shrug-l: Esri Certification Exams - How to prepare

[Tripp Corbin]

There has been a lot of talk about Esri's new technical certifications
on various boards and blogs. For many in the GIS industry this may be
their first exposure to taking a certification exam so they are unsure
of what to expect or how rigorous the exam will be. As a result many are
not sure what they need to do to prepare.

 

During the course of my career I have taken and passed several
certification exams which includes Esri's Desktop Associate exam as well
as several Microsoft Certifications, Esri Authorized Instructor exams, a
CompTIA Certification, and the Certified Floodplain Manager exam. So
hopefully I can offer a little insight into what you can expect and some
suggestions on how to prepare.

 

One thing all certification exams have in common is they are designed to
test your overall familiarity with the application you are being tested
on.  This means they will get into the weeds about specific functions,
tools, toolbars, and workflows with the software. This has been true of
the Microsoft Certification exams and the Esri exams I have taken. So
you need to make sure you know at least the most commonly used software
menus, toolbars, and tools. In the case of ArcGIS Desktop, this might
include things like how do you autohide the catalog window or dock the
search window or knowing what toolbar the find tool is located on and so
on.  

 

You also need to make sure you are familiar with the recommended
workflows for the specific software be it ArcGIS Desktop or Server or
SDE.  When answering workflow questions make sure to keep in mind that
the answers will be limited to the software and vendor you are being
tested on. So if you use some third party add-on such as Xtools to
perform some task, you will need to make sure you how to do that with
plain ArcGIS or one of the Esri Extensions.   One of the best ways to
make sure you are familiar with the recommended workflows, is to go back
through books from any of the Esri courses you may have taken over the
years especially the exercises. The exercises will generally follow the
workflows and methods Esri recommends users follow. 

 

Another thing that is common to every certification exam I have taken
are questions that test your knowledge of the vendor or industries'
lingo or terms. You need to make sure when you see terms like Feature
Class, Feature Data Set, Layer, Topology, Geodatabase Topology and so on
what they mean in the Esri world. Esri's online GIS dictionary is a
great resource to help with this (http://resources.arcgis.com/glossary).
Reviewing any training materials you have from past classes is also a
good idea. Using these to make a study sheet or flash cards is a good
idea. 

 

I have found that most ArcGIS Users tend to specialize in specific
areas, be it parcel mapping, transportation analysis, data collection or
so on. This means they are experts at using the tools they use on a
regular basis but often forget or are unaware of the other capabilities
of ArcGIS software. This will make passing one of the certification
exams difficult because they are not profession specific. They will test
you on the entire software package and what it can do only limited by
the level of the exam you are taking, associate or professional. Make
sure you take the time to look at tools and functions outside your
specific area of expertise. A good exam of this is projections and
coordinate systems. Many ArcGIS Users use the same data day after day.
It is all in the same coordinate system so they do not have to worry
about it. However one of the powerful functions  of ArcGIS is to project
data from one coordinate system to another. There is a good possibility
that you will encounter some questions about how to project data in
ArcGIS as well some of the components that define a coordinate system
such as datum or ellipsoid. Again going back through old training
materials is a good way to review.  Taking a review or exam prep class
is also helpful. Esri has recently started offering review classes for
all the new Certification Exams
(http://training.esri.com/gateway/index.cfm?fa=search.results&searchterm
=certification). Keck & Wood also offers a review and exam prep class
for the ArcGIS Desktop Associate Exam via their online classroom
(http://www.keckwood.com/Page.aspx?id=186655#schedule).

 

A few other tips for preparing for an exam:

1.      Make sure to get a good night's rest before the exam. Don't over
cram

2.      Take practice exams. This can be from an online service or use
the sample questions on the Esri website and the exam specific skills
measured as a guide to make your own.

3.      Answer the questions you know for sure first. Then come back and
hit the ones you are unsure of. 

4.      Don't force yourself to go higher than you are ready for. Don't
feel you have to take the professional level exam even if you have been
using the software for a long time. 

5.      Remember theses exams are based on ArcGIS 10. So if you have not
been using version 10, do not take the exam. I can almost promise you
will not pass. 

 

I hope this helps. If anyone has any questions about the new Esri
Technical Certification Exams please feel free to contact me. 

 

Tripp Corbin, MCP, CFM, GISP
Vice President, GIS/IT
Esri Certified ArcGIS Desktop Trainer
Esri ArcGIS Desktop 10 Certified Associate
CompTIA Certified Technical Trainer
Keck & Wood, Inc. <http://www.keckwood.com/> 
(678) 417-4013
(678) 417-4055 fax




 

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