DEV Community: Sajeev PS

Google Cloud PMLE Exam Guide 2026: Format, Sections and Study Plan

Sajeev PS — Sat, 31 Oct 2026 04:00:00 +0000

Google Cloud has updated its Professional Machine Learning Engineer (PMLE) exam, and the current exam guide is dated 1 June 2026. Here is the format, the six exam guide sections and their weights, the recommended experience, how renewal works, and a study plan.

What changed

Google’s certification page says the exam was updated to reflect the transition from Vertex AI to Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform, updates to Google Cloud’s data and analytics stack, and that it now prioritises Google Cloud native solutions. The June 2026 guide uses the new product names throughout, such as Agent Platform AutoML, Agent Platform Pipelines and Agent Platform Workbench. If your study material still says Vertex AI, check it against the new guide.

The exam at a glance

Length: two hours
Format: 50–60 multiple choice and multiple select questions
Fee: USD 200, plus tax where applicable
Languages: English and Japanese
Delivery: online-proctored from a remote location, or onsite-proctored at a testing centre
Results: pass or fail only, with no numerical score. You see a provisional result on screen as soon as you submit
Coding: the exam does not directly assess coding skills, but you need a minimum proficiency in Python and SQL to interpret questions with code snippets

The six exam guide sections

Google publishes an approximate weight for each section:

Section	Weight
Architecting low-code AI solutions	~13%
Collaborating within and across teams to manage data and models	~16%
Scaling prototypes into ML models	~21%
Serving and scaling models	~20%
Automating and orchestrating ML pipelines	~18%
Monitoring AI solutions	~13%

Prerequisites and recommended experience

There are no prerequisites. Google recommends 3 or more years of industry experience, including at least 1 year designing and managing solutions using Google Cloud.

Renewal and retakes

Validity: Professional certifications are valid for two years from the date you certify
Renewal: you can recertify from 60 days before your certification expires. For the PMLE, renewal is by taking the exam again, and a pass adds two years
Retakes: up to four attempts in two years. After a first fail you wait 14 days, after a second 60 days, and after a third 365 days

A study plan by weight

The two middle sections, building models and serving them, make up about 41% of the exam. If you have about 40 hours, a split that follows the weights is roughly:

9 hours: Scaling prototypes into ML models (choosing model types and products, custom training, hyperparameter tuning, fine-tuning foundation models, CPU, GPU and TPU choices)
8 hours: Serving and scaling models (batch and online inference, Model Registry, A/B and canary rollouts, public and private endpoints)
7 hours: Automating and orchestrating ML pipelines (Agent Platform Pipelines, consistent preprocessing, retraining policies, CI/CD/CT with Cloud Build)
6 hours: Collaborating to manage data and models (preprocessing with BigQuery, Dataflow or Spark, Feature Store, handling PII, notebooks, experiment tracking)
5 hours: Architecting low-code AI solutions (BigQuery ML, Agent Platform AutoML, Model Garden, Document AI, Vision and Translate APIs)
5 hours: Monitoring AI solutions (Model Armor and safety filters, bias, explainability, training-serving skew and drift)

Google’s page suggests reviewing its sample questions and following the Machine Learning Engineer learning path. The Google Cloud Free Tier gives free usage, up to monthly limits, of selected products for hands-on practice.

Confirm the latest details on Google Cloud’s Professional Machine Learning Engineer page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. If you're preparing for PMLE, there are 10 free PMLE practice questions, each with the answer and a full explanation.

Data 360 Consultant exam guide 2026: format, domains and how to prepare

Sajeev PS — Fri, 30 Oct 2026 04:38:13 +0000

The Salesforce Certified Data 360 Consultant exam tests whether you can position, set up and implement Data 360, Salesforce’s data platform. This guide covers who the exam is for, how it works, what each of the six domains tests, the official study resources, how to keep the certification and a suggested way to prepare.

Data 360 Consultant at a glance

Detail	Data 360 Consultant
Awarded by	Salesforce
Questions	60 multiple-choice, plus up to five unscored questions
Time	105 minutes
Passing score	70%
Release	Questions align to the Spring ’26 release
Registration fee	US$200, plus applicable taxes
Retake fee	US$100, plus applicable taxes
Delivery	Proctored, at a test centre or online
References	None allowed, printed or online
Prerequisite	None
Maintenance	A Trailhead maintenance module once a year

Data 360 and Data Cloud

Data 360 is the new name Salesforce gave to the data platform it previously called Data Cloud. The exam guide, the certification and the official Trailhead trail all use the Data 360 name. Older study material may still use the name Data Cloud for the same product.

Who it is for

Salesforce says the exam suits consultants who have implemented and consulted on Data 360 and other enterprise data platforms in a customer-facing role, including designing and configuring solutions. Candidates should have experience with data strategy and data modelling, including building solutions across several Salesforce clouds.

Typical backgrounds include Salesforce administration, strategy, business analysis, solutioning (including presales), DevOps, technical marketing and architecture. Salesforce recommends a combination of on-the-job experience and self-study.

The exam format

The exam has 60 scored multiple-choice questions and you have 105 minutes. It may also contain up to five unscored questions that Salesforce uses to gather performance data. They are mixed in at random and have no effect on your result. The passing score is 70%, and the current questions align to the Spring ’26 release.

The exam is proctored, either at a testing centre or online. You cannot refer to any printed or online material during it. At the start of every exam you must accept the Salesforce Certification Program Agreement and Code of Conduct.

The six official domains

The official exam guide weights the domains as follows. The descriptions summarise the objectives the guide lists for each one.

Domain	Weight	What it covers
Solution Positioning	14%	Data 360 terminology and business value, its role as a foundation for generative and predictive AI, identifying first use cases, and the principles of data ethics and governance.
Data 360 Setup and Administration	13%	Permissions, permission sets and org-wide settings; applying governance requirements to the configuration; managing the development lifecycle with the available tools; and diagnosing common issues.
Data Source Connection and Ingestion	18%	Data transformation capabilities, how data is ingested from different sources and what to consider, and data collaboration capabilities including Zero-Copy.
Harmonization and Unification	17%	The purpose, process and use cases of unification, and modelling data in Data 360.
Data Enhancements, Sharing, and Analysis	18%	Enhancing unified data and building insights, referencing Data 360 data from other systems, reports and dashboards, and applying Data 360’s predictive and generative AI tools to customer scenarios.
Data Activations and Utilization	20%	Segmentation concepts and use cases, managing segments, publishing activations, acting on data, and using Data 360 in Salesforce flows.

Data Activations and Utilization is the largest domain. Ingestion and Enhancements, Sharing, and Analysis follow at 18% each.

Official study resources

Salesforce recommends a mix of hands-on experience, training courses, Trailhead trails and self-study across the topics in the exam outline. The exam guide lists:

Prepare for your Salesforce Data 360 Consultant Exam: a Trailhead trail, shown as intermediate level and about 13 hours 40 minutes long.
Data 360 Learning Journey: a set of Trailhead trails.
Discover Salesforce Data 360 Fundamentals (SDC101) and Design and Build Effective Solutions with Data 360 (SDC301): expert-led courses from Trailhead Academy.
Salesforce Help: documentation, tip sheets and user guides for each topic in the exam outline.

A suggested 6-week study plan

This is our suggested plan for about 6–8 hours of study a week, alongside hands-on practice in a Data 360 org if you have access to one. It follows the domain weights.

