Author: Corinne Hoisington, Professor of Information Systems Technology, Central Virginia Community College
As the pandemic resets major work trends, company leaders are rethinking their workforce performance and experience strategies. If an employee is working from home or from the office, the company leaders want to be assured that they are proficient in Microsoft Office.
Microsoft Office certifications give individuals a competitive hiring edge in one or more Microsoft Office applications and help them improve their quality, skills and expertise in diverse Microsoft Office functions.
A recent study of 14,000 Office Specialists and 1,200 of their supervisors clearly demonstrated that Office Specialists are viewed by their supervisors as more competent, productive and credible because of their certification status.
MOS Certification Exams: Associate Level
Learn the fundamentals of various Microsoft platforms to begin your MOS certification journey.
Microsoft Word (Word 365 and Word 2019)
This exam measures competency in the correct application of the principal features of Word by creating and editing documents for a variety of purposes and situations. The exam covers the ability to create and maintain professional-looking reports, multicolumn newsletters, résumés and business correspondence.
Microsoft Excel (Excel 365 and Excel 2019)
This exam measures competency in the fundamentals of creating and managing worksheets and workbooks, creating cells and ranges, creating tables, applying formulas and functions and creating charts and objects. The exam covers the ability to create and edit a workbook with multiple sheets and use a graphic element to represent data visually. Workbook examples include professional-looking budgets, financial statements, team performance charts, sales invoices and data entry logs.
Microsoft PowerPoint (PowerPoint 365 and PowerPoint 2019)
This exam measures competency to create, edit and enhance presentations and slideshows, including the ability to create and manage presentations, insert and format shapes and slides, create slide content, apply transitions and animations and manage multiple presentations. Presentation examples include professional-grade sales presentations, employee training, instructional materials and kiosk slideshows.
Microsoft Outlook (Outlook 365 and Outlook 2019)
The exam covers the ability to enhance professional correspondence, create calendars and schedule appointments. Application examples include coordinating building resources, sending messages for marketing campaigns, planning staff meetings and assigning meeting action items. Candidates are expected to demonstrate the correct application of the principal features of Outlook and complete tasks independently.
MOS Certification Exams: Expert Level
Learn what each exam covers and the competencies you’ll earn with expert-level MOS certification.
Microsoft Word Expert
This exam measures competency in creating and managing professional documents for a variety of specialized purposes and situations. The exam covers the ability to customize Word environments to meet project needs and to enhance productivity. Examples of expert-level documents include a business plan, a research paper, a book, a specialized brochure and a mass mailing.
Microsoft Excel Expert
This exam measures competency in creating, managing and distributing professional spreadsheets for a variety of specialized purposes and situations. The exam covers the ability to customize Excel environments to meet project needs and to enhance productivity. Expert workbook examples include custom business templates, multiple-axis financial charts, amortization tables and inventory schedules.
Microsoft Access Expert
This exam measures competency in database design principles. The exam covers the ability to create and maintain Access Database objects including tables, relationships, data entry forms, multilevel reports and multi-table queries.
MOS 365 and MOS 2019 (each exam is 50 minutes):
- Word – 35 Questions
- Excel – 35 Questions
- PowerPoint – 35 Questions
- Word Expert – 25 Questions
- Excel Expert – 25 Questions
- Access – 31 Questions
- Outlook – 35 Questions
SAM MOS Practice Exams
SAM offers practice exams for the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) exams, which mimic the format of the actual MOS exam and cover both the associate- and expert-level exams. Office textbooks from Cengage are mapped to the MOS Exam Certifications and the SAM MOS Practice Exams help students prepare with a simulated exam environment. This helps students reduce test anxiety and provide practice directly tied to the MOS objectives.
Schedule a Practice Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Exam
Schedule a SAM MOS exam to help prepare students for the real MOS exam. The MOS exam is the leading certification to validate Microsoft Office skills.
To schedule an MOS exam:
- Click SAM Assignments on the Navigation bar.
- Click the Exams tab
- Click the MOS Exams option at the top.
- The MOS exams display.
- Select the scheduling options you want.
- Click Save.
To schedule an MOS exam in MindTap:
- Open your Office textbook in MindTap.
- Click Show Hidden to display all modules.
- Expand the Career Readiness module.
- Expand the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Resources.
- Assign the various practice resources.
Get on the Path to Certified
MOS Certifications are a powerful asset as you begin your career search or develop your professional skills. Earning a MOS certification will boost your employability, set you apart from the competition and help attract potential employers. Take advantage of the resources in your MindTap course to practice and prepare for the MOS Exams. Watch the video to learn more.
To share this video with your students, use this link: https://video.cengage.com/watch/Xy35ACZX9CMDTcfawxhgq5