Oracle Certification Program News!

• Elance: Put your Oracle Certification to work
• Java SE 7 Certification – Multiple New Certifications, New Exams
• New Certification: Oracle Certified Expert (OCE) – Java EE 6 Web Component Developer
• Oracle Solaris 11 Certification – Multiple New Certifications, New Exams
• New Certification: Oracle Certified Associate (OCA) – Oracle WebLogic Server 11g System Administrator
• Certification Update: Oracle Certified Professional (OCP) – Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Forms Developer
• FAQ: How Long Do I Wait?

Oracle Certification E-Magazine – February 2012

Oracle acquired Sun. What happens to the certification program? Check the FAQ’s

Will Oracle University support the Sun Certification Program?
Oracle plans to migrate and offer Sun certification offerings to Oracle certification offerings. Changes in the program will be communicated to candidates on the Sun and/or Oracle Certification Program Web pages. Please check these sites frequently if you have questions or concerns.

Will my Sun certification continue to be valid?
Any Sun certifications that you have earned will continue to be recognized by Oracle and remain valid for the version specified by your credential. Retirement or decommissioning of any certification track will be announced on the Oracle Certification Program Web page.

Will I be required to recertify as a result of Oracle’s acquisition of Sun?
Credential holders will not need to retake exams in order to keep their current Sun credentials. Future certification offerings may require candidates to take an exam if they wish to upgrade. All program requirements will be explained on the Oracle Certification Program Web page.

Can I still get Sun certified? What should I do?
Yes. Sun certification is still available. Follow the paths and instructions that are posted on the Oracle Certification Program Web page. Any updates or changes in requirements will be posted there.

Will the Sun certification tracks or requirements change?
Sun certification tracks will be modified to follow Oracle’s certification model: Associate, Professional, Master, and Expert. All changes to the Sun certification credential names, tracks, and requirements will be available on the Oracle Certification Program Web page.

What is the exam registration process?
Currently, Sun exams are administered at Authorized Prometric Testing Centers. Candidates who wish to take Sun exams should register for those exams under “Sun Microsystems” on Prometric’s Web site.

How can I learn more about Sun certification?
Visit the Oracle Certification Program Web page for information about the Sun Certification Program. This site includes information on available tracks, requirements, and training.

Will my credential be branded Oracle or Sun?
For now, the credential will remain a Sun certification. In the future, Sun certification credentials will be fulfilled through the Oracle Certification Program. Any branding changes will be posted on the Oracle Certification Web page.

Will Oracle continue to sell individual and bundled ePractices?
Yes. ePractice exams will be available for individual purchase and also available within Classroom Value Packages.

How do I obtain vouchers for Sun exams through Oracle University?
Candidates will no longer need to obtain an exam voucher prior to registering for Sun exams at Prometric. Simply go to prometric.com/sun and pay the exam fee with your credit card during the registration process. If you already have an exam voucher, this can still be used as payment at Prometric when you register.

Will Oracle continue to offer the Certification Re-take Promotion?
Certification re-takes will be exclusive to Certification Value Packages. At this time, there are no plans to offer re-take promotions or re-take vouchers on a stand-alone basis.

Whom do I contact for Sun certification customer service inquiries?
Contact suncert_ww@oracle.com with Sun certification questions.

New Price For Oracle Certification Exams!

The Oracle Certification Program is announcing a change to Oracle Certification Program exam prices effective March 1, 2010. This change in exam prices is the first material exam price increase that Oracle has made since the inception of it’s program. Prices may vary from country to country so please sure to check the links below or with your local site for details.

The price change applies to both proctored (in-center) exams and non-proctored (internet-based) exams. A summary of new price points:

$125US: All non-proctored exams worldwide; proctored Sun exams for emerging-market countries and Oracle Database, Middleware and Linux exams for emerging-market countries. $195US: Proctored Oracle exams for developed countries and Oracle Applications exams for emerging-market countries. $300US: Proctored Sun exams in developed countries.

Note that because exam prices can vary slightly (1) by country and/or (2) by localized currency, please check Pearson VUE’s website for specific prices of specific exams in your country http://pearsonvue.com/oracle. You must have a Pearson account and be logged in in order to see exam price details.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will my voucher still be valid?

All valid vouchers that were valid before the price change will still be valid as long as they have not expired.

If you purchased a voucher from Oracle, your voucher will still be valid through its expiration date and will not require any additional exam fees.

If you were given a discount voucher from Oracle or one of its partners, your discount will be valid at the same rate through its expiration date (for example 25% off the new price).

I registered for an exam that I have not taken yet. Will I need to pay the more?

If you registered and paid for an exam prior to the price change, your exam registration is still valid and no additional fees are required as long as you take the exam at your originally scheduled time. If you change your appointment time or date, additional fees may apply.

How can I find out more information?

For more information, check Pearson VUE’s website and the Developing/Emerging market list to determine exact pricing in your country.

ORACLE APPLICATIONS CERTIFICATION (NEW): JD EDWARDS ENTERPRISEONE FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT IMPLEMENTATION SPECIALIST

Beta testing has begun for the new “JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Financial Management Essentials” certification exam (1Z1-522). This exam is required to earn the new JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Financial Management Implementation Specialist certification and can be taken at Pearson VUE Testing Centers worldwide.

The JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Financial Management Implementation Specialist certification endorses those technical specialists who focus on selling and implementing JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Financial Management modules.

Individuals who provide their OPN Company ID number when registering will also be awarded the Oracle Partner Network Certified Specialist designation, which helps their company qualify for Oracle Database Specialization status.

