Which MCSE is the best?

joeswfc

Hi Guys,

Just thought I would start a discussion about the different MCSE options, I would like to know which one you think is the best one to have (most valuable/useful) and if anyone has more than one of these certs, which is the most difficult.
Please put them in the order you think (best to worst)

Server Infrastructure
Desktop Infrastructure
Private Cloud
Enterprise Devices and Apps (Windows 8 )
Messaging (Exchange)
Communication (Lync)
SharePoint
Business Intelligence (SQL)
Data Platform (SQL)

I am currently preparing for the first MCSE messaging exam after getting certified as a Windows Server 2012 MCSA.

Personally I would rank the Windows 8 and Desktop infrastructure ones at the bottom, and then all of the rest are probably all at a similar level.

Thanks!

sthomas

In my opinion the MCSE:Server Infrastructure is the most well known and mainstream option. But I think all of the other MCSEs you have listed have their niche. Even the Desktop Infrastructure has value, there is a demand for SCCM/desktop deployment admins.

joeswfc

sthomas wrote: »

In my opinion the MCSE:Server Infrastructure is the most well known and mainstream option. But I think all of the other MCSEs you have listed have their niche. Even the Desktop Infrastructure has value, there is a demand for SCCM/desktop deployment admins.

Server infrastructure is a pretty good cert, and is more broad than all of the others, it is basically a higher level Windows Server 2012 cert.
As you say, the others are more focused on a particular program so are probably going to be less common.

blargoe

I wouldn't underestimate the value of a highly credentialed and trained desktop infrastructure engineer. People on the client infrastructure team who are strong in packaging and config management can do pretty well, and some companies have started to figure out that this is a skill worth paying for.

If anything, the "server infrastructure" *may* be the least valuable in terms of the immediate boost that you would get just from having the cert. I guess that depends on where you are in your career currently. There are quite a bit more strong server infrastructure guys out there that have proven experience who do not actively continue to certify (like me, though I am looking to update at some point), and a lot more generic "server guys" out there in general relative to the number of jobs, compared to the other MCSE tracks. Not saying that the server infrastructure MCSE track is not worthwhile, because I feel there is definitely value there.

I do agree with the comment that server infrastructure is the more well-known (or rather, what people think of colloquially when they think "MCSE"), and being a broader cert, may be what people use as a jumping off point for the other tracks.

gncsmith

I believe them all to be valuable, but as for which one is most valuable? That will be up to what you find to be the most interesting and thereby rewarding to you.

I'd like to pursue the Private Cloud route as I believe more and more companies will move to the cloud. However, I've not even passed my first Microsoft exam yet, so my perspective may change as well as the market may too.

Good luck in whatever you decide!

techfiend

Not the best, but Private Cloud and Server infrastructure are the most interesting to me. I'm shocked Lync has it's own MCSE but maybe I'm naive at the complexity of it. Sharepoint+Lync makes much more sense.

OctalDump

The Private Cloud with the Office 365 option is the most interesting. There's a lot of scope for organisations to transform their IT delivery with what Azure and Office 365 offer, without huge changes for the end user. And it promotes mobility. You push down that path a bit, and it can have quite radical implications - less office space, decentralisation etc. Most jobs, in themselves, don't require all the staff to be there all the time. There's mind numbing stuff like data entry, admin, customer relations that really could be done from anywhere if people have access to the tools and data they need.

The MCSE puts you in a good place to drive some of that change and guide organisations through the transition. Big picture and technical. It's really more MCSE than a lot of MCSE work tends to be.

joeswfc

blargoe wrote: »

I wouldn't underestimate the value of a highly credentialed and trained desktop infrastructure engineer. People on the client infrastructure team who are strong in packaging and config management can do pretty well, and some companies have started to figure out that this is a skill worth paying for.

If anything, the "server infrastructure" *may* be the least valuable in terms of the immediate boost that you would get just from having the cert. I guess that depends on where you are in your career currently. There are quite a bit more strong server infrastructure guys out there that have proven experience who do not actively continue to certify (like me, though I am looking to update at some point), and a lot more generic "server guys" out there in general relative to the number of jobs, compared to the other MCSE tracks. Not saying that the server infrastructure MCSE track is not worthwhile, because I feel there is definitely value there.

I do agree with the comment that server infrastructure is the more well-known (or rather, what people think of colloquially when they think "MCSE"), and being a broader cert, may be what people use as a jumping off point for the other tracks.