Week 1: Solution Positioning, Setup and Administration. Key terms and use cases, data ethics, permissions and org settings. Start the official Trailhead trail.
Week 2: Data Source Connection and Ingestion. Ingesting data from different sources, transformations and Zero-Copy.
Week 3: Harmonization and Unification. Data modelling and how unification works.
Week 4: Data Enhancements, Sharing, and Analysis. Insights, reports and dashboards, sharing data with other systems, and the AI tools.
Week 5: Data Activations and Utilization. Segments, activations, acting on data, and Data 360 in flows.
Week 6: practice exams. Take full-length timed practice exams, read every explanation, and go back to the domains where you score lowest.

Keeping your certification

You must complete the Data 360 Consultant certification maintenance module on Trailhead once a year. If you do not finish all maintenance requirements by the due date, the certification expires. Each module covers recent product updates; the Winter ’26 module, for example, included Hyperforce regions, real-time data actions with event-triggered flows, companion orgs and Data 360 sandboxes.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try free Data 360 Consultant practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/sf-data360/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=g-04a-data360

AWS SAA-C03 Exam Guide 2026: Format, Domains and Study Plan

Sajeev PS — Fri, 30 Oct 2026 04:36:56 +0000

AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA-C03) tests whether you can design solutions on AWS based on the AWS Well-Architected Framework. Here is how the exam works in 2026, the four domains and their weights, what each domain covers, who it is aimed at, how to keep the certification, and our suggested study plan.

Is SAA-C03 being replaced?

Not as far as AWS has said. AWS’s September 2026 certification update announced new versions of three exams: Machine Learning Engineer – Associate, Solutions Architect – Professional and Developer – Associate. It did not include Solutions Architect – Associate. As of 28 October 2026, the AWS exam guides index still lists SAA-C03, and the AWS Training and Certification blog has not announced a successor.

The only change AWS has announced is about language: the Italian version of the exam will be retired after 31 December 2026. The exam stays available in its other languages.

The format

Detail	SAA-C03
Level	Associate
Questions	65: 50 scored and 15 unscored
Time	130 minutes
Question types	Multiple choice and multiple response
Passing score	720 on a scaled score from 100 to 1,000
Fee	USD 150 (AWS notes that extra costs, such as foreign exchange, may apply)
Delivery	Pearson VUE, at a test centre or online proctored
Validity	3 years

A multiple choice question has one correct answer and three incorrect ones. A multiple response question has two or more correct answers out of five or more options. Unanswered questions are scored as incorrect, and there is no penalty for guessing, so answer every question.

The 15 unscored questions are ones AWS is trying out for future use. They are not marked on the exam, so treat every question as if it counts.

The exam uses a compensatory scoring model. You need to pass the exam as a whole, not each domain. Your score report may show how you did in each section, but AWS advises caution when reading that section-level feedback.

The exam uses short names for some AWS services. A list of short names and full names is available through the Help button during the exam, and AWS suggests you look at it before exam day.

The four domains

Domain	Weight
1. Design Secure Architectures	30%
2. Design Resilient Architectures	26%
3. Design High-Performing Architectures	24%
4. Design Cost-Optimized Architectures	20%

The weights are shares of the scored content, so a higher weight means more questions from that domain.

What each domain covers

This is our short summary of the task statements in the official exam guide. The guide itself has the full lists of knowledge and skills.

Design Secure Architectures (30%)

Secure access to AWS resources: IAM users, groups, roles and policies, least privilege and MFA, role switching and cross-account access, federation, and multi-account security with AWS Control Tower and service control policies.
Secure workloads and applications: VPC design with security groups, network ACLs, route tables and public and private subnets, plus services such as AWS WAF, AWS Shield, Amazon Cognito, Amazon GuardDuty and AWS Secrets Manager.
Data security controls: encryption at rest with AWS KMS and in transit with AWS Certificate Manager, key policies and rotation, backups and replication, and data retention and compliance.

Design Resilient Architectures (26%)

Scalable and loosely coupled designs: event-driven, microservice and multi-tier architectures, queues and publish/subscribe messaging, serverless with AWS Lambda and AWS Fargate, containers on Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS, Amazon API Gateway, load balancing, caching and read replicas.
High availability and fault tolerance: designs across Availability Zones and Regions, Amazon Route 53, removing single points of failure, failover, and disaster recovery strategies from backup and restore to active-active, judged against RPO and RTO.

Design High-Performing Architectures (24%)

Storage: choosing between object, file and block storage, such as Amazon S3, Amazon EFS and Amazon EBS, for performance and growth.
Compute: EC2 instance types, Auto Scaling, Lambda sizing, containers, and decoupling so components scale on their own.
Databases: picking a database type and engine, such as Amazon Aurora or Amazon DynamoDB, read replicas, proxies and caching with Amazon ElastiCache.
Networks: subnet tiers and routing, load balancing, Amazon CloudFront, AWS Global Accelerator, and connections such as VPN, AWS Direct Connect and AWS PrivateLink.
Data ingestion and transformation: streaming with Amazon Kinesis, transfer with AWS DataSync, transformation with AWS Glue, data lakes, and analytics with Amazon Athena.

Design Cost-Optimized Architectures (20%)

Storage: storage tiers, S3 lifecycle rules, backup and archive choices, and the cheapest way to move data into AWS.
Compute: Spot Instances, Reserved Instances and Savings Plans, right-sizing instances, and choosing between Lambda, EC2 and Fargate.
Databases: cost-effective database services, backup and retention policies, and capacity planning.
Networks: NAT gateway choices, data transfer routes, VPC endpoints, AWS Transit Gateway and VPC peering, and Direct Connect versus VPN.

Cost tools such as AWS Cost Explorer and AWS Budgets appear across this domain.

Recommended experience

The exam guide describes a target candidate with at least 1 year of hands-on experience designing cloud solutions that use AWS services. The exam page adds that people with 1 to 3 years of IT experience have prepared for and earned this certification as a starting point. If you have no IT work experience, AWS suggests earning AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner first.

Keeping your certification

The certification is valid for 3 years. To recertify, you can pass the latest version of the exam. Earning AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional also recertifies the Associate certification automatically.

Our suggested study plan

This is our suggestion, not AWS’s. It gives each domain time roughly in line with its weight, over eight weeks. Stretch it if you are new to AWS.

Weeks 1–2: Secure architectures. IAM policies and roles, cross-account access, VPC security, and encryption with KMS and ACM.
Weeks 3–4: Resilient architectures. Queues and events, serverless and containers, load balancing, multi-AZ and multi-Region designs, and the disaster recovery strategies.
Week 5: High-performing architectures. Matching storage, compute, database and network services to performance needs, plus caching and data ingestion.
Week 6: Cost-optimized architectures. Purchasing options, storage tiers and lifecycles, NAT gateway and data transfer costs.
Weeks 7–8: Practice and review. Take timed practice exams, read every explanation, and go back to your weakest domain.

Throughout, build things in your own AWS account where you can. Many questions describe a scenario and ask for the most secure, most resilient or cheapest design, and hands-on practice makes those trade-offs easier to spot. AWS also lists an Official Practice Question Set and an Official Practice Exam on the exam page.

Confirm the latest details on AWS’s Solutions Architect – Associate page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try free SAA-C03 practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/aws-saa-c03/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=s-n2a-saa-c03

Terraform Associate (004) exam guide 2026: format, objectives and how to prepare

Sajeev PS — Thu, 29 Oct 2026 04:40:51 +0000

HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate is HashiCorp’s foundation Terraform credential, and 004 is the current version of its exam. This guide covers how the exam works, the eight official objectives, what changed from 003, how to renew, and a suggested way to prepare.

