Hello, Cloud Gurus.
And welcome back for this lesson
where we're going to take a look
at how you can prepare for the AZ-800 exam.
And let's firstly take a look at what's good to know
prior to sitting the exam.
Firstly, it's important to know that you can book the exam
through your Microsoft Learn profile
or by visiting the exam overview page on Microsoft Learn.
And you may have the option to sit the exam
at a testing center in person
or you might be able to do an online proctored exam.
Now I've done both of these in the past
and I think this really comes down to what works for you.
If you do take an online proctored exam
there are some requirements.
You'll need a quiet and relatively empty room
to sit your exam.
And so that won't work for everyone.
I normally end up emptying out a room
at my home and putting everything back after the exam.
And if you require accommodations
to help ensure your success,
for example, if you use assistive devices
or require extra time,
you can request them by contacting Microsoft.
And I'll drop a link for this
in the resources for this lesson.
You're also going to need to get a score of at least 700
out of 1,000 to achieve a passing score.
What's important to know about this score
is that 700 doesn't necessarily mean 70%.
You get points towards 700 for correct answers
or even partially correct answers
but you never lose points for incorrect answers.
So make sure you answer every question
even if you have to guess.
And you'll get a variety of question types on the exam,
including single choice, multiple choice, ordered lists,
and potentially small sections of the exam
where you cannot go back to the previous section.
And you can check out the exam experience
through the exam sandbox
and I'll drop a link to that
in the resources for this lesson.
Once you've successfully passed this exam
you're going to need to pass the AZ-801,
Configuring Windows Server Hybrid Advanced Services exam.
Before you can earn the Microsoft Certified Windows
Server Hybrid Administrator Associate Certification.
Okay, that was a mouthful.
And then you'll need to complete a free renewal
at least once every 12 months
in order to retain your certification.
And I've done a couple of these
and they're fairly quick and relatively straightforward.
And Microsoft will remind you about these
about 6 months after earning your certification
that it's time to take a renewal assessment.
What's good to know about the renewal assessment
is that it covers the certification,
which includes both the AZ-800 and the AZ-801 exam.
All right, now let's go over some high-level tips and tricks
to help ensure your success on exam day.
The first tip I have
is to make sure you review the documentation
provided in the lesson resources.
Check out the documentation Microsoft provides
through the exam and in the study guides
provided by Microsoft and the community.
And I can't stress this enough,
make sure you get hands on with the technology.
You can use the hands-on labs provided with the course
or you can use cloud playground.
And make sure you take the time to deploy the technologies
but also try and take the time to break them.
Especially those technologies
that you haven't got a lot of hands-on experience with.
And also make sure you take all of the quizzes
along the way, and then take them again
just before you sit the practice exam.
And just before you sit the actual exam.
Review the areas you found difficult
by taking a look at the lesson
and doing some or more of the hands-on labs
if you have time.
When you're close to ready, schedule exam,
don't wait until the day before.
I mean, you can get lucky
but you also might have to wait a little bit
before you can get booked in on your preferred day and time.
So check availability soon and set yourself a deadline.
And we've given you a bunch of resources
to help you prepare for the exam,
but everyone learns differently.
Study to your strengths
by thinking about what you've learned,
what stuck, what didn't,
and how did you make that knowledge stick
and use that process to help retain knowledge
on the harder-to-learn areas.
And finally make sure you take some time to relax.
Your brain will process
all of the information that's taken in
through the day when it's idle.
So take some time to allow your brain
to go through this organization process.
Go for a walk, take your bike out for a spin,
or whatever works for you.
Some of the best ideas I've had
have been while I've been out on my push bike for a ride.
Now just a little bit of advice
based on my personal experience,
I've always had an exam day regimen
and that involves getting a good breakfast
and taking a bit of time to review my notes
and then spending some time relaxing
just before I go to sit the exam.
And I also want to let you know
that I have failed exams in the past.
In fact, I failed the 70-291 exam twice
and the 70-411 exam three times.
And these are both older Windows exams
for anyone not familiar with those numbers.
The point I'm trying to make here is
if you don't pass on the first attempt,
don't let it get you down.
Just take a look at where you need
to further invest your learning time,
take a short break if needed and then get ready to go again.
And when you do pass the exam
make sure you take some time to celebrate your success.
Whether it's spending time with one of your hobbies
or spending some time with family or friends
take some time to celebrate all the hard work
you've put into passing this mammoth of an exam.
Good luck with the exam.
And I look forward to seeing you again soon.