The road to VCP 4 certification

After becoming a VCP4 I regularly get questions from my colleagues on how to become a VCP4.

Can I take the VCP410 exam without further training? I attended the VI3, Install & configure course but didn’t take the exam yet. Can I take the VCP exam instead?

Maureen Lonergan wrote a very neat article on this, ‘Ahead of the learning curve’

In this article Maureen talks about the various road which lead to VCP4 certification. In short? VCP on ESX 2.x? Until December 31st, you can take the VCP3 exam without having to take one of the VI3 courses. Once you’ve earned that VCP3 certification you can either self-study or attend the 2-day What’s New course and then take the VCP4 exam. After December 31st there is no option to ‘upgrade’ and you will have to attend the “VMware vSphere, Install & configure course” or the “VMware vSphere: Fast Track (V4) Course” and then take the VCP410 exam.

Taken the VCP3 course, but haven’t taken the test? If you have already taken one of the VCP3 courses (“Install and Configure”, the “Deploy, Secure, and Analyze” or “v3 Fast Track”) but have not yet taken the exam, there are a few options until December 31st. You could take the VCP3 exam and then the VCP4 exam, earning both certificates before the end of the year. Optionally you can attend the two-day “What’s New” course to get a little hands-on time. After December 31st you will have to attend the two-day “What’s New” course to qualify for the VCP410 exam.

Current VCP3s Until December 31st you can take the VCP410 exam without taking an additional course. Of course you can take the optional two-day “What’s New” course to get a little hands-on experience. After December 31st you will have to attend the two-day “What’s New” course to qualify for the exam.

If you are new to the whole VCP thing? There’s just one path to get VCP4 certified. Register for one of the VCP qualifying courses, get some experience, study and then take the VCP410 exam.

In the following diagram all certification paths are described.

Maybe this information will give AJ enough confidence to take the exam. He already has a voucher but registering for the exam is a hurdle. To put the pressure on. Only 77 (working) days left to take the exam.