Terraform Associate 004 at a glance

Detail	Terraform Associate 004
Awarded by	HashiCorp
Assessment type	Multiple choice (true or false, multiple choice and multiple answer questions)
Time	1 hour
Questions and passing score	Not published by HashiCorp
Delivery	Online proctored
Language	English
Version tested	Terraform 1.12
Price	$70.50 USD plus locally applicable taxes and fees; free retake not included
Prerequisites	Basic terminal skills; understanding of on-premises and cloud architecture
Valid for	2 years

Who it is for

HashiCorp says you should take this exam if you are a cloud engineer with foundational Terraform knowledge and skills, and you can identify Terraform Enterprise features and tell them apart from the Community edition.

Prerequisites

Basic terminal skills
An understanding of on-premises and cloud architecture

HashiCorp recommends professional experience, but says you can also prepare by practising the exam objectives in a personal demo setup.

The exam format

The exam lasts one hour and is taken online with a proctor, in English. HashiCorp says its Associate-level exams use three question types: true or false, multiple choice, and multiple answer. A multiple answer question tells you how many answers to choose.

HashiCorp also says the questions are not meant to trick you, and that the exam tests your knowledge of Terraform rather than your spelling or your memory for obscure details.

Not published: HashiCorp’s exam page does not give the number of questions or a passing score. Plan your time on the one-hour limit, and treat any pass mark you see elsewhere as unofficial.

The eight official objectives

HashiCorp lists eight objective areas for the 004 exam. It does not publish a weight for each one. The summaries below paraphrase the sub-objectives on the exam page.

Objective	What it covers
1. Infrastructure as Code (IaC) with Terraform	What IaC is, the advantages of IaC patterns, and how Terraform manages multi-cloud, hybrid cloud and service-agnostic workflows.
2. Terraform fundamentals	Installing and versioning providers, how Terraform uses providers, writing configuration with multiple providers, and how Terraform uses and manages state.
3. Core Terraform workflow	The workflow itself: initialising a working directory, validating configuration, generating and reviewing a plan, applying and destroying, and formatting and style.
4. Terraform configuration	Resource and data blocks, cross-resource references, variables and outputs, complex types, expressions and functions, resource dependencies, custom conditions, and best practices for sensitive data, including secrets management with Vault.
5. Terraform modules	How Terraform sources modules, variable scope within modules, using modules in configuration, and managing module versions.
6. Terraform state management	The local backend, state locking, configuring remote state with the backend block, and managing resource drift.
7. Maintain infrastructure with Terraform	Importing existing infrastructure, inspecting state with the CLI, and when and how to use verbose logging.
8. HCP Terraform	Creating infrastructure with HCP Terraform, its collaboration and governance features, organising workspaces and projects, and configuring the HCP Terraform integration.

What changed from 003

HashiCorp’s exam content list for 004 sets out the differences from the 003 exam:

four new topics: depends_on and create_before_destroy lifecycle rules (4f), validating configuration with custom conditions (4g), ephemeral values and write-only arguments (4h), and organising and using HCP Terraform workspaces and projects (8c)
the exam tests Terraform 1.12
the exam includes HCP Terraform content

Check your study material: anything written for the 003 exam will not cover the four new topics. Use it only alongside HashiCorp’s 004 exam content list.

Official study resources

HashiCorp’s “Prepare for the Terraform Associate 004 Certification Exam” tutorial collection has three parts:

Learning Path - Terraform Associate 004: an in-depth guide through tutorials and documentation for every exam topic.
Exam Content List - Terraform Associate 004: study material mapped to each objective, so you can review specific topics. It also lists the 003 to 004 differences.
Sample Questions - Terraform Associate 004: a short set of example questions showing the format and question types.

The learning path also points to the Get Started with Terraform tutorials for AWS, Azure, Google Cloud or Docker, and to a Get Started with HCP Terraform collection, which give you hands-on practice.

A suggested 6-week study plan

This is our suggested plan for about 5–7 hours of study a week. HashiCorp does not weight the objectives, so it gives more time to the areas with the most sub-objectives, such as configuration and the core workflow.

Week 1: IaC and fundamentals. Infrastructure as code concepts, providers and version constraints, the dependency lock file and the purpose of state. Work through a Get Started with Terraform collection.
Week 2: The core workflow. init, validate, plan, apply, destroy and fmt. Run each command against a small demo configuration and read the output.
Week 3: Configuration. Resources and data sources, references, variables and outputs, types, expressions and functions, dependencies, custom conditions and sensitive data, including ephemeral values and write-only arguments.
Week 4: Modules and state. Module sources, inputs and outputs, versions; the local backend, locking, remote backends and drift.
Week 5: Maintenance and HCP Terraform. Import, state inspection commands and logging; then HCP Terraform runs, workspaces and projects, variable sets, teams and policies.
Week 6: Practice and review. Try HashiCorp’s sample questions, take timed practice exams, read every explanation, and go back to the objectives where you score lowest.

Keeping your certification

Terraform Associate credentials expire after 2 years. Check the 3-digit code on your badge or certificate to see which version you passed. HashiCorp lists these options:

Unexpired 004 credential: pass the Terraform Infrastructure Engineer Professional exam, pass the AWS or Azure version of the Terraform Authoring and Operations Advanced exam, or pass the 004 Associate exam starting 6 months before expiry. Each extends your Associate expiration date.
Unexpired 002 or 003 credential: the Professional or Advanced exam extends your Associate expiration date. Passing the 004 Associate exam (from 6 months before expiry) gives you a new, separate credential with its own expiration date instead.
Expired credential: pass the current Associate exam at any time to get a new credential with a new expiration date.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try free Terraform Associate practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/hc-terraform-associate/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=g-n2a-terraform

AZ-104 exam guide 2026: format, skills measured, renewal and how to prepare

Sajeev PS — Wed, 28 Oct 2026 04:39:48 +0000

Exam AZ-104, Microsoft Azure Administrator, earns the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate certification. This guide covers who it is for, how the exam works, what the five skill areas test, what changed in the April 2026 update, how to renew and a suggested way to prepare.

AZ-104 at a glance

Detail	AZ-104
Awarded by	Microsoft
Certification	Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate
Level	Intermediate (associate)
Time	100 minutes
Questions	Not listed for AZ-104; Microsoft says most of its exams have 40–60
Passing score	700 on a scale of 1 to 1,000 (scaled)
Delivery	Proctored, scheduled through Pearson VUE
Languages	English, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, Japanese, French, Spanish, German, Portuguese (Brazil), Chinese (Traditional), Italian
Price	Depends on the country or region where you take it
Renewal	Every 12 months, free, with an online assessment on Microsoft Learn

Who it is for

Microsoft describes the candidate as someone with subject matter expertise in implementing, managing and monitoring an organization’s Microsoft Azure environment, including virtual networks, storage, compute, identity, security and governance.

An Azure administrator often works as part of a larger team that implements an organization’s cloud infrastructure. You also coordinate with other roles to deliver Azure networking, security, database, application development and DevOps solutions.

Recommended experience

Microsoft says you should be familiar with:

operating systems
networking
servers
virtualization

You should also have experience with PowerShell, Azure CLI, the Azure portal, Azure Resource Manager templates or Bicep files and Microsoft Entra ID. The certification page and study guide do not list any formal prerequisite.

The exam format

You have 100 minutes. The exam is proctored and may include interactive components. Microsoft does not reveal question types in advance, but its exam sandbox lets you try the exam interface and question formats before you book. Most questions cover features that are generally available, though commonly used Preview features can appear.

Scoring: you need 700 or more on a scale of 1 to 1,000. This is a scaled score, so it may not equal 70% of the points. There is no penalty for guessing, and some questions may be unscored without telling you which.
Microsoft Learn is open: on associate and expert exams you can open Microsoft Learn in a split screen. No extra time is added and the clock keeps running.
Breaks: five minutes are built into the exam time for breaks. The clock keeps running, and you cannot return to questions you saw before the break.
Language: if the exam is not available in your preferred language, you can request an extra 30 minutes.
Retakes: you must wait 24 hours after a first failed attempt and 14 days between later attempts. You cannot take the same exam more than five times in 12 months from your first attempt.

