MCSA Certification Path (Which Exam Next?)

meadIT

I just passed the 70-290 exam today. I'm going to wait to take 291 last so that I can go straight on to 293 since they are supposed to be similar, so that narrows it down to either 70-260 or Security+. Which would you choose?

bwcarty

Are you stopping with MCSA, or are you going to go on to MCSE?

If you only need/want MCSA, you don't have to worry about 70-293 and can go on to 70-291 safely.

Otherwise, I'd go for the XP or Vista client exam.

meadIT

Yeah, I will probably go on to the MCSE before it is retired. Then I will just do the upgrades to get the MCITP: SA and/or EA, but that will be quite a bit in the future.

dynamik

I think he's asking for what to use as his elective for his MCSA before he moves on to 291, 293 and beyond.

Consider 620 if you're looking at MCITP: Enterprise Administrator. If you have 620 and you're MCSE, you'll only need the upgrade and enterprise admin exams to get that.

Security+ is a fun one and is a great introduction to security if that's something you're going to pursue. Consider it if you're going for MCSE: Security.

Also, you don't have to finish your MCSA before you move on. You can do 290, 291, 293, etc. and decide later on. Consider a messaging exam if you want to get a bit more well-rounded.

RobertKaucher

If your ultimate goal is MSCE then I would personally consider taking the 293 after taking the 291. I personallu would only give myself about two weeks between the exams if you feel confident enough. I gave myself a month and I think it was too long. The objectives were very similar and I ended up re-studying some of them.

Then I would go on to an elective and then take your final MCSE exams. Good luck!

undomiel

Having just finished the 293 today I would fully recommend doing the 291 before the 293. It makes the DHCP/DNS/RRAS/Ipsec portions of the 293 a lot easier. I would also recommend the Security+ before the 293. The 293 builds upon a lot of the PKI and network security knowledge in the Security+. Congratulations on your pass!