3

I am planning to attend the Windows Azure Architect Program from S&S.

http://www.windowsazurearchitect.com/

Although the website says it is a Microsoft Training Program, not sure how much credibility & recognition it has.

If someone attended the program, please share feedback about the program as well.

3 Answers3

5

It's been my experience that nearly all "training programs" are usually wastes of money. I would at the least be cautious about spending a lot of money for any kind of training program.

Wayne Molina
  • 15,644
  • 10
  • 56
  • 87
3

Maybe I'm overly skeptical, but why not just do Microsoft's own program? To me there are a few things that just don't seem right. For example:

After having purchased a license to the program you can immediately start studying the modules available. When you have performed all of the required laborations you can take the program’s test to get a diploma as a recognition of your newly developed skills on Windows Azure Technologies.

Or then there is this:

The diploma is signed by Microsoft managers.

I don't know of many places that prevent you from getting studying materials before you pay for the program. All in all, I'd say if you really want a certificate, go with Microsoft's own, I think that it would definitely carry more weight than this.

Jetti
  • 5,163
  • 2
  • 26
  • 41
  • another red flag is the word quoted here 'laborations' - dictionary.com does recognize it. they might mean labs but it might be a sign of the type of content you will get. Does microsoft list them anywhere as a training providor? – jqa Apr 22 '11 at 13:09
  • @James - after searching for about 5 minutes I wasn't able to find anything linking them as a training provider. Also, when visiting S&S'es site it is in Swedish (at least I would assume that's the language since they are based in Sweden). While that in itself isn't bad, it just makes it a pain to look at the organization that is giving this certification if you don't already know Swedish (I couldn't find anything on the site to translate to English, then again I didn't try too hard). – Jetti Apr 22 '11 at 16:19
2

I am responsible for architecture in the platform evangelist group at Microsoft Sweden. I can confirm that this is a Microsoft Training Program which we have asked Sundblad & Sundblad to develop and administer for us. We decided to have this program developed, even though there are a lot of good resources and training labs available for learning the Windows Azure Platform, because we felt a lack of material that tied all the different parts of the platform together with an architectural holistic vies and put in the context of end-to-end real world scenarios.

Windows Azure Architect not only teaches the nuts and bolts of the platform but also gives a deep understanding how to make these parts work together in a Service Oriented Architecture aligned to business needs. I can also confirm that we are very happy about the way the program turned out.

Please feel free to email me if you want to know more about the program at Robert dot Folkesson at microsoft dot com

Robert Folkesson
  • 21
  • 1