The official skills measured

The AZ-104 study guide groups the exam into five skill areas. This is how it describes them, in brief:

Skill area	Weight	What it covers
Manage Azure identities and governance	20–25%	Creating and managing Microsoft Entra users and groups, licenses, external users and self-service password reset. Built-in Azure roles, role assignments at different scopes and interpreting access. Azure Policy, resource locks, tags, resource groups, subscriptions, management groups, and managing costs with alerts, budgets and Azure Advisor.
Implement and manage storage	15–20%	Storage firewalls and virtual networks, SAS tokens, stored access policies, access keys and identity-based access for Azure Files. Creating storage accounts, redundancy, object replication, encryption, Storage Explorer and AzCopy. File shares, blob containers, storage tiers, soft delete and snapshots, lifecycle management and blob versioning.
Deploy and manage Azure compute resources	20–25%	Reading, changing and deploying ARM templates and Bicep files, and exporting or converting them. Creating VMs, encryption at host, moving VMs, sizes, disks, availability zones and sets, and Virtual Machine Scale Sets. Azure Container Registry, Container Instances and Container Apps. App Service plans, scaling, certificates and TLS, custom DNS names, backup, networking and deployment slots.
Implement and manage virtual networking	15–20%	Virtual networks, subnets, peering, public IP addresses, user-defined routes and troubleshooting connectivity. Network security groups and application security groups, effective security rules, Azure Bastion, and service and private endpoints. Azure DNS, and configuring and troubleshooting internal or public load balancers.
Monitor and maintain Azure resources	10–15%	Metrics, log settings and log queries in Azure Monitor, alert rules, action groups and alert processing rules, Azure Monitor Insights, Network Watcher and Connection monitor. Recovery Services and Backup vaults, backup policies, backup and restore, Azure Site Recovery, failover to a secondary region, and backup reports and alerts.

Identities and governance and compute carry the most weight. Monitoring and maintenance is the smallest area, but it is still up to 15% of the exam.

What changed in 2026

Skills measured as of April 17, 2026. Microsoft’s change log marks the audience profile and five groups as minor changes: Configure Azure Files and Azure Blob Storage, Create and configure virtual machines, Provision and manage containers in the Azure portal, Configure and manage virtual networks in Azure, and Monitor resources in Azure. The skill areas listed in the change log are marked as no change.

Microsoft updates the English version of an exam first. Localized versions are updated about eight weeks after the English version, although Microsoft says this schedule can slip.

Official study resources

the AZ-104 study guide, which lists every skill measured and the change log
self-paced learning paths and modules, or an instructor-led course, linked from the study guide
the Azure documentation, including Microsoft Entra ID, Azure Policy, Azure Storage, ARM templates, Container Instances, Container Apps, App Service, Azure DNS, Azure Bastion, Azure Monitor, Network Watcher, Site Recovery and Azure Backup
the free Practice Assessment on Microsoft Learn, which shows the style, wording and difficulty of exam questions
the exam sandbox, to practise the exam interface
the Exam AZ-104 prep videos and the Exam Readiness Zone

A suggested 6-week study plan

This is our suggested plan. It follows the five skill areas and gives time in line with their weights.

Week 1: Identity and governance. Entra users and groups, licenses, external users and SSPR, then Azure RBAC roles and scopes, Azure Policy, locks, tags, management groups and cost controls.
Week 2: Storage. Storage accounts and redundancy, firewalls, SAS tokens and access keys, encryption, Azure Files, blob tiers, soft delete, versioning, lifecycle rules, object replication and AzCopy.
Week 3: Compute. ARM templates and Bicep, VM sizes, disks, availability zones and sets, scale sets, moving VMs, containers, and App Service plans, slots, certificates and networking.
Week 4: Networking. VNets and subnets, peering, user-defined routes, NSGs and application security groups, Bastion, service and private endpoints, Azure DNS and load balancers.
Week 5: Monitoring and backup. Azure Monitor metrics, logs and alerts, Network Watcher, Recovery Services and Backup vaults, backup policies, restores and Site Recovery failover.
Week 6: Practice and review. Take the free Practice Assessment and full-length timed practice exams, read every explanation, and revisit the areas where you score lowest. Practise finding answers quickly on Microsoft Learn, since it is open during the exam but the clock keeps running.

Keeping your certification

The Azure Administrator Associate certification has a 12-month renewal frequency. Renewal is free: you pass a short online renewal assessment on Microsoft Learn, which becomes available six months before your certification expires. The assessment is unproctored and open book, takes about 45 minutes, and can be retaken as often as needed before expiry. Passing it extends your certification by one year from the expiration date. If the certification expires, you must pass the exam again.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try free AZ-104 practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/ms-az-104/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=g-n1a-az-104

AWS MLA-C02 Exam Guide 2026: Beta, Domains and Study Plan

Sajeev PS — Wed, 28 Oct 2026 04:00:00 +0000

AWS is updating the Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate exam from MLA-C01 to MLA-C02. The MLA-C02 beta has been running since 29 September 2026. Here are the key dates, the format, the four domains and their weights, the recommended experience, and a study plan.

The key dates

Event	Date
MLA-C02 beta registration opens (English only) and exam guide released	1 September 2026
Last day to take MLA-C01 in English	28 September 2026
MLA-C02 beta delivery begins	29 September 2026
MLA-C02 general availability (all languages); MLA-C01 retired in all languages	14 January 2027

The 14 January 2027 date comes from AWS’s September 2026 announcement. The exam page still lists general availability as “TBD”, so check it before you plan around that date. Until then, MLA-C01 remains available in Japanese, Korean and Simplified Chinese.

The format

MLA-C02 beta: 85 questions in 170 minutes, USD 75 (beta pricing), English only
Question types: multiple choice and multiple response. Unanswered questions are scored as incorrect, and there is no penalty for guessing
Delivery: Pearson VUE, at a test centre or online proctored
Scoring (MLA-C02 exam guide): the guide describes 50 scored and 15 unscored questions, a scaled score from 100 to 1,000, and a minimum passing score of 720. It notes that the pass or fail designation does not apply to the beta
Validity: 3 years. You recertify by passing the latest version of the exam

The exam page does not yet give the duration or price of the standard (non-beta) MLA-C02 exam. For comparison, MLA-C01 has 65 questions in 130 minutes and costs USD 150.

Under AWS’s beta rules, you can take a beta only once, results are available within 5 business days, and a pass earns the certification, active for three years.

The four domains

AWS says the domain structure stays the same and no new domains were added. The names and two of the weights have changed:

MLA-C02 domain	MLA-C02	MLA-C01
Data Preparation for ML and AI	28%	28%
ML Model and Foundation Model (FM) Development	24%	26%
Deployment and Orchestration of ML and AI Workflows	24%	22%
Operating, Monitoring, and Securing ML and AI Solutions	24%	24%

The new content is mostly generative and agentic AI: vector databases, embeddings, preparing documents for retrieval augmented generation (RAG), choosing and fine-tuning foundation models in Amazon Bedrock, agents, and Amazon Bedrock Guardrails. AWS’s comparison page also lists removed items, including SageMaker Neo for edge devices and bring your own container (BYOC) with SageMaker.

Recommended experience

The MLA-C02 exam guide describes the target candidate as having:

at least 1 year of experience using Amazon SageMaker AI, Amazon Bedrock and other AWS services for ML engineering
at least 1 year in a related role, such as backend software developer, DevOps developer, data engineer or data scientist
experience with both traditional ML and generative AI

The guide also lists out-of-scope tasks, such as designing full end-to-end AI and ML solutions, and working deeply in two or more ML domains.

