by Duncan Epping
Duncan Epping · ·
Finally, the results have been emailed today. Congrats to all of you who passed the exam! (And those who didn’t, I’m sure you will next time now you know what to expect.) I know at least a couple of you bloggers passed: Heino(Virtual troll) and Rick Scherer(VMware Tips). Of course there are some more names floating around on twitter.
Again congrats and I will see you guys during one of the “defense” sessions, have fun and good luck on your preparations.
Duncan Epping · ·
Lately I’ve been receiving so many emails/dm’s/pm’s about how to prepare for the Enterprise Exam(VCDX) that I decided to actually write an article as I did not have one yet.
As a start I would like to recommend the Deploy, Secure and Analyze course. The course covers 99% of the exam. If you don’t have the budget you could also use the following material to prepare:
Besides these links my tip would be: Just do it!
ps: if someone has additional docs/links they would like to have added, leave a comment and I will add them to the list.
Duncan Epping · ·
Yesterday I posted an article that the required exams for the VCDX certification would be available at VMworld at discounted prices. Today Rick broke the news that VCDX Defense panels are also scheduled for VMworld.
This reminded me that I still haven’t heard from VMware on the results of my VCDX Design Exam beta. I was really hoping that I would receive my passing grade (hopeful huh?) and schedule the defense during VMworld.
Well, I called Tina (she’s so famous now!) at VMware and chatted about this. She sounded hopeful that the results would be sent out by end of business tomorrow (Friday 7/24). She also informed me that in addition to VCP and VCDX exams being available at VMworld, that VMware will also be scheduling VCDX Defense sessions during the week. Great news!
I didn’t know we were allowed to talk about it but now that the word is out… Like Rick said, design exam results will be sent really soon. VCDX Defense Panels will be scheduled before and directly after VMworld, not during as far as I know. Those who passed the exam better start preparing, good luck and maybe we will meet at one of the sessions as I will be part of the panel. For the European candidates who are not attending VMworld, panels will also be scheduled in Europe. Dates and location are still to be confirmed though.
Duncan Epping · ·
Jon Hall posted this info on the VMTN Communities which I wanted to share with you guys.
VMware will be providing onsite testing services at VMworld 2009. A great deal is available on the VCP exam (see my post at http://communities.vmware.com/thread/222191?tstart=0 ), but more importantly, the VCDX Enterprise Administration and Design Exams will be offered! You must be pre-authorized to take these exams, so if you are already in process to take the Enterprise Administration Exam, contact certification@vmware.com to inquire about the availability of the exam at VMworld. You can register at Pearson VUE for the Design Exam, but again you must already be in process and have authorization from VMware to take the exam. The link for registering with Pearson for the Design Exam is http://pearsonvue.com/vmware/vmworld/ . For the Enterprise Administration Exam only, you must contact us directly.
For those who want to do the Enterprise Exam check the mock exam that has also has just been released: Enterprise Administration Mock Exam.
Dave Convery also posted about discounts for these exams, which might be a nice incentive to get you guys studying!
Duncan Epping · ·
As you know I did the final part of the VCDX certification in San Francisco during the VMware Technical Services vSummit. I wanted to share my experience with you so you know what to expect to a certain degree and more importantly get the word out in general.
The last part of the VCDX certification is the defense. In short: you will need to write a design, fill out the application and defend your design during a two to three hour session.
Although I can describe it in 30 words it is not as simple as it may sound. First of all your design needs to meet specific requirements. I can’t go in to the details unfortunately but when you receive an invitation you will receive all the prerequisites. Like me, most of you done numerous designs, but keep in mind it needs to be in English and so will your defense need to be. This is an extra barrier for many of the non- native speakers; I know it was for me.
The defense part:
75 minutes – executive overview and an in-depth design defense
30 minutes – design workshop
15 minutes – problem analysis
For the first 15 minutes, the executive overview, you can use a couple of slides. Like I said it’s an executive overview and its only 15 minutes so don’t go into the technical details, there’s no need for that share your experience and maybe tell about political issues for instance. These 15 minutes gave me the opportunity to get rid of my nerves.
The in depth design defense is self-explanatory I think. Just be prepared to get questions on every single aspect of your design, know it inside out and not only “what” and “how”, but especially “why”.
Next two are role-play based. The panel is the customer and you are the architect. By asking questions, white boarding, discussions you will need to solve an issue or come to a specific solution for the customer. This is something you can not really prepare. Although you may think you will have more than enough time, you will not have time enough. Time flies when the pressure is on. Keep in mind that it’s not the end result that counts for these scenarios, it’s your thought process!
I’ve read comments on the written exams; some thought they were too easy. I can promise you this will not be easy this is not a test you can study for and pass if you crammed all the details. You will need specific soft skills and a wealth of knowledge.
Good luck and enjoy the ride,