be scored after the beta period ends, while practical exams may be delayed by a couple of hours. Delayed results will be sent to the e-mail address associated with your Microsoft Learning profile.
  • These are not college entrance exams. You are not penalized for wrong answers. Thus, if you don't know an answer, don't leave it blank - guess.
  • The exams are not trying to trick you - don't read too far into the question.
  • Don't second-guess your answers. Your first feeling is usually right.
  • You can find practice exams at MindHub.
  • Watch your time, especially in exams that have a practical component. Time can go very quickly.
  • Don't read and memorize a case study. Either:
    • Skim the case study briefly to learn where things are, then go to the questions.
    • Skim the questions to see what is being asked, then find the answers in the case study.
  • Any comments you make during the comment period are read by a human being - every single one. So, if you have a complaint, be clear, concise, and polite in your comment, so it can be acted upon.
  • Remember that exams are "pass/fail," meaning although you get a numeric score to help you understand your weaknesses, nobody will ever see the score but you, so don't get hung up too much on it.

Keeping Up