MCT...Should I even bother?

matttrax

I finished my certifications for becoming a Certified Professional in Development (yay!) and I was looking at becoming an MCT because I have a lot of experience tutoring and teaching. I'm just wondering if these requirements are for real?

$400 annual renewal fee because I work for an end user and not a partner
10 days required teaching per year
20 days required training attendance per year

This just seems excessive. I do most of my training by reading books that cost $50 instead of going to classes that cost $1500 and more. Is anyone out there currently an MCT? What do you think about it? Is there another program out there that you feel is just as good?

Thanks for your thoughts.

DenSter

You're only allowed to teach certification programs if you're an MCT. They made the threshold so high, because it is meant to be a serious commitment. If you are seriously considering certification training to be a part of your business then it might be worth it, certification trainers are hard to find. The MCT package comes loaded with beta product, so you'll have a LOT of resources at your disposal.

I would say if you want to be a trainer that can officially train people for MS certifications go for it. If it's not going to be a serious part of your business I wouldn't bother with it.

matttrax

Yeah, I want to be able to do training for people. But even working for a partner I can't see them giving you four weeks a year, every year, for training. I work for a pretty good end user company that send people to training all the time, but 20 days worth, plus expenses, it's just a lot of money.

My current training background is probably enough, but I just thought it would be a good addition to my resume and skill set. Thanks for the input.

Alex_Chow

matttrax wrote:

Yeah, I want to be able to do training for people. But even working for a partner I can't see them giving you four weeks a year, every year, for training. I work for a pretty good end user company that send people to training all the time, but 20 days worth, plus expenses, it's just a lot of money.

My current training background is probably enough, but I just thought it would be a good addition to my resume and skill set. Thanks for the input.

You wouldn't necessarily need to work for a solution center to offer those training. You would work for training partners, essentially, companies that offers training only. You can work as a contractor for these training companies.

matttrax

But if I work for a training partner as a consultant and not a solution center then I have to take 10 vacation days from my full time job just to keep up the cert. And hope to convince them that I need 4 weeks off for training. I don't think it's worth it at all. I understand that Microsoft only wants the highest caliber people teaching its classes, but I think that proving that through getting certified is enough. Recertification should come every few years, just like it does with new technologies.

You're essentially paying $400/yr + probably $6000-$8000 or so for classes a year. Even charging $100/hr you barely break even. From what I've read unless you are working for a partner and want them to get the partner points or you have a really good consulting business, there's no point.

DenSter

The policy is clearly targeted toward larger companies, or toward companies that want to teach as a core competency. Look at it this way... you will get a credible and rare certification, and you would have access to a HUGE pool of training resources. Sure MS is asking for a big commitment, but you do get a lot in return.

Of course not being an MCT should not keep you from teaching, even developing your own training material, and making a good living off of it. You can make all sorts of claims about the quality of your training, as long as you are clear and up front that you are not authorized by MS to prepare for the certification exams.