New VMWare Certifications! VCAP and VCDX4!

Earlier today I attended a brown bag session organized by Cody Bunch with Jon Hall, technical certification developer at VMWare to discuss the new VMWare certifications.

There are two new certifications (and a VCDX4 is on the horizon!) that have been inserted above VCP:

• VCAP4-DCA (Datacenter Administrator) - Planning and administration side of vSphere, more for the systems administrator. The exam opens July 12th and will be offered at VMWorld. The blueprint isn't available yet, and is marked as "coming soon."  Unlike the VCP, this exam will be 100% lab. Because the exam is more lab based, initially there will not be an immediate pass/fail. Expect to shell out $400 for this exam.
• VCAP4-DCD (Datacenter Design) - Design methods/principles, more of an architect type of certification. Not a whole lot discussion around this exam, it's still pretty far out (August). This exam will be multiple choice, but Jon Hall assured us that it would be more involved than the VCP. No word on the cost for this exam.
• VCDX4 (Design Expert) - VMWare has updated the certification website with a certification path (you can find it here) for the VCDX4. The Enterprise Exam is gone and you will be required to get both the DCA and DCD certifications. This means that for any VCDX4 hopeful, you will need to wait until at least August. Thankfully, Jon mentioned that there will be more opportunities for the design defense this year over last.

Exams will still be done by Pearson View.

Partners, there is no requirement at this time, but you may start being more involved in the VCDX design defense panels.

For more information, see VMWare's myLearn web portal.

I hope that answers a lot of your questions and piques your curiosity. I'll post a link to the brownbag recording when it becomes available.

Thank you Jon and Cody for putting on an informative brown bag and I look forward to more!