• Introduction
• How to schedule Microsoft exam
• Pearson Vue Procedure
• Kryterion Procedure
• Microsoft exam policies and FAQs

Microsoft exam policies and FAQs

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Reschedule and cancellation policy

Effective May 1, 2017, the existing cancellation policy will be replaced in its entirety with the following policy: There is no charge if you reschedule or cancel an exam appointment at least 6 business days prior to your appointment. If you cancel or reschedule your exam within 5 business days of your registered exam time, a fee will be applied. If you fail to show up for your exam appointment or you don’t reschedule or cancel your appointment at least 24 hours prior to your scheduled appointment, you forfeit your entire exam fee. Business days are Monday-Friday, not including Pearson VUE global holidays.

Exam retakes policy

MCP exams (70-xxx, 74-xxx, MBx-xxx, Microsoft Role-based exam)

• • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score on an exam the first time, the candidate must wait at least 24 hours before retaking the exam.
  • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score the second time, the candidate must wait at least 14 days before retaking the exam a third time.
  • A 14-day waiting period is also imposed for the fourth and fifth subsequent exam retakes. A candidate may not take a given exam any more than five times per year (12 months). This 12-month period starts the day of the fifth unsuccessful exam retake. The candidate is then eligible to retake the exam 12 months from that date. To take a given exam more than five times per year or to have the time between attempts waived, a candidate must submit a request and obtain prior permission from Microsoft. Requests should be sent to mlsecure@microsoft.com. These requests should include the following information: MCID, Name, Email, Exam Number
  • If a candidate achieves a passing score on an exam, the candidate cannot take the exam again. Microsoft reserves the right to make some exams available for retake For a complete list of exams that can be retaken annually, click here.

Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) and Microsoft Certified Educator (MCE) exam retake policy

• • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score on an exam the first time, the candidate must wait 24 hours before retaking the exam.
  • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score the second time, the candidate must wait seven days before retaking the exam a third time.
  • A seven-day waiting period is imposed for each subsequent exam retake.
  • A candidate may not take a given exam any more than five times per year (12 months). This 12-month period starts the day of the fifth unsuccessful exam retake. The candidate is then eligible to retake the exam 12 months from that date.
  • If a candidate achieves a passing score on an MTA exam, the candidate cannot take it again.

Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) exam retake policy

• • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score on an exam the first time, the candidate must wait 24 hours before retaking the exam.
  • If a candidate does not achieve a passing score the second time, the candidate must wait 2 days (48 hours) before retaking the exam a third time.
  • A two-day waiting period will be imposed for each subsequent exam retake.
  • There is no annual limit on the number of attempts on the same exam.
  • If a candidate achieves a passing score on an Office exam, the candidate may take it again.

MCP beta exam retake policy

• • Beta exams may be taken only once during the beta period. If the candidate passes the exam, it counts toward credit for the certification. If the candidate fails the exam, it can be retaken per the policies above.
  • This policy supersedes the general retake policy.

Frequently asked questions

Scoring and results

How and when will I get my exam results?

You will receive notification of your pass or fail status within a few minutes of completing your exam. In addition, you will receive a printed report that provides your exam score and feedback on your performance on the skill areas measured. The exam delivery provider will forward your score to Microsoft within five business days.

Beta exam results: Results for beta exams should be visible on your Microsoft transcript (if you’ve received a passing score) and on the exam delivery provider’s site within two weeks after the live exam is published.

If you pass the beta exam, you earn credit for that exam and any resulting certification. You do not need to retake the exam in its live version if you pass the beta version.

 Who should I contact if I have questions concerning beta exam results?

If you do not see your score report online or receive your score report within two weeks after the date when the final exam is published, contact the exam delivery provider for more information on when your results will be processed. If you have questions about your transcript, contact your Microsoft Regional Service Center.

 Who should I contact if I do not receive my 25% voucher for taking a beta exam?

These vouchers are provided by VUE and are sent to the email address that you used when you registered for the exam. They are sent approximately 6 about 4 weeks after the exam goes live. If you do not receive your 25% discount voucher within 64 weeks of the exam live date, please send an email to pvamericascustomerservice@pearson.com.

 What does the score report look like?

The score report provides a numeric score for overall exam performance, pass/fail status, a bar chart showing performance on each skill area assessed on the exam, and details on how to interpret your results and next steps. Using this information, candidates can determine areas of strength and weakness.

 What do the bars on the score report mean?

