Frequently Asked Questions

Microsoft Skills Assessments provide individuals with a free, online method of evaluating their skills for implementing specific Microsoft business solutions. Upon completing an assessment, you receive a Personalized Learning Plan to help you develop any of your skills that may need improvement. You also receive a score that could be eligible for the High Scores table, ranking you with other IT Professionals who take the assessment.

By registering and taking a Microsoft Skills Assessment, you receive:

• A free analysis of your current IT skills and knowledge.
• A personalized learning plan tailored to Microsoft content.
• An assessment history that details all assessments taken.
• A score in relation to other IT professionals.

The difference between a Microsoft Skills Assessment and a certification is described below:

• A Microsoft Skills Assessment enables individuals to evaluate their technical skill levels, identify their technical skill gaps, and address those skill gaps with a Personalized Learning Plan, thereby enabling them to achieve Microsoft technical readiness to implement business solutions.
• A Microsoft certification establishes a measurement standard for employers and employees to ensure that the candidate has a defined Microsoft skill set for a job role.

After registering, take a look at all of the assessments listed to determine which one is right for you. Click the assessment title and you will be launched to an instructions page that explains how to take the assessments. Assessments are 30-items long and end after 60 minutes, even if you have not answered all the questions. After taking the assessment, click the Score Assessment button to receive your Personalized Learning Plan.

On the Summary Learning page you receive a personalized learning plan that is based on the questions you answered incorrectly. This plan provides you with a list of Microsoft resources that you can use to learn more information about the topic areas in which you need improvement. There is also a Detailed Learning Plan link that provides you with a more detailed list of references. This plan actually links to specific modules and page numbers within a reference.

Clicking this button takes you to a page that shows you all of the assessment questions. You can see the questions you marked for review, the questions you skipped, and the questions you answered. You can also use this Question List page to navigate to all marked-for-review items.

You will see the Mark for Review check box in different places throughout the assessment. When taking an assessment, if you want to come back to this question later during the assessment, you can check the Mark for Review check box. When reviewing the question list, the Mark for Review check box can be used to select additional items to review.

High Scores determine how you rank against other IT professionals who have taken the same assessment. High Scores are determined in the following order: Score, tries, and time. If two users have the same score, but one user has logged more tries at the assessment, that user is listed second because an increased number of tries decreases the overall High Score. High Scores are displayed for a rolling 7-day period.

This is the name that will be displayed in the High Scores area. If you enter a name and it redisplays a blank text field, you will need to enter a different name. We encourage you to choose a "High Score Name" that is not personally identifiable. The dialogue box is linked to a profanity filter. If the text entered does not meet the acceptable name criteria, you are requested to enter a new High Score name.

Leaving an assessment ends the session and renders a final score, regardless of whether you answered all the questions. Users are encouraged to complete an assessment before navigating elsewhere so that they will receive an accurate Learning Plan.

To give feedback about specific assessment questions, click Have a Comment About This Question and complete the comment screen. Comments are reviewed and distributed to the assessment developers. The assessment timer does not stop during the time when you are commenting on a question.

To give feedback about the assessment as a whole, click the Comments link, which is located on the Learning Plan.

If you have questions about the assessments or how to take an assessment, you can call Customer Support at (678) 356-5050. Customer Support cannot access your Microsoft .NET Passport information; however, they can help you remove your name from the mailing list.

Click Change Your Information on the home page. You can also change your Microsoft .NET Passport information at http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=317027 . If you change your .NET Passport information and log on to the Assessment home page again, the new .NET Passport information will be reflected.

If you are a registered user, you can click on the Assessment History link from your Learning Plan. The Assessment History page displays all the assessments you have taken, including any that you retook. You can delete an assessment from your history; however, once you have deleted an assessment, it cannot be restored.

Each assessment is unique since it is randomly generated from a bank of questions. In addition, each learning plan will also be unique since it is driven by the questions generated for a specific assessment and the user's answers to those questions.