A study plan by weight

The weights are close together, so give every domain real time. If you have about 50 hours, a split that follows the weights is:

14 hours: Data Preparation for ML and AI (collecting and storing data, transformation and feature engineering, data quality and bias)
12 hours: ML Model and FM Development (choosing a modelling approach, training and fine-tuning, evaluation)
12 hours: Deployment and Orchestration (deployment infrastructure, provisioning resources, CI/CD pipelines)
12 hours: Operating, Monitoring, and Securing (monitoring inference, managing cost and performance, securing endpoints)

If you studied for MLA-C01, spend extra time on the new generative AI skills, because they appear in every domain.

Confirm the latest details on AWS’s Machine Learning Engineer – Associate page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. If you're preparing for MLA-C02, there are 10 free MLA-C02 practice questions, each with the answer and a full explanation.

CTPRP exam guide 2026: eligibility, format, domains and how to prepare

Sajeev PS — Tue, 27 Oct 2026 06:36:46 +0000

The Certified Third Party Risk Professional (CTPRP) shows that you can design and run a third-party risk management program. This guide covers who can take it, how the exam works, what each domain tests, what it costs and how to prepare.

CTPRP at a glance

Detail	CTPRP
Awarded by	Shared Assessments
Level	Intermediate (CTPRA is the advanced, assessor-focused credential)
Questions	120, worth up to 125 points
Time	3 hours
Passing score	70% of the available points
Format	Closed-book, online with a remote proctor (Proctor360)
Training	Required: self-study or instructor-led course, included in the price
Experience	5 years in risk management (waivers available)
Valid for	3 years, with 36 CPE credits and a $100 annual fee

Who the CTPRP is for

Shared Assessments describes the CTPRP as an intermediate-level credential for professionals with direct or indirect responsibility for third-party risk management. If your work involves running, designing or contributing to a third-party or vendor risk program, it is aimed at you.

Eligibility

Shared Assessments asks for at least 5 years of experience as a risk management professional. That experience can come from third-party risk management, audit, compliance or risk and control assessment. Two waivers can each reduce the requirement by one year:

a relevant bachelor’s or master’s degree in information security or IT
an active professional certification, for example CISA, CISSP, CIPP or CIPM

If you pass the exam before you meet the experience requirement, you are awarded Associate CTPRP. It upgrades to the full CTPRP at no cost once you have the experience, as long as you keep the credential active.

How to get certified, step by step

Choose a training option. The course and the exam are sold together; there is no exam-only option.
Complete the course. The instructor-led version runs as two 5-hour web sessions; the on-demand version is a six-course, self-paced program of about 8–10 hours. The course earns 12 CPE credits.
Sit the exam within 15 weeks of the course start date, online with a remote proctor.
Apply within 30 days of passing, with a proof-of-experience form and the contact details of someone who can confirm your employment.
Receive your badge. Review takes up to two weeks, and the credential is issued as a Credly digital badge.

The exam format

The exam has 120 questions worth up to 125 points, and you have 3 hours. It is closed-book. Most questions are short scenarios of two or three sentences with one correct answer; others ask which statement is true or which definition fits best. Watch for wording such as NOT, EXCEPT and MOST, which changes what the question is asking. You can skip a question and come back to it. Final results arrive within two weeks.

Booking tip: the exam runs through Proctor360. You install a Chrome extension, show photo ID and complete a 360° scan of your room before you start. Booking, changing or cancelling within 48 hours of the slot costs $15, so book early.

The four CTPRP domains

Since March 2025 the four domains carry equal weight. This is how the official exam prep guide describes them, in brief:

Domain	Weight	What it covers
Third-Party Risk Management Foundation	25%	Outsourcing terms and risk triggers, the TPRM lifecycle, data classification and governance, and how TPRM fits enterprise risk management: risk appetite, inherent and residual risk.
TPRM Program Design and Structure	25%	Governance and accountability, policies, risk tiering and vendor classification, contract provisions, due-diligence scope and the assessment process: scoping, assurance reports and testing methods.
Controls Evaluation in TPRM	25%	Governance, risk and compliance controls, including HR security; information protection (access, physical, network, application and cloud); IT operations and resilience (change and patch management, business continuity and disaster recovery); and cybersecurity and technology governance (incident response, threat and vulnerability management).
TPRM Program Operations and Implementation	25%	Reporting after an assessment, corrective action plans, risk acceptance, ongoing monitoring, managing program data and workstreams, and measuring program performance: metrics, staffing and independent reviews.

The official exam prep guide describes these domains in terms of concepts and practice; it does not list specific regulations or industry questionnaires as exam content.

What changed in 2025

The handbook and exam prep guide published in March 2025 changed the exam in three ways:

the exam went from 125 questions worth 140 points to 120 questions worth 125 points
the domain weights went from 25 / 25 / 30 / 20 to 25% each, so Controls Evaluation lost weight and Operations gained it
the official practice material changed from one 50-question exam to two 40-question exams

Study material written before March 2025 may still describe the old format.

What the CTPRP costs

Prices at the time of writing (October 2026) are listed as a limited-time offer; check the official page before you buy.

Option	Shared Assessments member	Non-member
Self-study course and exam	$595 (regular $995)	$695 (regular $1,295)
Instructor-led course and exam	$795 (regular $1,195)	$995 (regular $1,495)

The price includes the course, the exam, the study materials and the digital badge. A retake costs $150, with up to three attempts; after a third unsuccessful attempt you need to retake the course, at half price.

How to prepare

Shared Assessments recommends about 30 hours of study. This is our suggested four-week plan, following the four domains:

Week 1: Foundation and program design. The TPRM lifecycle, risk appetite, inherent versus residual risk, risk tiering, and what belongs in a contract.
Week 2: Controls evaluation. Access, network, application and cloud controls; change and patch management; continuity and disaster recovery; incident response.
Week 3: Operations. Assessment reporting, corrective action plans, risk acceptance, monitoring and program metrics.
Week 4: Practice and review. Take full-length timed practice exams, then go back over every domain where you score below 75%.

On exam day, read each scenario carefully and slow down on questions worded with NOT, EXCEPT or MOST, which reverse or narrow what is being asked.

Keeping your CTPRP active

The credential runs on a three-year term. You need 36 CPE credits per term (about 12 a year is recommended, and credits from other organisations count), a $100 annual maintenance fee, and adherence to the Shared Assessments code of ethics. If it lapses for less than two years you can reinstate it by paying the outstanding fees and completing the missing CPE credits; after two years you need to take the course and exam again.

CTPRP or CTPRA?

Shared Assessments also offers the Certified Third Party Risk Assessor (CTPRA), an advanced-level credential for people who scope and test a third party’s controls, such as assessors and auditors. The exam profile is the same (120 questions, 3 hours, 70%), but the content focuses on performing assessments. If you run or build the program, start with the CTPRP; if your job is carrying out the assessments, the CTPRA is the closer fit.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try free CTPRP practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/ctprp/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=ctprp-guide-copy

ISC2 CC vs CISSP: Which Security Certification First?

Sajeev PS — Mon, 26 Oct 2026 04:43:59 +0000

ISC2 offers two certifications that people often weigh against each other: Certified in Cybersecurity (CC), its entry-level exam, and the CISSP, its certification for experienced security leaders. They use the same adaptive exam style, but they sit at opposite ends of a security career. Here is how they compare, taken from ISC2’s official pages and exam outlines, followed by our suggestion on which to take first.