The bar chart shows your performance on each section, or skill area, assessed on the exam. On the left of the graph, each section of the exam is listed along with the percentage of the exam that was devoted to it. The lengths of the bars provide information regarding your section-level performance and map to the percentage of items that you answered correctly in that content area. Bars that are further to the left reflect weaker performance, and bars that are further to the right reflect stronger performance.

Because each section may contain a different number of questions, as represented by the percentages provided after the section name, the length of the bars cannot be used to calculate the number of questions answered correctly in that section or on the exam, nor can the bars be combined to determine the percent of questions that you answered correctly on the exam. This information is intended to help you understand areas of strength and weakness in the skill domain measured by the exam and to prioritize those skills that need improvement.

Can I find out whether I answered a specific question correctly or whether how I answered a specific question affected my pass/fail status?

No. Microsoft Certification exams are designed to measure candidates’ skills and abilities related to a given job role, not their ability to study or memorize specific questions that were on the exam. Qualified candidates will be able to pass this exam regardless of the questions asked. As a result, to protect the integrity of the certification process, Microsoft does not share information about the specific questions that were missed.

 Does the score report show a numerical score for each section?

The score reports do not show a numerical score for each section. The score reports provide an overall numerical score to reflect pass/fail status only. As an alternative to providing a numerical score for each section, we provide score bars to show subject areas of strength and weakness.

 Can I see a lower level of detail on my performance on transition or upgrade exams?

No, we do not provide a lower level of detail on your performance on transition or upgrade exams. We don't ask enough questions at the objective level to provide a reliable estimate of your ability for each of those skills. Providing this level of information would be a disservice to you because the result may indicate that you should work on skills that don't need improvement, or worse, suggest skills are strengths when they are not.

 The bars on the score report show that I have scored more than 70 percent. Why didn’t I pass the exam?

Each section of the exam contains a different number of questions; therefore, combining the results across individual exam sections will not reflect your final exam result. In other words, there is no one-to-one relationship between the length of the bars and your pass/fail status.

Further, a common misperception is that you must answer 70 percent of the questions correctly to pass the exam because the passing score is 700; however, this is a scaled score. The actual percentage of questions that you must answer correctly varies from exam to exam and may be more or less than 70 percent, depending on the input provided by the subject-matter experts who helped us set the cut score during exam development and ongoing sustainment and the difficulty of the questions delivered when you take exam.

 How are questions scored? How many points is each question worth? Will I be penalized for answering a question incorrectly?

Here is some general information about exam scoring:

• Most questions are worth one point, regardless of what you must do to answer the question. If a question is worth more than one point, this information will be stated in the question.
• There is no penalty for guessing. If you choose an incorrect answer, you simply do not earn the point(s) for that item. No points are deducted for incorrect answers.
• Some questions on the exam may not be included in the calculation of your score. To gather data to update and improve the quality of each exam, we present new content to candidates without counting the results toward their score. However, as soon as we have the necessary data to evaluate the quality of the question, items that meet Microsoft’s psychometric standards will be scored. Microsoft will not inform candidates which questions are unscored; as a result, you should answer every question as if it will be scored.

Note that this scoring system is subject to change as Microsoft continues to introduce new and innovative question types. Microsoft will indicate if a question is scored differently in the text of the question.

 How are exam scores calculated?

After you complete your exam, the points you earned on each question are summed and then compared with the cut score to determine whether the result is pass or fail.

 What score do I need to pass an exam?

Technical exams: All technical exams are scaled such that the passing score is 700. Any score of 700 or greater is a "pass." Any score below 700 is a "fail." The actual number of items you need to answer correctly to pass is determined by a group of subject matter experts in conjunction with the Microsoft psychometrician during the development and sustainment of the exam. The passing score is based on the knowledge and skills needed to demonstrate competence in the skill domain and the difficulty of the questions that are delivered to a candidate.

Microsoft Office exams: All Microsoft Office exam scores are reported on a scale of 1 to 1,000. The passing score varies from exam to exam and is provided on the score report. The actual cut score percentage is determined by a group of subject matter experts using a process like that used to set the cut score for Microsoft’s technical exams.

 Why does Microsoft report scaled scores?

Microsoft reports scaled scores so that candidates who have to retake a certification exam can determine if their performance is improving. The actual cut score (the number of items you need to answer correctly) is based on input from a group of subject-matter experts who review the difficulty of the questions in relation to the expected skills of the target audience. As a result, the number of items that you have to answer correctly varies depending on the difficulty of the questions delivered when you take the exam; this ensures that regardless of the difficulty of items you see, the evaluation of skills is fair—if you see a more difficult set of questions during one administration, the number of correct answers needed to pass is less than if you see an easier set of questions. As a result, providing a simple percent correct wouldn't provide useful information to someone who had to take the exam multiple times and saw different combinations of questions with different levels of difficulty.

