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Certification scoring question

  • July 9, 2007 at 2:45 pm

    #124905

    Hello,

    I have a questions related to the MS way of scoring the certification exams. Can someone tell me how MS scores their exams? Especially the SQL Server ones!

    I just wrote the MCTS SQL Server 2005 exam and did not succeed. I was extremely confident that I had passed it. Out of 50 I had at least a minimum of 40 questions right (1st part: 35/35 and approx 6/15 on the 2nd part). I'm extremely shocked and disappointed after the result was displayed.

    Is there a way to find out what were my mistakes (if any) were in the exam?

    Any suggestions/opinions from you are very much appreciated...

    Thanks...

  • July 9, 2007 at 2:51 pm

    #718111

    They don't tell you which questions you got right or wrong.

    I believe the points are weighted - the harder the question the more points.

    -SQLBill

  • July 10, 2007 at 12:14 am

    #718186

    Microsoft does not say this. But i hope scroable question should be only 40 and not 50. It would have taken the wrong ones and you should have failed. better luck next time.

    Cheers,
    Sugeshkumar Rajendran
    SQL Server MVP
    http://sugeshkr.blogspot.com

  • July 10, 2007 at 3:50 am

    #718230

    You should have got a print out from the exam center showing you a breakdown of the exam by categories, and a graph for each of those categories showing how well you scored within those categories. That's the best you'll get. The way the exam is marked and scored is a secret.

    Gail Shaw
    Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
    SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability

    We walk in the dark places no others will enter
    We stand on the bridge and no one may pass

  • July 10, 2007 at 4:24 am

    #718241

    Look at your printout for a clue, but really you'll be guessing as to which you got right and wrong.

    I wish there was a better way to do this, maybe some appeal process to let you discuss what you missed, but I don't know how they can do this and still have a distributed exam take place over a few years.

  • July 10, 2007 at 8:31 am

    #718316

    Thanks for all the info...I did get a print out and it has 2 general items marked on it...it wasn't in details though...

    1. Non-Performance based items

    The highlighted line was a very close to 'Strong'.

    2. Performance based items

    The highlighted line was more than half way close to 'Strong'.

     

  • July 10, 2007 at 9:34 am

    #718335

    The pass mark for these is around 70%, so if the second half was worth more than the first, the failure is understandable. What was your mark, if you don't mind saying?

    It's strange. Whan I wrote the TS, the breakdown was far more detailed than that. I think I had 6 or 7 categories.

    Gail Shaw
    Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
    SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability

    We walk in the dark places no others will enter
    We stand on the bridge and no one may pass

  • July 10, 2007 at 9:51 am

    #718338

    My total overall score was ~ 600. Someone else that wrote many MS exams was telling me the same thing about the breakdown of details...Maybe every exam center have their own set of policies? I did mine at Thomson Prometric center.

  • July 10, 2007 at 9:59 am

    #718343

    Aah. So close. Good luck for next time

    I've written all mine at Prometric. With one exception, I've always had a detailed breakdown (by detailed, I mean 4-8 categories)

    The one exception was when I wrote 229 (the SQL 2000 dev exam) The printout just said pass. No mark, no breakdown, nothing.

    Gail Shaw
    Microsoft Certified Master: SQL Server, MVP, M.Sc (Comp Sci)
    SQL In The Wild: Discussions on DB performance with occasional diversions into recoverability

    We walk in the dark places no others will enter
    We stand on the bridge and no one may pass

  • July 10, 2007 at 2:07 pm

    #718415

    My first time through on the 70-431 was a 620.  I missed passing it by 1 or 2 questions tops. 

    But on the 431, you're right, it's like 2 bars and that's it.  Very non-detailed.  If it helps any on the 443 exam it gives a break down of IIRC 7 or 8 categories and how you fare in each of those categories.

    Just study up though bigtime on the pieces you recall on the tests and you'll probably zip through it in no time the second time around.  At least that's what I was able to do.  First time was every bit of 90 minutes.  Second time was about 45 (and a passing score).

     

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