The two exams side by side

Detail	Certified in Cybersecurity (CC)	CISSP
Level	Entry level	Experienced practitioners, managers and executives
Format	Computerized adaptive test (CAT): multiple choice and advanced item types	Computerized adaptive test (CAT): multiple choice and advanced item types
Items	100 to 125, including 25 unscored pretest items	100 to 150, including 25 unscored pretest items
Time	2 hours maximum	3 hours maximum
Passing grade	700 out of 1000 points	700 out of 1000 points
Price	US$199 in most regions (EUR 191.04 in Europe, GBP 161.19 in the UK)	US$749 in most regions (EUR 719.04 in Europe, GBP 606.69 in the UK)
Delivery	In person at a Pearson VUE test centre	In person at Pearson VUE test centres authorised by ISC2
Languages	English, Chinese, German, Japanese, Spanish	English, Chinese, German, Japanese, Spanish
Experience needed	None; basic IT knowledge recommended	5 years in two or more of the eight domains (one year can be waived)
Domains	5	8
Upkeep	45 CPE credits per three-year cycle and US$50 a year	120 CPE credits per three-year cycle and US$135 a year

The exam mechanics are close. The big differences are depth, price and the experience you need to hold the title.

Who each certification is for

CC. ISC2 says CC proves you have the foundational knowledge, skills and abilities for an entry- or junior-level cybersecurity role. There are no specific prerequisites. You do not need cybersecurity work experience or a degree, though ISC2 recommends basic IT knowledge. You must be at least 16 to sit an ISC2 exam. The CC exam outline names the next step as ISC2’s expert-level certifications, which require experience in the field.

CISSP. ISC2 describes the CISSP as validating the technical and managerial knowledge and experience to design, engineer and manage an organisation’s overall security posture. The roles it lists include CISO, director of security, security manager, security architect, security analyst, security auditor and security consultant.

How the adaptive format works on both

ISC2 uses computerized adaptive testing (CAT) for all CC and CISSP exams. After each answer the exam re-estimates your ability and picks the next item. The same rules apply to both:

You see at least 100 items, and 25 of them are unscored pretest items you cannot identify.
The exam can end once it is 95% confident whether you are above or below the passing standard.
You must answer at least 75 scored items plus the 25 pretest items before time runs out, or the result is a fail.
Item review is not allowed. Once you finalize an answer, you cannot change it.
Breaks count toward the maximum time.
Results show pass or fail, not a number. If you fail, you see your proficiency level in each domain.

The CISSP simply runs longer: up to 150 items in 3 hours, against up to 125 items in 2 hours for CC.

CC: the September 2026 outline change

A revised CC outline took effect on 1 September 2026. ISC2 calls it the first major content update since CC launched in August 2022. It still has five domains, but they were renamed and reweighted:

CC domain from 1 September 2026	Weight
Security Principles	24%
Security Governance	17.3%
Identity and Access Management (IAM) Concepts	20%
Networking and Cloud Security Concepts	21.3%
Security Operations and Incident Response	17.3%

Governance is now a domain of its own, with business continuity and disaster recovery inside it. Incident response moved into Domain 5, alongside threat intelligence, threat frameworks and red, blue and purple teaming. Domain 4 adds cloud security, zero trust and modern segmentation, and foundational AI topics are spread across the outline.

Free exam programme closed: ISC2’s One Million Certified in Cybersecurity programme stopped taking new enrollments on 20 May 2026. Unexpired exam codes from it must be used to schedule and sit the exam by 31 December 2026.

CISSP: the April 2027 outline change

The current CISSP outline took effect on 15 April 2024. ISC2 has announced that from 15 April 2027 the exam will follow a new outline. The format stays the same: CAT, 100 to 150 items, 3 hours and 700 out of 1000 to pass. Domain 1 is renamed and every weight changes:

CISSP domain	Until 14 April 2027	From 15 April 2027
Security and Risk Management (from 2027: Security Governance and Risk Management)	16%	13.6%
Asset Security	10%	12%
Security Architecture and Engineering	13%	12.8%
Communication and Network Security	13%	12.8%
Identity and Access Management (IAM)	13%	13.6%
Security Assessment and Testing	12%	11.2%
Security Operations	13%	12.8%
Software Development Security	10%	11.2%

The 2027 outline also adds ethics in artificial intelligence to Domain 1. If your exam date is before 15 April 2027, study the April 2024 outline. On or after that date, use the 2027 one.

The Associate of ISC2 route

You can sit the CISSP exam before you have five years of experience. Passing the exam is one step. To be certified you must also meet the experience requirement, be endorsed, pay an annual maintenance fee and commit to the ISC2 Code of Ethics.

If you pass without enough experience, you can become an Associate of ISC2. You then have six years to earn the required five years.
A relevant bachelor’s or master’s degree, or a credential on ISC2’s approved list (such as CISM or CompTIA Security+), can count for one year. Only one year can be waived.
Part-time work of 20 to 34 hours a week and paid or unpaid internships can count.
Associates pay US$50 a year and need 15 CPE credits each year.
Once you pass, apply for certification within nine months of your exam date.

Keeping each certification

CC needs 45 CPE credits per three-year cycle (ISC2 suggests about 15 a year) and a US$50 annual fee if CC is your only ISC2 certification. The CISSP needs 120 CPE credits per cycle, at least 90 of them in Group A, and a US$135 annual fee. ISC2 charges members a single annual fee however many of its certifications they hold. Both have a 90-day grace period for CPE credits before the certification is suspended.

Our suggestion: which to take first

This is our suggestion, not ISC2’s. It is based on the official details above.

You are new to security or IT: start with CC. It needs no experience, costs far less and covers the same broad ground at an entry level: principles, IAM, networking, governance and operations.
You have a few years in IT but not five in security: CC is a sensible first step while you build experience. If you want to aim for the CISSP early, the Associate of ISC2 route lets you pass now and finish the experience later.
You already have five years in two or more CISSP domains: you can go straight to the CISSP. ISC2 sets the CISSP requirement in terms of work experience in the domains.
You are booking the CISSP close to April 2027: pick your date first, then study the outline that applies on that date.
Either way: practise in timed sessions without going back to earlier questions, because neither exam allows item review. ExamCrest has 10 free practice questions for CC to help you get started.

Confirm the latest details on ISC2’s Certified in Cybersecurity page and CISSP page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. Try 10 free ISC2 CC practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/isc2-cc/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=sx-isc2-cc-cissp

Databricks Data Engineer Associate Exam 2026: Format, Domains and Study Plan

Sajeev PS — Sat, 24 Oct 2026 04:00:00 +0000

Databricks’ current exam guide for the Certified Data Engineer Associate covers the exam version as of 4 May 2026. Here is the format, the seven official sections and their weights, what Databricks recommends before you sit it, and a study plan based on the weights.

The exam at a glance

Length: 45 scored multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes
Unscored questions: the exam may include unscored items that are not identified. Databricks adds extra time to allow for them
Fee: USD 200, plus applicable taxes as required by local law
Delivery: proctored, online or at a test centre. No test aids are allowed
Languages: English, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese and Korean
Code: the certification page says data manipulation code is shown in SQL when possible, and otherwise in Python
Validity: 2 years. To recertify, you take the current version of the exam

Databricks does not state a pass mark on the certification page or in the exam guide.

The seven official sections

Section	Weight
Data Transformation and Modeling	22%
Data Ingestion and Loading	21%
Working with Lakeflow Jobs	16%
Governance and Security	15%
Implementing CI/CD	10%
Troubleshooting, Monitoring, and Optimization	10%
Databricks Intelligence Platform	6%

The guide uses current product names. If your study material is older, note that Git folders were formerly Databricks Repos and Declarative Automation Bundles were formerly Databricks Asset Bundles.

