Novell Revamps Certification Program To Meet Industry Needs

Page 2 of 2     1 2 

First, candidates must earn the CNE, which demonstrates networking administration skills. (The CNE has also been streamlined, so there is only one track. Starting with NetwWare 6, all CNEs will have passed the same set of exams.) Two additional required exams cover security and advanced TCP/IP. For those who are keeping track, that leaves project management skills still lacking. To cover that base, Novell looked around at existing project management certifications, settled on CompTIA's IT Project+, and made that the final Master CNE requirement. With this reconfiguration, all MCNEs from NetWare 6 forward will have a single skill set - the one that hiring managers have said they want.

Each of Novell's certifications - the Certified Novell Administrator (CNA), Certified Novell Engineer (CNE), and Certified Directory Engineer (CDE) underwent similar analysis and redesign. The revised designations and associated courses will be rolled out during 2002.

In order to continue receiving benefits, all current Master CNEs and CDEs will have to recertify on NetWare 6. "We feel the research bears out that even current Novell Certified professionals need to have the skills that were identified. This strengthens the entire community," says Greene. Individuals who don't complete the upgrade won't be decertified, but will no longer receive benefits. Master CNEs will have from May 1, 2002 through January 31, 2003 to pass the Upgrading to NetWare 6 exam and earn CompTIA's IT Project+ certification. Current CDEs will have to pass the new practicum when it becomes available in the fall. They will have about a year from the time of availability to do so.

At GoCertify we've always said that to have value, a certification must be more than a piece of paper with letters on it; it must provide evidence that significantly stringent requirements were met. It should also be clear exactly which skills were measured. By taking such decisive action, Novell, which has been a pioneer in the area of IT certification, may again be leading the way toward protecting and enhancing the value of computer professional certification.

Revised Novell Certification Tracks

(scheduled rollout: Q3 2002)

(scheduled rollout: Q3 2002)

(scheduled rollout: Q4 2002)

(scheduled rollout: Q4 2002)