I am lucky enough to have had over a decade of experience of being an IT Systems Administrator (of primarily Windows servers, though I have dealt with other systems as well) in small, medium, and large companies. I enjoy building and maintaining a quality IT infrastructure, and I enjoy the continuous learning it takes to be a great sysadmin.
But somehow along the way I never found the time to actually get the industry-recognized Microsoft certifications. To be honest, I sort of shied away from the whole 'bootcamp MCSE' phenomenon while it was happening, but in my middle age I've come to realize that formal training can fill some of the (sometimes large!) gaps that are created by on-demand ad-hoc learning styles. Don't get me wrong here: I still believe there's value in an on-demand learning style - in fact I think it is essential to the success of a sysadmin career. But I'd like to build an online study group of people who are serious about obtaining any of:
MCSA - Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (old cert, being phased out)
MCSE - Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (being phased out)
MCTS - Microsoft Certified Technical Specialist (new cert)
MCITP - Microsoft Certified IT Professional (new cert)
MCP - Mircosoft Certified Professional (being phased out)
(Yes some of these are being phased out, but they still have value with employers.)
I think that with a little bit of structure, a little bit of elbow grease, a little bit of networking, and a little bit of time we can teach ourselves what we need to know, and have some fun doing it. I've always like to share my knowledge, so when I found SchoolofEverything, I decided to try putting together an online class.
Specifically, I am looking for a community of learners who are interested in taking and passing any of the following exams:
70-290: Manage/Maintain a W2003 Environment
70-291: Implement/Manage/Maintain W2003 Network Infrastructure
70-293: Plan/Maintain a W2003 Network Infrastructure
70-294: Plan/Implement/Maintain a W2003 AD
70-620: TS: Windows Vista, Configuring
70-298: Designing Security for a W2003 Network
70-299: Implement/Administer Security in a W2003 Network
70-351: TS: ISA Server 2006, Configuring
70-649: Upgrade MCSE 2003 to Server 2008, Technology Specialist
70-624: Deploy/Maintain Vista & 2007 Desktops
70-647: Windows Server 2008, Enterprise Administrator
What I'd like to do is see which of these gathers the most interest, and put together an online course. The general approach will be:
1) Collect 3-9 learners who are all interested in the same certification. For the first study group I would like to choose one of the above. I plan to start with 70-299, as listed below.
2) Have each learner obtain the Microsoft Press book for that class. These books are usually everything you need to know for the cert, and they cost $20-$60 or so.
3) Do a weekly meeting via Skype (and possibly some WebEx type screensharing so we can do labs on screen) where we work through a chapter or two of the book, and have Q&A sessions, share experiences, and so on.
4) Build a collaborative wiki which includes study notes, learning resources, and so on.
5) As needed we could do longer drill sessions, or collaborate with eachother one-on-one.
I have no plans to charge for these sessions, because I will be learning too. There will be an agenda and a light structure, but nothing too stuffy.
If this works out, I would like to continue teaching and re-teaching these (and other) subjects, to keep the knowledge fresh in my mind, to build a network of teachers and learners within the sysadmin's trade. Those who complete any course will always be welcome to drop in to future repeats of that course; their ongoing experiences will be helpful to new learners.