Recommended experience and training

No prerequisite is required. The two official sources word the recommendation differently:

Exam guide (PDF): course attendance and six months of hands-on experience in Databricks are highly recommended
Certification page: related training is highly recommended, along with hands-on experience performing the data engineering tasks outlined in the exam guide

The exam guide lists the instructor-led course Data Engineering with Databricks, plus six self-paced courses in Databricks Academy covering Lakeflow Connect, Lakeflow Jobs, DevOps essentials, Unity Catalog interoperability, Lakeflow Spark Declarative Pipelines and data governance.

A study plan by weight

Ingestion and transformation together make up 43% of the exam. If you have about 40 hours, a split that follows the weights is roughly:

9 hours: Data Transformation and Modeling
8 hours: Data Ingestion and Loading
6 hours each: Working with Lakeflow Jobs, and Governance and Security
4 hours each: Implementing CI/CD, and Troubleshooting, Monitoring, and Optimization
3 hours: Databricks Intelligence Platform

What to practise hands-on

The exam guide’s objectives are practical, so try each of these in a workspace:

load files incrementally with COPY INTO and Auto Loader, including schema enforcement and schema evolution
clean bronze tables into silver tables with PySpark or SQL: joins, unions, exploding arrays, deduplication and aggregations
build gold-layer objects such as materialized views, views and streaming tables
set up Lakeflow Jobs with retries, conditional tasks and the three trigger types: scheduled, file arrival and table update
deploy a bundle with the Databricks CLI, using variables and overrides for dev, test and prod
spot data skew, shuffling and disk spilling in the Spark UI
in Unity Catalog, compare managed and external tables, and apply GRANT, REVOKE and DENY, column masks and row-level security

Before you book, read the latest exam guide on Databricks’ Data Engineer Associate page. Databricks updates it whenever the exam changes.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. If you're preparing for Databricks Data Engineer Associate, there are 10 free Databricks Data Engineer Associate practice questions, each with the answer and a full explanation.

PMI-RMP exam guide 2026: eligibility, format, domains and study plan

Sajeev PS — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 06:16:51 +0000

The PMI Risk Management Professional (PMI-RMP) is PMI’s certification in project risk management. This guide covers who can apply, how the exam works, what each domain covers, how to keep the certification and a suggested way to prepare.

PMI-RMP at a glance

Detail	PMI-RMP
Awarded by	Project Management Institute (PMI)
Questions	115: 100 scored and 15 unscored pretest questions
Time	150 minutes, with an optional 10-minute break
Question types	Multiple choice and multiple answer select
Passing score	Not published by PMI
Delivery	Test centre or online proctored
Languages	English, Arabic and Simplified Chinese
Renewal	30 PDUs every three years

Eligibility

You need a combination of education, project risk experience and risk management education. The experience must have been gained within the last five consecutive years.

Your education	Project risk experience	Risk education
Secondary diploma or associate’s degree	36 months	40 contact hours
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent	24 months	30 contact hours
Bachelor’s or master’s from a PMI GAC-accredited program	12 months	30 contact hours

There is no time limit on when the contact hours were earned, but they must come from instruction; self-study such as reading books or watching videos does not count.

How to apply, step by step

Apply online on pmi.org. An application stays open for 90 days while you complete it.
Watch for an audit. Some applications are selected at random for audit before payment. If yours is, you have 90 days to send the supporting documents.
Pay the exam fee. Your eligibility period is one year from approval, or from passing the audit if you were selected.
Book and take the exam. You can attempt the exam up to three times within the eligibility year. After three unsuccessful attempts you must wait one year before applying again.

The exam format

The exam has 115 questions and you have 150 minutes. Fifteen are unscored pretest questions mixed in with the 100 scored ones, and you can’t tell which are which. PMI describes the questions as multiple choice and multiple answer select. There is an optional 10-minute break after about half the questions; once you take it, you can’t go back to the first section. The tutorial and the end-of-exam survey don’t count towards the 150 minutes.

You can take the exam at a test centre or online with a remote proctor, in English, Arabic or Simplified Chinese. PMI does not publish a passing score.

The five PMI-RMP domains

PMI’s Examination Content Outline weights the domains as follows. Predictive, agile and hybrid approaches appear throughout all five.

Domain	Weight	What it covers
Risk Strategy and Planning	22%	Reviewing early project documents, assessing the project environment, setting risk thresholds based on risk appetite, establishing the risk strategy, tools and metrics, writing the risk management plan, and engaging stakeholders.
Risk Identification	23%	Running risk identification exercises, examining assumptions and constraints, documenting triggers and thresholds, and developing the risk register.
Risk Analysis	23%	Qualitative analysis and quantitative analysis of risks, and assessing threats and opportunities against project objectives.
Risk Response	13%	Planning risk responses and owners, and carrying out responses and contingency plans, including dealing with secondary and residual risks.
Monitor and Close Risks	19%	Gathering performance data, monitoring residual and secondary risks, updating documents and closing risks, and reporting on overall risk.

What PMI lists as references

The reference list in PMI’s Examination Content Outline includes:

Risk Management in Portfolios, Programs, and Projects: A Practice Guide (PMI, 2024)
A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK Guide), 7th edition
Risk management textbooks by Hillson and Simon (ATOM), Kendrick, Fraser, Quail and Simkins, and Bissonette

Use the content outline, not the old handbook. PMI’s older PMI-RMP handbook still describes a 170-question, 3.5-hour exam. The Examination Content Outline describes the current 115-question, 150-minute exam.

A suggested 8-week study plan

This is our suggested plan for 10–15 hours of study a week. It follows the domain weights and the tasks in PMI’s content outline.

Weeks 1–2: Risk Strategy and Planning. Risk appetite and thresholds, and what goes into a risk management plan.
Week 3: Risk Identification. Identification techniques, assumptions and constraints, triggers, and the risk register.
Weeks 4–5: Risk Analysis. Qualitative methods, then quantitative techniques; work through examples until you can do them quickly.
Week 6: Risk Response, and Monitor and Close Risks. Response strategies for threats and opportunities, contingency plans, residual and secondary risks, and risk reporting.
Weeks 7–8: practice exams. Take full-length timed practice exams, read every explanation, and return to the domains where you score lowest.

Keeping your PMI-RMP

The certification runs on a three-year cycle. You need 30 professional development units (PDUs) in each cycle. At least 18 must be education PDUs, including at least 4 in each of Ways of Working, Power Skills and Business Acumen. Up to 12 can come from giving back to the profession.

I run ExamCrest, where this guide first appeared. Try 10 free PMI-RMP practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/pmi-rmp/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=rmp-guide-devto

PMP Exam Changes July 2026: What’s New and How to Adjust

Sajeev PS — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 04:41:25 +0000

PMI updated the Project Management Professional (PMP) exam in July 2026. The three domains are still there, but their weights have shifted, the exam is longer, and there are two new question types. Here is what changed, who it affects, and how to adjust your study.

When the change happened

PMI says the updated PMP exam has been live since 9 July 2026. Every exam scheduled on or after that date uses the new version. It is based on a new document, the PMP Examination Content Outline – 2026, which replaces the outline first published in June 2019.

Old exam vs new exam at a glance

Detail	Previous outline (June 2019)	2026 outline
People	42%	33%
Process	50%	41%
Business Environment	8%	26%
Tasks	35 (14 / 17 / 4)	26 (8 / 10 / 8)
Questions	180: 175 scored, 5 pretest	180: 170 scored, 10 pretest
Time	230 minutes	240 minutes
Breaks	Two 10-minute breaks	Two 10-minute breaks
Approach mix	About half predictive, half agile or hybrid	About 40% predictive, 60% agile or hybrid

The new domain weights

The biggest change is the weight of Business Environment. It goes from 8% to 26%, so it is now roughly one question in four instead of one in twelve. People and Process each drop by 9 percentage points.