The beta test contains 100-120 questions, and up to 120 minutes are allowed to complete the exam. Candidates will receive their final score and pass/fail status after the completion of the beta period.

NEW: ORACLE SERVICE ORIENTED ARCHITECTURE SPECIALIST

Beta testing has begun for the new “Oracle SOA Foundation Practitioner” certification exam (1Z1-451). This exam is required to earn the new Oracle Service Oriented Architecture Specialist certification and can be taken at Pearson VUE Testing Centers worldwide.

The Oracle Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) Specialist has a conceptual and practical understanding of the primary components of the Fusion Middleware SOA Suite, including BPEL process engine and Oracle Service Bus; and is familiar with basic Service Oriented Architecture concepts.

This candidate is able to install, configure, maintain and manage the SOA Suite, construct basic Service Bus and Process driven integration patterns, deploy code/meta data, and maintain and manage the Oracle instances

Individuals who provide their OPN Company ID number when registering will also be awarded the Oracle Partner Network Certified Specialist designation, which helps their company qualify for Oracle Database Specialization status.

The beta test contains 100-120 questions, and up to 120 minutes are allowed to complete the exam. Candidates will receive their final score and pass/fail status after the completion of the beta period.

NOW LIVE: “PROGRAM WITH PL/SQL” CERTIFICATION EXAM (1Z0-144)

The new “Oracle Database 11g: Program with PL/SQL” certification exam (1Z0-144 ) is now live, which is offered as an alternative option to taking existing exam 1Z0-147 (Program with PL/SQL) for both the Oracle PL/SQL Developer Certified Associate (OCA) and Oracle Advanced PL/SQL Developer Certified Professional (OCP) certification tracks.

Candidates taking this exam at test centers will now receive their exam scores and pass/fail status immediately at the completion of their exam. Score reports have just been shipped to those candidates who participated in the beta period. (Note: if you participated in beta testing and did not yet receive your score report, please contact ocpexam_ww@oracle.com.)

NOW LIVE: “ORACLE CERTIFICATION DATABASE 11G OCM (UPGRADE)” EXAM

The Oracle Certification Program is pleased to announce that the new Oracle Database 11g Certified Master Upgrade Exam (one-day practicum) is now available for scheduling.

On December 7, 2009, Oracle Certification released the [one-day] upgrade exam, which provides a path for those already certified as OCM on Oracle9i or Oracle Database 10g to upgrade their certification to Oracle Database 11g Oracle Certified Master.

Special Note:
Candidates upgrading their OCM certification to 11g via this 1-day upgrade exam do not need to first upgrade their OCP certification. You will instead be granted the 11g OCP certification along with the 11g OCM certification once you have passed the necessary OCM upgrade exam (and any additional required exams), and completed the Course Submission Form.

To see the new paths as well as FAQs, visit our Oracle Database 11g OCM Upgrade Exam announcement page.

NEW: ORACLE DATABASE 11G IMPLEMENTATION SPECIALIST

Beta testing has begun for the new “Oracle Database 11g Essentials for Implementors” certification exam (1Z1-514). This exam is required to earn the new Oracle Database 11g Implementation Specialist certification and can be taken at Pearson VUE Testing Centers worldwide.

The Oracle Database 11g Implementation Specialist certification endorses intermediate-level implementation team members who focus on implementing the Oracle Database. Because of the technical level of this exam, up-to-date training and field experience are highly recommended.

Individuals who provide their OPN Company ID number when registering will also be awarded the Oracle Partner Network Certified Specialist designation, which helps their company qualify for Oracle Database Specialization status.

The beta test contains 100-120 questions, and up to 120 minutes are allowed to complete the exam. Candidates will receive their final score and pass/fail status after the completion of the beta period.

NOW LIVE: “ORACLE DATABASE 11g: PERFORMANCE TUNING” EXAM (1Z0-054)

The new “Oracle Database 11g: Performance Tuning” certification exam (1Z0-054) is now live, which is a single exam requirement for Oracle 11g DBA OCPs to earn the Oracle Database 11g Performance Tuning Certified Expert (OCE) certification.

This certification endorses those database administrators, support engineers, and technical consultants who have demonstrated their knowledge and skills using Oracle Database 11g automatic tuning features, including SQL Tuning Advisor, SQL Access Advisor, Automatic Workload Repository and Automatic Database Diagnostic Monitor.

Candidates taking this exam at test centers will now receive their exam scores and pass/fail status immediately at the completion of their exam. Score reports have just been shipped to those candidates who participated in the beta period. If you participated in beta testing and did not yet receive your score report, please contact ocpexam_ww@oracle.com.

New Exam Soon To Be Live: “Program with PL/SQL” Certification Exam (1Z0-144)

The new “Oracle Database 11g: Program with PL/SQL” certification exam will soon be live.

The beta period recently closed for certification exam 1Z1-144, which is is offered as an alternative option to taking existing exam 1Z0-147 (Program with PL/SQL) for both the Oracle PL/SQL Developer Certified Associate (OCA) and Oracle Advanced PL/SQL Developer Certified Professional (OCP) certification tracks.
Beta analysis and processing is currently underway, and the production exam is expected to be released soon as exam 1Z0-144. Candidates who participated in the beta can expect their beta score results soon after the live production exam is released.

For specific dates and details, visit the Oracle Certification Blog as well as our website.

QUICK LINKS:

• Certification Exam: Oracle Database 11g: Program with PL/SQL (1Z0-144)
• Certification Tracks:
  1. Oracle PL/SQL Developer Certified Associate (OCA)
  2. Oracle Advanced PL/SQL Developer Certified Professional (OCP)
• Learn More: Oracle Certification Beta Exams