BSD Certification Exam Beta

April 15, 2007 - The BSD Certification Group Inc. is pleased to announce the availability of the beta for the upcoming BSDA certification exam. The beta will initially be offered at these venues:

BSDCan: Ottawa, Canada, May 18 and 19
LinuxTag: Berlin, Germany, May 30, June 1 and June 2
Mohawk College: Hamilton, Canada, date TBA
FreeBSD Brasil LTDA: Belo Horizonte, Brazil, June 4, 9 AM
Stefanini IT Solutions: Sao Paulo, Brazil, June 8, 9 AM

Depending upon the amount of beta testers and the quality of the metrics obtained through the beta trials, additional venues may be required. Please contact the BSD Certification Group if you would like to host a venue and can register at least 20 beta testers.

What will the beta exam be like?

The beta exam is available in English only.
The beta exam will contain 120 - 150 multiple choice questions.
The beta exam will be paper based. This means that the questions are in a question booklet. Exam takers will need to shade in the appropriate answer box on a separate answer sheet.
A three hour time slot will be available for the beta; it is expected that 60 to 90 minutes will be sufficient time for most beta testers to complete the exam.

What benefits do beta testers receive?

NOTE: Beta exam takers who pass the beta exam will NOT become BSDA certified once the beta period ends. The purpose of a beta exam is to gather the necessary metrics to validate an examination, meaning beta exam questions may not yet fairly reflect the skills being certified. Beta testers will receive their score report via email approximately 6-8 weeks after the beta period is finished.

Beta exam takers will receive the following benefits:

The opportunity to take the beta exam free of charge.
50% off the price of the BSDA exam once it is available.
A copy of the most recent version of the BSDA DVD.
The opportunity to assist the BSDCG and the psychometrician in ensuring the validity of the upcoming BSDA exam.

Who can participate in the beta?

Anyone who has not participated as a SME for this exam is eligible to participate in the beta (see the SME policy link). The intended audience of the BSDA exam is junior level administrators of BSD systems. To assist in obtaining quality metrics we suggest:

If you are a junior level BSD sysadmin, please study the BSDA exam objectives before taking the beta.
More advanced BSD sysadmins have no need to study but may wish to skim through the BSDA exam objectives before taking the beta.
Managers of BSD sysadmins and those who teach or write about BSD sysadmin skills are also welcome to participate in the beta and should first familiarize themselves with the exam objectives.

How do I register for the beta?

A registration link will be announced in mid-April. It will include the exact times and locations for each venue.