NickBhavsar Posted: Fri, Jun 6 2008 12:30 PM

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Recently we sent out a survey asking our customers what they wanted to see from SolarWinds in 2008 and one of the top items was a certification program.  It didn’t take long for us to realize certification was valuable to our community, so we decided to go forward with a certification program in the second half of 2008.

This forum will be used to gather requests for the certification program and answer any questions folks have on the program details.

We would like to personally invite you to join the SolarWinds Certification Program Sneak Peek. Sneak peek benefits include helping to define an industry-recognized certification, getting early information on the program details, and even saving a few bucks on the test fees!

Please visit www.solarwinds.com/certification to join the sneak peek program and learn additional details about SolarWinds certification.

Please feel free to reach out to us to help create the best SolarWinds certification program possible. 

I'm looking forward to hearing from you.

Nick Bhavsar
SolarWinds Certification Program Manager

fizzkakz replied on Wed, Jun 11 2008 6:25 PM

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Interesting.

Is the plan to test across the whole suite of Solarwinds products or could you certify just for a particular product?

jonchill replied on Thu, Jun 12 2008 2:13 AM

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Great news would be extremely interested in this, will the exam be available in the UK from Day 1?

Is this first qualification a general network management certificate, will you be bringing out certification for each individual product?

Thanks

Jon 

NickBhavsar replied on Thu, Jun 12 2008 9:33 AM

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While we are still in the early stages of defining the test, the certification will most likely focus on three areas:

 - Basic networking knowledge
 - SolarWinds product knowledge
 - Advanced networking topics

We would like to make the test available in Europe on the same day that it is available in North America, but I can't promise that just yet :) 

Nick

dpeeples replied on Wed, Jun 18 2008 4:17 PM

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A certification program sounds great!  I know you are in the beginning stages, but has a timeline been put in place when you think users can start taking tests?

Thanks.

NickBhavsar replied on Wed, Jun 18 2008 4:49 PM

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We're aiming to have the test ready in the second half of 2008.  Sorry for the vague time frame, but we would like to launch the program before the end of the year.

Thanks,

crwchief6 replied on Fri, Jun 27 2008 10:14 AM

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I thought I read somewhere about the fees for the certification and what materials would be provided but cannot seem to figure where that was at. Can you provide any details on what we will have to pay and how we will go about studying for this exam. I think I read it was self study but like I said I cant remember where I saw that information at.

Thanks for any info.

NickBhavsar replied on Fri, Jun 27 2008 12:41 PM

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Thanks,
Nick

NetTeacher replied on Wed, Aug 6 2008 3:35 PM

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Nick,

 Online self study tools are great for the individual. However, what resources are avaialble for those who would like to become certified training providers?

NickBhavsar replied on Wed, Aug 6 2008 4:11 PM

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Hi NetTeacher,

We are considering individual and provider training as part of our certification program evaluation.  Unfortunately, I don’t have any specific details I can pass along at this time. 

-Nick

crwchief6 replied on Fri, Sep 26 2008 1:41 PM

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Hey Nick,

Not trying to bug you but I was just curious if you have been able to narrow the time frame on when Solarwinds will be providing the certification program.

Thanks.

NickBhavsar replied on Fri, Sep 26 2008 1:53 PM

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Hi crwchief6,

Unfortunately, it's still too early to provide a target date for the certification launch.  I'd hate to put a date out there and mislead folks about when to expect it.  I'll be sure to post a date in this forum to give folks enough time to plan for it and study for the test. 

Thanks,
Nick

crwchief6 replied on Fri, Sep 26 2008 2:16 PM

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Ok thanks for the info. I look forward to the announcement.

rietherll replied on Fri, Oct 10 2008 9:12 AM

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 Is there going to be any type of email notification that we can sign up for to get information on beta testing the certification and obtaining study materials???

Thanks

NickBhavsar replied on Fri, Oct 10 2008 9:28 AM

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Hi rietherll,

I'll post an update to this forum, but as usual, the best way to get notified of what is going on at SolarWinds is to subscribe to our newsletter.  You can sign up here (http://www.solarwinds.com/company/newsletters.aspx). We'll send out a notice when certification rolls out in both places.

Thanks,
Nick

BryanBecker replied on Mon, Dec 8 2008 8:59 AM

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Nick...its been a few months since the annoucement.  Any update on ETA when this will be available?

BB

NickBhavsar replied on Mon, Dec 8 2008 11:40 AM

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Hi Bryan and all,

SolarWinds has decided to move forward with the SolarWinds Certified Professional (SCP) program and we are currently in the process of pulling together requirements for the exam.  While I cannot commit to an exact launch date, I can tell you it will be roughly summer 2009.  We'll provide additional details as we move forward that outline what the test will cover, sample test questions, and a planned launch date.  

Thanks,
Nick

lorraine replied on Mon, Dec 8 2008 1:09 PM

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Sounds exciting Nick! Hope the locations will be widely available.

NickBhavsar replied on Mon, Dec 8 2008 5:16 PM

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That is certainly one of the things we are considering in selecting test delivery partners.  While I can't promise everyone will have a test site in their city, they should be available in all major metro areas.  For those of you managing networks on rural farms, you might have a travel a bit :)

-Nick

hoeflchr replied on Tue, Dec 9 2008 6:17 PM

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Looking forward to the program! Will there be a beta program for the testing?