This is partly because tasks have moved between domains. Comparing the two outlines:

Moved into Business Environment: project governance, risk, change control and issues (all previously in Process), and removing impediments (previously in People).
Moved into People: stakeholder engagement, communication and knowledge transfer (previously in Process).
New task in Business Environment: continuous improvement.

The 2026 outline also has fewer, broader tasks: 26 instead of 35. PMI says every exam includes questions on all the tasks in each domain.

New topics: AI, sustainability and value

PMI says the update adds AI, sustainability and stakeholder engagement in project-based scenarios, and shifts the focus towards outcomes, value and business impact. The outline explains that trends such as artificial intelligence and sustainability were used as inputs when PMI analysed the project manager’s job.

Sustainability was not mentioned in the previous outline. In the 2026 task lists it appears in several places: as an example of critical information in planning, alongside cost of quality, as a compliance requirement, and as a type of risk to manage. Value is also a Process task in its own right: “Help ensure value-based delivery”.

A longer exam with new question types

The question count stays at 180, but the time rises from 230 to 240 minutes. Ten of the questions are unscored pretest items, up from five, and you can’t tell which ones they are.

The outline lists two new question types, both available however you take the exam:

Case or scenario: a detailed situation, such as a business, a project or a decision, sometimes with graphs or charts. You then answer a series of questions based on it.
Graphic-based: you read a chart, graph, diagram or image and answer questions about it.

Multiple choice (single or multiple response) is still available everywhere. Matching, enhanced matching, point and click, and pull-down list questions appear only on computer-based exams at a test centre.

The break structure has changed too. Under the previous outline, the breaks came after questions 60 and 120. Now the first break comes after the case-study section, and the second about halfway through the independent questions. Once you start a break, you can’t go back to the previous section.

More agile and hybrid

The previous outline said about half the exam represented predictive approaches. The 2026 outline says about 40% of items are predictive and the other 60% are split between adaptive (agile) and hybrid approaches. All three approaches appear across every domain, not in one place.

What did not change

Difficulty and scoring: PMI says the new exam is not more difficult, just more relevant, and that the scoring method has not changed.
Where you test: you can still take the exam at a Pearson VUE test centre or online.
Core content: PMI says the core principles and approaches of the PMP exam remain the same.

Who is affected

Current PMP holders: not affected. PMI says your PMP remains valid, you don’t need to take the new exam or extra training, and renewal is still 60 PDUs in a three-year cycle.
Anyone testing from 9 July 2026: you sit the new exam, whenever you applied or started studying.
People part-way through older material: PMI’s advice is to keep going, but to review the 2026 content outline. If you bought PMI’s own legacy eLearning or exam prep tools, PMI says they stay available in the myPMI Learning Platform until 31 December 2026.
People who have not done their 35 training hours yet: PMI has announced that from 1 December 2026, hours from a live class will only count if the course is delivered by a PMI Authorized Training Partner, a China Registered Education Provider, or an eligible accredited academic program. Self-paced courses can still come from any organisation, and training completed before 1 December 2026 stays eligible.

How to adjust your study

This is our suggested approach if you started with material written for the old outline.

Download the 2026 outline first. Read all 26 tasks and their enablers. Use it as your checklist, because older material is organised around the old task list.
Give Business Environment real time. At 26%, it deserves about a quarter of your study. Focus on governance, compliance, change control, issues and impediments, risk, continuous improvement and organisational change.
Re-map what you already know. Risk, change control and governance haven’t gone away; they now sit under Business Environment. Stakeholders and communication now sit under People.
Lean further into agile and hybrid. With around 60% of items in those approaches, make sure you can reason through a hybrid scenario, not just a purely predictive one.
Practise reading scenarios and visuals. Get used to long case descriptions and to reading charts and diagrams under time pressure. Practise the full 240 minutes at least once, with the breaks.
Fill gaps on sustainability and value. Check you can apply sustainability in quality, compliance and risk decisions, and that you think in terms of outcomes and value, not only scope, schedule and cost.

Confirm the latest details on PMI’s new PMP exam page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. Try 10 free PMP practice questions: https://examcrest.com/exam/pmi-pmp/free-questions?utm_source=devto&utm_campaign=pmp-changes-devto

ServiceNow CAD Exam 2026: Domains, Weights and Study Plan

Sajeev PS — Wed, 21 Oct 2026 04:00:00 +0000

ServiceNow updated its Certified Application Developer (CAD) exam blueprint in January 2026. Here are the six official domains and their weights, how to divide your study time, what to build in a Personal Developer Instance, and the exam format and price as ServiceNow states them.

The six official domains

These come from ServiceNow’s Certified Application Developer Mainline Exam Blueprint, marked “Updated January 2026”.

Domain	Weight
Designing and Creating an Application	20%
Application User Interface	20%
Security and Restricting Access	20%
Application Automation	20%
Working with External Data	10%
Managing Applications	10%

For the full list of sub-topics, download the blueprint from the CAD learning path on ServiceNow University. You need to enrol in the path to get it.

How to divide your study time

Unlike the CSA, the CAD has no single dominant domain. Four domains carry 20% each, so together they make up 80% of the exam. If you have about 40 hours to study, a split that matches the weights looks like this:

8 hours each: Designing and Creating an Application, Application User Interface, Security and Restricting Access, and Application Automation
4 hours each: Working with External Data, and Managing Applications

Move extra time to the domains you find hardest. Scripting is worth extra practice, because the blueprint lists it under the user interface, security and automation domains.

What to practise in a Personal Developer Instance

ServiceNow offers free Personal Developer Instances (PDIs) with admin-level access. Build one small scoped application and use it to cover the blueprint’s sub-topics:

design a data model with tables and modules, inside an application scope
customise forms, and write and debug client-side and server-side scripts
use a Record Producer as the application’s user interface
create and test Access Controls, and use GlideSystem methods to script security
build automation with Flow Designer, application properties, events, scheduled script executions and script includes
import a CSV or Excel file, and integrate with an external data source using REST
manage source code with the ServiceNow Git integration

A PDI is reclaimed after 10 days without activity on the Developer Site, so save your work regularly by committing it to source control or creating update sets.

Format, prerequisites and price

Length: 60 questions in 90 minutes
Question types: multiple choice (single answer) and multiple select. Multiple-select questions tell you how many answers to choose, and there is no partial credit
Delivery: Pearson VUE, at a test centre or online with OnVUE
Price: ServiceNow University lists the exam at 300 learning credits and also accepts credit card. The blueprint says completing instructor-led training includes one free exam attempt
Booking window: once you register, you have 90 days to schedule and complete the exam, and exam fees are non-refundable

ServiceNow University lists no prerequisite for the CAD exam, so you do not need the CSA first. The blueprint recommends six months of hands-on experience developing applications in ServiceNow, and three courses: Welcome to ServiceNow, Scripting in ServiceNow Fundamentals and Application Development Fundamentals.

The pass mark and keeping your certification

ServiceNow does not publish the CAD pass mark. The blueprint says each question is worth one point and your total is compared with a predetermined cut score that “is not publicly shared and is not always 70%”. Aim to score comfortably across every domain in your practice.

To keep the certification after you pass, the blueprint says you complete annual maintenance (delta) exams and pay the yearly Certification Maintenance Program fee.

Always confirm the details on ServiceNow University’s CAD exam page before you book.

I run ExamCrest, where this post first appeared. If you're preparing for CAD, there are 10 free CAD practice questions, each with the answer and a full explanation.