I agree with you there, I have worked in places before where this is important. To be able to build desktop images and be able to deploy them when you are needed to is important in some cases (probably in larger environments I would say)
I have had a couple of projects in my career to build images for different departments, deploy updates through WSUS, build and maintain RDS.
Personally I am not going to pursue this one as it is actually first line that deal with most of the PC builds etc but it is valuable if you are in charge of doing this

gncsmith wrote: »

I believe them all to be valuable, but as for which one is most valuable? That will be up to what you find to be the most interesting and thereby rewarding to you.

I'd like to pursue the Private Cloud route as I believe more and more companies will move to the cloud. However, I've not even passed my first Microsoft exam yet, so my perspective may change as well as the market may too.

Good luck in whatever you decide!

True, they are all valuable, it depends on the circumstances really (yourself, the company etc)
Currently I only work for a very small IT company (2 on first line, 2 on second line, 2 on third line). I am on second line, the other second line engineer and one of the third line engineers are more network, firewalls, Linux people. The other third line is Microsoft and VMware mainly, so that leaves a bit of a gap for Exchange knowledge.
Private cloud is probably going to be one of the most valuable ones as cloud and virtualization gets used more every day.

techfiend wrote: »

Not the best, but Private Cloud and Server infrastructure are the most interesting to me. I'm shocked Lync has it's own MCSE but maybe I'm naive at the complexity of it. Sharepoint+Lync makes much more sense.

I was surprised by Lync as well, but you do find that when you look into it there is a lot more than you think that goes on in the background. You can combine any of the 3 out of Exchange Lync and SharePoint I believe, Exchange and SharePoint also go together well as well as Exchange and Lync!

OctalDump wrote: »

The Private Cloud with the Office 365 option is the most interesting. There's a lot of scope for organisations to transform their IT delivery with what Azure and Office 365 offer, without huge changes for the end user. And it promotes mobility. You push down that path a bit, and it can have quite radical implications - less office space, decentralisation etc. Most jobs, in themselves, don't require all the staff to be there all the time. There's mind numbing stuff like data entry, admin, customer relations that really could be done from anywhere if people have access to the tools and data they need.

The MCSE puts you in a good place to drive some of that change and guide organisations through the transition. Big picture and technical. It's really more MCSE than a lot of MCSE work tends to be.

In a way I wish I had done the MCSA office 365 as it may have made MCSE Messaging easier to pass, but I had already passed 2 of the MCSA exams before I even started considering that. Saying that having almost finished the MCSA windows server helped me to get my current job

knownhero

No love for SharePoint then

SharePoint all day!

TechGuru80

Server would be recommended unless you have a very good reason for another.

Private Cloud seemed to have a good amount of hits on Tom's IT breakdown.

joeswfc

knownhero wrote: »

No love for SharePoint then

SharePoint all day!

I am actually considering maybe doing the SharePoint MCSE at some point after I have completed messaging, I will have to see how hard it is/long it takes to pass messaging and then possibly look into it!
The only reason I would not do SharePoint as it is generally dealt with by the developer support team where I work, whereas I am on Technical Support

alan2308

Which fruit is best? Which color is best? The best cert is the one that best relates to your job, the worst cert is the one that least relates to your job.

joeswfc

alan2308 wrote: »

Which fruit is best? Which color is best? The best cert is the one that best relates to your job, the worst cert is the one that least relates to your job.

Apple
Blue

lol! But yeah good point they are all good depending on what you do in your job

knownhero

joeswfc wrote: »

I am actually considering maybe doing the SharePoint MCSE at some point after I have completed messaging, I will have to see how hard it is/long it takes to pass messaging and then possibly look into it!
The only reason I would not do SharePoint as it is generally dealt with by the developer support team where I work, whereas I am on Technical Support

Yeah I develop for it. Love it. Don't deal with any of the crap for password resets, mouse swaps etc.

But like others say. Just go with what you like and feel like you could do for the rest of your life.

SconnieInShorts

In the environment that I'm in and the direction the company is going, the Private Cloud MCSE is probably the best way to go for me. As for the overall best? I think it depends on the person and their circumstances -- MCSE for Desktop Infrastructure wouldn't do me much good (System Engineer working with pretty much everything but AD and Desktops), but would do our Desktop Admins loads.