Here’s an example of why scaled scores are a better indicator of how your performance is improving (or not) from one exam attempt to another. Imagine that the first time you take an exam, you see a set of easy items; unfortunately, you fail with a scaled score of 600, which is equivalent to a score of 65% correct. The next time you take the exam, you see a set of more difficult items. This time you pass the exam with a scaled score of 750, which is equivalent to answering 50% of the questions correctly. If we provided the percent you answered correctly, you would think your performance had gotten worse, not better, but it is, in fact, better because you answered a higher percentage of more difficult questions correctly than you did the first time.

Scaled scores simplify your ability to evaluate improvements in your performance over time. This is a standard practice across the certification and licensure industry.

What does my score mean?

If you pass an exam, it simply means that you have demonstrated competence in the skill domain. In addition, scores of candidates who pass cannot be compared to determine if one candidate is more competent than another; higher passing scores do not mean higher levels of competence. The same is true of failing scores; lower failing scores do not mean lower levels of competence. If you pass the exam, you have demonstrated competence regardless of your score; if you fail, you have not demonstrated competence.

Microsoft exams are designed so that the total test score can be used to make a pass/fail decision (in other words, to show whether the candidate has demonstrated competence in the skill domain measured by the exam). Our exams are not designed with the intent to provide diagnostic feedback about your skills, and steps are not taken during the exam development process to support that level of reporting.

If I receive the same score every time I retake the same exam, does this imply an error in the results computation?

No. Receiving the same score on multiple attempts does not indicate that the program computing the results is in error. It is not uncommon for candidates to obtain similar or identical scores on multiple attempts of an exam. This consistent result demonstrates the reliability of the exam in evaluating skills in this content domain. If this happens on multiple attempts, you may want to reconsider how you’re preparing for the exam and seek other opportunities to learn and practice the skills measured by the exam.

Do the responses that I provide to the survey at the beginning of the exam impact the questions that I see during the exam or how my exam is scored?

No. The survey that you take at the beginning of the exam has no impact on the exam content or scoring. This is purely an evaluation tool that our exam psychometricians use to ensure the quality, validity, and rigor of the exam over its lifecycle.

 Can I request a re-evaluation of my score?

A re-evaluation of your score is unlikely to change your pass/fail status. Because Microsoft must ensure that candidates who pass exams and earn our certifications have demonstrated the required proficiency level(s) across the skill domain(s), the final result of an exam is rarely changed based on a re-evaluation of your exam results. Even if a question is flawed in some way, we cannot assume that you would have answered it correctly if it had not been. In these cases, we provide candidates with the opportunity to retake the exam free of charge. If you have a concern about the technical accuracy of a particular item, please submit an online request. An Item Challenge form will be sent to you.

 How can I challenge an exam question?

If you believe a question on a Microsoft Certification exam is inaccurate, you can request an evaluation of that question using the Exam Item Challenge process within 30 calendar days of taking the exam. The evaluation process helps us identify and correct problematic questions and to update exams accordingly.

Note: Please do not use the Exam Item Challenge process to provide feedback about Beta exam questions.

 If I do not pass an exam, can I have a refund?

No. Microsoft does not offer refunds for exams you do not pass or exam appointments you miss.

Performance-based Testing

 What is performance-based testing (PBT)?

Performance based testing gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your skills by completing tasks in the technology. Today, this means completing tasks in a graded lab, but in the future, PBT may take a different form. For example, for those of you who are currently performing the job role, Microsoft is exploring ways to incorporate the work that you do every day into our certification requirements. For those of you who are not in the job role yet, we’ll continue to have other ways for you to demonstrate your skills through portfolios and graded labs. Microsoft is constantly innovating to ensure that we assess your skills and abilities in ways that align to how you actually get your work done.

 What can I expect when I complete the labs?

This type of question asks you to perform tasks in a virtual environment. You will see a screen that includes a virtual machine window and a Tasks pane. The virtual machine window is a remotely connected live environment where you perform tasks on real software and applications.

The Tasks pane lists the tasks you need to perform in the lab. You can expand or collapse each task with the + or -symbols. For your convenience, each task has a checkbox so you can mark tasks as you complete them. Doing this won’t affect anything in the lab or scoring. Nothing in the lab will indicate if you did not complete a required task, so you may want to keep track of the tasks that you have completed by checking the boxes.

