ten steps to success

Ten Steps to Success: Tips and Advice to Achieve Oracle EBS Certification

Mohan DuttVeriSign Inc

Agenda

• #1 Searched Keyword On Oracle.com• Survey Results on Certification• Ten Steps to Success• Certification Related Blogs• Habits of Highly Effective OCPs• Conversation with Ben Prusinski, OCP

#1 Searched Keyword on www.oracle.com

Survey Results on Certification

• Salary Survey 2009 conducted by Oracle Certification Program team - Certified professionals earn over 13% more than non-certified counterparts

• OAUG Research Line Compensation Survey 2010 – IT Managers with certifications earn more

• Certification Magazine 2009 Survey – 96% of respondents from Top 5 countries with highest salaries were certified

Step 1: Visit OCP Website

• Visit the Oracle Certification Program (OCP) website – http://certification.oracle.com

• Bookmark the page for frequent reference• It is important to visit most sections of this

page including:– Getting Started– Certification Paths– Exams– FAQ etc

Oracle Certification Program Page

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website 2 3

6 5 4

7 8 9 10

Step 2: Choose Certification Path

• There are several certification paths available – Database– Middleware– Applications– Linux

• Choose the appropriate path after evaluating your current skills

• Be careful about seeking certification purely for a career change without appropriate skills or experience

Review Certification Path

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path3

6 5 4

7 8 9 10

Step 3: Select Application Release

• For Oracle E-Business Suite Certification, select ‘Application’ as the Certification Career Path

• Certification is available for Release 11i as well as Release 12

• Select your certification version based on your current level of experience or exposure

• Be careful about seeking certification without working on a specific release

Select Application

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

6 5 4

7 8 9 10

Step 4: Select Certification Level• There are 3 certification levels available for

Oracle EBS Release 12– Certified Expert– Certified Professional– Certified Specialist

• There are 3 certification levels available for Oracle EBS Certification for Release 11i– Certified Consultant – Certified Expert– Certified Professional

Certification Level for EBS R12

Certification Level for EBS R11i

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level5

7 8 9 10

6

Step 5: Select Certification Track

• Select the certification track of your choice• One can get certified in financials, supply

chain, system administration, workflow and database administration

• Some tracks have a single exam while others have multiple exams

• Choose certification track and level based on your expertise and work experience in that area

Select Certification Track

EBS Certification: Modules Available• Applications Database Administrator• Systems Administrator• Workflow• Payables• Receivables• Order Management• Purchasing• General Ledger • Inventory• Advanced Supply Chain Planning

Review Certification Exams

• Review the single or multiple exam content• Check if there are any pre-requisite exams• For tracks with multiple exams, exams can be

taken in any order• Some EBS Release 12 exams are mega or

combo exams covering multiple modules• It is recommended to take the EBS Business

Essentials Exam first to get a good idea about the certification exams

Review Exam Content

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

7 8 9 10

6

Step 6: Hands-On Course

• List of courses from Oracle University available to fulfill Hands-on-Course requirement

• Only Instructor-led training classes or Live Virtual Classes (LVC) qualify

• It is not necessary to take the training class for the exam you are taking

• Please note that not all Hands-on Courses have their corresponding certification exams

Hands-on Course Requirement

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

7 8 9 10

Attend Hands-On

Course

Step 7: Prepare for Exams

• Exam content is based on Oracle University classes – it is an advantage to attend one

• Oracle Tutor documents closely resemble Oracle University students guides

• Oracle University Knowledge Center at http://ilearning.oracle.com has thousands of online courses

• Practice on a test system since most of the questions are practical case study oriented

OUKC

Over 2000 R12 Courses on OUKC

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

Prepare for Exam

8 9 10

Attend Hands-On

Course

Step 8: Create CertView Account

• CertView is the new Oracle Certification Program management system.

• CertView is available at http://certview.oracle.com• CertView gives you the ability to:

– View your Oracle certification transcript and exam history

– Download your authorized certification logos– Get an update on the status of your certification

success kit, and– Send an official verification of your certification status to

third parties on demand.

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

Prepare for Exam

Create CertView Account

9 10

Attend Hands-On

Course

Step 9: Register for Exam

• Exams are either non-proctored (available online) or proctored (available at testing centers)

• Pearson VUE is the official testing center for Oracle certification

• Register at Pearson VUE site at http://www.pearsonvue.com/Oracle/

Register for Exam

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

Prepare for Exam

Create CertView Account

Register for Exam 10

Attend Hands-On

Course

Step 10: Take Certification Exams

• Take the certification exam• Most exams have test results available

immediately• Make sure you are aware of questions with

multiple answers and all have to be selected• There is no negative marking• Time management is essential• Focus on answer more questions correctly

than answering all the questions

10 Steps at a Glance

Visit OCP Website

Choose Certification

Path

Select Application

Release

Select Certification

Level

Review Exam

Content

Prepare for Exam

Create CertView Account

Register for Exam

Take the Exam

Attend Hands-On

Course

Oracle Certification Team Blog

• URL – http://blogs.oracle.com/certification• Blog author is Paul Sorensen, Oracle

Certification Program Director• Oracle Certification Team also has monthly

newsletters• Oracle Certification Team is also available on

Twitter at www.twitter.com/OracleCert

OCP Team Blog

Oracle Certified Professionals Blog

• URL – http://ebizocp.blogspot.com• Blog author is ‘OCP Advisor’, a.k.a. speaker

of this session• First Oracle certification related blog. Read in

over 161 countries. Ranked #1 on Google Search for keywords: 11i OCP, R12 OCP

• OCP Advisor is also available on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ocp_advisor

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Bas Klaasen, Netherlands:“ One habit that has helped me a lot throughout

my career is curiosity. I always want to find out why something is not working and find ways to make it work. I am always open to evaluate new technology and try new implementation approaches even with existing products”.

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Laurent Schneider, Switzerland:“ Test everything. There is no substitute for hands-

on experience. Read about the new features and try them. I have reported many bugs for several beta releases following this method.”

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Chen Shapira, USA:“ I read a lot. By a lot I mean at least two hours a day!

So I know about new features and how they should work before I implement them and I know a lot of theory about how Oracle database works. I also remember lots of random bits that I've read somewhere and turns out to be useful from time to time.”

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Melanie Cameron, USA:“ I would have to say the drive to always step

outside the boundaries of my job, poking my nose around to corner to see what was going on and how what they did effected my work, or how my worked effected them. While many people become experts in their given areas, they often fail to understand how their area effects other departments as well as the business as a whole ”.

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Sabdar Syed, Saudi Arabia:“ Learn the concepts and then practice test and

implement them. One big secret I want divulge is this: Never hesitate in sharing your knowledge. You never know what further insights you will gain from the feedback of other”.

Habits of Highly Successful OCPs

Patrick Gresham, USA :“ Schedule the exam date. This would create a

self-pressure model where you can build an exam preparation schedule based on the countdown leading to the exam! ”

Conversation with Ben Prusinski

• Please tell us about your professional experience

• Please tell us about the numerous Oracle certifications that you have achieved

• How do you prepare for certification exams?• What has been your experience with Oracle

E-Business Suite certification exams?• What advice do you want to share with

certification candidates?

Questions and Answers

• OCP Advisor is always available to assist you with your certification goals. Please send your questions on Twitter or by e-mail.

• On Twitter: ocp_advisor• On e-mail: ocp.advisor@gmail.com• A copy of this presentation will be uploaded

to the Conference Paper Database and also on Slide Share Application