The upcoming 2011 North American MCT Summit offers a unique opportunity for anyone seeking to become a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT). Prior to the event, on October 18, there will be a 1.5 day train-the-trainer (TTT) boot camp. This will, assuming successful completion of the session, satisfy the presentation skills requirement for becoming an MCT.

Because the boot camp will be right before the MCT Summit, held October 19-21, upon completion you can then attend the Summit where you’ll be able to connect with other MCTs and continue to expand your skill set.

The cost for the event is $700,which includes the TTT event, your MCT fee through the current enrollment period (which ends in April of 2012), and entry to the MCT Summit. Learn more about the MCT Summit at http://www.mctsummit.org/.

Microsoft Learning is conducting a survey about the value of certifications and how those certifications keep pace with evolving technologies and products from Microsoft.  If you are interested in taking a short survey abou the topic, do so by August 8th.

For more information, please check out the original blog post on the Born to Learn blog.

Looking for the chance to have that latest Microsoft certification do even more for you?  How about counting towards college credit?

In case you missed this post from the Born to Learn Blog, 21 Microsoft certifications and exams, including several of the new MCITP or MCTS certifications can be added to your transcript with the American Counsel on Education.  This transcript can then be submitted to other traditional institutions for review toward a computer science degree.

I was excited to see that even the older MSCE certification can count, but only if you’ve achieved it in the last 3 years.  In addition to the Microsoft Technical Certifications, there is a selection of Microsoft Office Certifications that can also count towards credit.

The process to register and submit your exams for credit is pretty straight forward, just follow the instructions in the post by the Born to Learn Blog.  Go forth and study!

Enjoyed a great PacITPros meeting this week and had several members ask me about certification, specifically how to prepare for exams for relatively low cost. Of course, effective studying means you need to know your best way of absorbing information – some people read, some like hands-on, some like the lecture setup. Personally, I’m a “reader”, but here is a list of resources that should have a little something for everyone.

Microsoft Learning Snacks – Short Silverlight presentations on a variety of products and technologies.

Online Training – browse the training catalog for free or low-cost online courses. Also check out the e-reference library, which requires a subscription, but there is a 10-day free trial.

TechNet Virtual Labs – Want to play with software but don’t have any machines? These 90 minute labs might just be the thing.

Microsoft Springboard – Geared to provide whitepapers, videos, forums and other resources for Windows client operating systems. The forums have over a 90% answer rate! Also, don’t miss out on the free Proof-of-Concept Kit for deploying Windows 7 and Office 2010. Complete with virtual machines, you can practice deploying Windows 7 and using several of the deployment tools.

TechNet Library – technical documentation for IT pros for all the Microsoft products and technologies. It can be dry, but it might just be the explanation you are looking for.

Good luck on your next exam!

Looking for more technology training and certification opportunities? An article on SFGate.com yesterday details the expansion of Microsoft’s Elevate America program to California.

This program offer vouchers for online training and certifications for a variety of Microsoft business software. While predominately for business products like Microsoft Office, some vouchers will be available for IT Professional training.

Vouchers will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis through CareerOneStop and you can search for locations in your area. Other states that are currently distributing vouchers as part of the program are Colorado, Iowa, Georgia and Michigan.

You can also follow the Elevate America (@elevateamerica) program on Twitter.

There are a few Microsoft and Prometric exam discount programs going on right now. If you have plans for working on a certification in the upcoming months, these deals might help you along.

• Microsoft Second Shot – good for exams taken by June 30, 2010. You have to take the first attempt of the exam (and the 2nd attempt if needed) by the deadline.
• Prometric 15% Off – schedule your exam by the end of February and take it by April 30, 2010.

These offers can’t be combined, but if you’ve got a few exams in the pipeline you might be able to take advantage of both.