After you leave a lab, you will not be able to return to it because scoring starts (in the background) as soon as you leave a lab or section of the exam. When you click Next, you will be asked to confirm that you really want to leave the lab. Clicking Yes will end the lab section, and the tasks will be scored.

 How is the exam structured when it has labs?

After you launch the exam, you will answer traditional questions (for example, multiple choice, drag and drop, build list, etc.) as the labs load. When you complete the labs, you will answer another set of traditional questions as the labs are being scored. If you complete the first set of questions too quickly, you may have to wait for the labs to finish provisioning. Please note the following:

• After you leave any section of the exam, you cannot return to it. However, at the end of each section, you have the opportunity to review your answers. Exam time does NOT stop while you are reviewing your answers. Make sure you manage your time. Pay attention to the time AND number of questions remaining.
• Each exam contains one or two performance sections/labs with multiple tasks that you must complete. Each is followed by a series of traditional items that allows us time to score the lab(s) so you can receive your pass/fail result as soon as the exam ends. Again, manage your time. You will have to answer some questions after the labs.
• The number of labs on the exam is provided on the overview page preceding the first lab. Read it! And then, manage your time accordingly.
• Do NOT wait for tasks to execute before moving onto another task. In some (rare) cases, you need something to execute before you can complete another task, but there should be other tasks that you can be working on while that task executes. Don't lose time waiting for tasks to run. Move onto something that is not dependent on that task so you can maximize your exam time. In some cases, starting a task may be sufficient for scoring (for example, creating a resource in Azure); you can let the task execute in the background while you work on other tasks. We include a note in the task list telling you that you only need to start the task. You can move on to other tasks or even leave the section (move to the next portion of the exam) without being penalized. Read the task carefully.

How many labs are on an exam? How many tasks are in each lab?

• If an exam contains labs, it will have at least 1 lab. Each lab contains between 7–15 tasks. One of the introductory pages of the exam will show the number of labs and tasks.

How much time do I have to complete the labs?

• Labs are not timed separately from the exam. At the beginning of the exam, the number of labs, case studies, and questions as well as the exam time will be provided. You must answer all questions, including completing tasks associated with any labs, in the time provided. Manage your time accordingly so that you can complete all activities that must be done.

Will I have enough time to complete the labs?

• The labs are designed to be completed within the exam time provided. You will not be asked to perform tasks that execute long running operations or tasks that have many dependencies. If important skills need to be assessed that are based on tasks that require long running operations or have many dependencies, we will either assess them with traditional items, or, if possible, set up the labs so that these operations have already taken place, and then you will perform tasks that logically build on the outcomes of those operations.

I have heard that labs can launch with a blank white screen. Is there something I can do to fix this?

• If your lab launches with a blank white screen, try opening a new tab and navigating to https://portal.azure.com. Opening this new tab will resolve the issue most of the time.

 I had some issues with my labs. How do I let Microsoft know?

• If you run into issues with labs, please escalate them through our exam item challenge process. Although we won’t be able to provide a specific explanation for your experience, our investigation into your experience will help us identify root causes and identify solutions that will improve the experience for everyone.

Role-Based Certifications

 How will the role-based certifications be named? Will they still be MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE?

• Because we are making a significant shift in our certification program, we are moving away from the MCSA, MCSE, and MCSD acronyms. The certifications will clearly state that you are “Microsoft Certified” in the job role, and they will show the level at which the certification sits in our framework (fundamentals, associate, or expert).

 What happens to the MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE certifications that I already have?

• Nothing happens to the MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE certification that you already have. They remain on your transcript. The relevance of those certifications depends on your current (and future) job roles and how valuable that certification is to your manager and organization and to the work that you do.

 Some MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE certifications are still available to earn. What will happen to these?

• You can continue earning the MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE certifications as long as the exams are still available. As we retire the exams that are part of those certification paths, you will no longer be able to earn those certifications.

 You’re retiring some exams that lead to MCSA, MCSD, MCSE certifications. What happens to my certifications when those exams retire?

• Before the exams retire, be sure to pass all those which are part of the MCSA, MCSE, or MCSD certifications that you’re trying to achieve. If you do, you’ll earn the certification, and it will appear on your transcript. Nothing happens to the MCSA, MCSD, and MCSE certification that you already have. The relevance of this certification depends on your current (and future) job roles and how valuable that certification is to your manager and organization and to the work that you do.