Mastering Microsoft Certification Exams: Tips for Success
Earning a Microsoft certification is a great way to validate your skills and advance your career in IT, cloud computing, security, etc. However, if you are like me, exams like these (especially ones that you have to shell out real money for) can be anxiety inducing events! Doubt can begin to creep into your thoughts, and you begin to ask yourself questions like:
What if I’m not ready?
Did I study the right material?
I’m not a great test taker, should I even try?
If these are familiar sounding questions, fear not. A lot of people feel this way and ask the same type of questions of themselves! The good news is that there is a path to success. Yes, even if you are like me and are a terrible test taker, I promise you can do this. You just need the right strategy to get there! So, whether you're looking to tackle your first entry-level exam or aiming for an expert certification, a structured study approach can make all the difference. Let’s walk through some basics on Microsoft’s exams, and then look at some preparation tactics that can help you.
Understanding Microsoft Certifications
For a quick primer, Microsoft offers a wide range of certifications designed for various job roles and technical paths. These include administrators, developers, security professionals, and business users. Some popular certification categories and examples include:
Fundamentals (e.g., AZ-900, AI-900) – Great for beginners looking to build foundational knowledge.
Associate (e.g., AZ-104, AZ-204, SC-300) – Ideal for professionals seeking deeper expertise in managing Microsoft services.
Expert (e.g., AZ-305, AZ-400) – Advanced certifications for leadership roles in architecture, security, or enterprise administration.
Each exam has a unique set of objectives, so reviewing the official Microsoft certification pages will give you an understanding of what you need to know in preparation for the exam. It can be a little confusing if you are just starting out. If you have questions about getting started, you can reach out to us on our Discord server by simply joining our Free Tier membership. Now, let’s look into some study tips.
Effective Study Strategies
1. Review the Exam Skills Outline & Study Guide
Microsoft provides detailed objectives for each exam on the certification pages, and they also provide a basic study guide to give you an idea of what you need to review. While the official Microsoft study guides provide the basics, it can be a little cumbersome to actually find the right pages and articles to read through. Once you do find the right content, you may still find yourself going down the rabbit hole on multiple topics and getting a little lost on the way. This is why at Refactored, we provide our “Ultimate Study Guide” series for free. Our study guides, like the AI-900 for example, provide direct links to the content you need to review to pass the exam.
2. Use Microsoft Learn & Documentation
If you weren’t already aware, Microsoft offers free content modules, “Microsoft Learn”, that are tailored to their certification exams. It covers just about everything you need to know for the exam, so it really is a great resource. Some students find that Microsoft Learn documentation is all they need to master the material prior to taking the exam. Others prefer a video lecture of some kind to help guide them through the content. At Refactored, we actually suggest a combination of the two to really cement the topics into your memory banks.
3. Get Hands-On Experience
If possible, use a trial subscription or sandbox environment to practice configuring services, troubleshooting issues, and implementing solutions. Microsoft offers trials for a large portion of their services. While some will be a little more challenging to demo than others to mimic real-world scenarios (i.e. a 3,000 vm environment in Azure), it will still provide you a visual for where menu items are located and allow you to click through the processes.
4. Join a Study Group or Online Community
Participating in forums like Refactored Study Groups, Microsoft Tech Community or LinkedIn groups can help you stay motivated and exchange valuable insights with peers. The Refactored Study Groups are completely free and a great place to meet others that have similar career goals and interests. Join us today!
5. Take Practice Exams
Mock exams simulate the real test environment and help identify areas needing improvement. Our courses provide practice questions that have been curated by veterans of the technical/business world that have taken and passed the exams you are studying for! Additionally, these practice questions are a great way to help you fill in any knowledge gaps you may have by reviewing them repeatedly.
Exam Day Tips
Schedule Your Exam Confidently – Ensure you’ve studied enough and feel at least 90% ready for the exam prior to actually scheduling it. You want to allow yourself some time to finish up content and do any “exam cram” you might need. Scheduling the exam a week or so out is a good practice because it gives you a deadline and goal to meet so you can push yourself to success!
Time Management is Key – Answer questions efficiently but don’t rush. Remember to breathe…you got this!
Read Questions Carefully – Microsoft exams often include scenario-based questions like “Company X is considering moving their on-prem infrastructure to Azure, what solutions would you recommend for…”. They are often times situational, so pay attention to the details of the question AND the instructions for answering correctly. Questions will sometimes ask for 2-3 correct choices, so you don’t want to leave out an opportunity to score partial credit on questions!
Stay Updated – Microsoft services evolve frequently, so keep up with changes to ensure your knowledge is current. This is also why you don’t want to schedule your exam too far out in advance.
Final Thoughts
Microsoft certifications can really boost your career opportunities, but also make you a more valuable employee in your current role. Preparing effectively with structured study methods, hands-on practice, and peer learning will set you up for success.
Which Microsoft exam are you preparing for next? Let us know—we’d be happy to help refine your study plan! Let’s go crush it!
