GET EVERY CODE YOU WANT: MTA 98-361: How I cracked MTA 98-361 in 17 Days!

MTA 98-361: How I cracked MTA 98-361 in 17 Days!

Yes! I literally cracked MTA 98-361 with 17 days of planned preparation 😁. It feels great to be a Microsoft Technical Associate in Software Development Fundamentals. The best part is I can show off the following badge on my Blog, LinkedIn , Resume, etc...

MTA 98-361 Certification Badge

Let's break down the process I followed so that it may help you.

Why MTA 98-361 ?

Let me tell you that passing MTA 98-361 is not a prerequisite to become a Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP). However I recommend to give it a shot so that you get the hang of Microsoft Certifications. Moreover, if you are starting a career in technology, it is one of the best entry level certifications. Make no mistake by thinking that it would be really easy to crack it. You will have to go for a planned preparation to make sure you crack it.

Who should go for MTA 98-361 ?

Here's what Microsoft suggests:

Image Source: Microsoft

What all can I expect in MTA 98-361 exam ?

Well! That's clearly stated on the Microsoft 98-361 certification website as shown below:

Image Source: Microsoft

Link - MTA 98-361 Official Website

How did I prepare ?

Please note that we have to adhere to the NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) from Microsoft. Hence you'll not find exact questions and answers (or Brain-Dumps) here. However, if you sincerely follow the stated guidelines, you'll hit the bull's eye for sure.

I already had some past experience in C#. I must say it was helpful in speeding up the preparation process. Even if you don't have any past experience in C#, don't worry! All you have to do is just go through a basic tutorial of C# such as this on on Microsoft Virtual Academy - C# Fundamentals for Absolute Beginners . The mantra to success is to cover all the topics/ concepts mentioned on the MTA 98-361 Website.

Alright! Here's the 17 day plan I followed:

Database Development (Day 1 - Day 5): I started by gaining knowledge about Database development as I had very little exposure to Databases. It's good to master the things you know less about first. Please note that you should concentrate on SQL Server mainly. Important concepts include Normalization, Writing/ Understanding SQL queries, Connection Pooling, etc...

I will give an exhaustive list of resources/ references at the end of this article so that you find all the things at one place.

Web Applications (Day 6 - Day 9): Next, I concentrated on Web Applications. Here, the idea is that you understand about ASP.NET applications. Note that ASP.NET is a vast topic and difficult to master in a short period. Hence it's important that you cover at least the topics mentioned on the MTA 98-361 Website e.g. Page life cycle, State management, etc... On the MTA 98-361 website, just expand the topic to view the concepts you should cover as shown below:

Image Source: Microsoft

Also, there are certain links/ preparation resources under each topic as shown below:

Image Source: Microsoft

It is highly recommended that you go through all the suggested Preparation resources. It may be time consuming if you are a total newbie but definitely worth the effort.

Understanding Programming (Day 10 - Day 12): I took on the following three topics in these three days:

Understanding Core Programming
Understanding Object Oriented Programming
Understanding General Software Development

You can expect many theoretical concepts in these sections and that's why it is easy to score here :)

Desktop Applications (Day 13 - Day 15): This was personally the easiest part for me to prepare. We have to mainly look into Windows Services, Store Apps and Console Apps. Again, I want to emphasize that try to cover the topics mentioned on the MTA 98-361 website first. Then you can go into more details as per your interest and time at your disposal.

Miscellaneous (Day 16 - Day 17): In the last two days, I used to randomly google stuff about MTA 98-361 and swallow everything possible. I would say that I kind of brushed up/ touched upon all the important topics once again in these two days. The best example is this PDF I found out: Certiport Sample MTA 98-361 PDF

Resources / References

Lastly, here is the list of resources/ references that can be used in preparing for MTA 98-361:

There may be more resources that you'll may find out. I request you to mention them in comments so that we can extend this list and others can also benefit from the same.

I am also planning to make a complete Youtube Series on Preparing for MTA 98-361. I will update this post with the same once that is done.

What next after MTA 98-361 ?

This is an obvious question that comes into mind. The next exam you may want to take would be Exam 70-483. Read how I Cracked MCP 70-483 in 37 Days. Else I would recommend that you explore the possible Microsoft certification paths at following links:

I really hope that has been informative. Please share your certification experiences so that others can benefit too :)

Happy Coding!