A Guide to the Xperience by Kentico Certified Developer Certification

Kentico has long provided developers with Certified Developer certifications for its previous versions, establishing a standard for showcasing expertise in the platform. This week, the same certification opportunity has been extended to Xperience by Kentico. These certifications are an excellent way to demonstrate your skills and proficiency in using Kentico to current or potential employers, clients, colleagues, and the broader professional community.

One of the perks of being a Kentico MVP is that I had the opportunity to provide feedback and get a sneak peek at the Xperience by Kentico certification. I'm proud to say that I have already passed and have the shiny certificate to prove it 🎉🏅

If you're familiar with the previous iterations of Kentico and their certifications, you'll be pleased to know that the format of the new certification remains very similar. There's no need to worry about a brand new format adding to any pre-test anxiety. Michael Eustace released a post highlighting tips on how to ace the previous Kentico Xperience 13 Certified Developer exam, which are still relevant to the new certification, check out his helpful article.

When starting the certification process, you're provided with a list of resources that could be useful to read and understand before you take your test. I always make sure I have the documentation open and an instance of a website up and running with the code available (in case I need to double-check my answers!).

First, you'll be presented with the usual sample test, which provides an opportunity to double-check the format before committing to start the clock on your real test. You'll see five questions, all with multiple-choice answers, and the sample test explains the reasons for the correct answers.

Now that you've taken the sample test, you'll have more confidence in the format and might feel comfortable proceeding to the actual test. If not, don't worry - you can pause here and do a bit more research and preparation first. Just make sure you don't click start until you're ready!

The real test consists of 50 multiple-choice questions drawn from various areas of the platform. You have 75 minutes to complete the test. I like to answer all of the questions first, even if I'm not sure of the answer, so that if I have time at the end, I can go back and spend more time figuring them out. You need to score 70% or higher to pass the exam. If you're close to passing and need a bit more assistance, with a score of 64%+, you can request a consultation from Kentico to help you get there.

In previous Kentico developer certifications, I sometimes felt that the answers were deliberately worded in a vague way to trick you into choosing the wrong answer, focusing more on your reading skills than testing your actual knowledge. With this new test, I didn’t have this feeling at all. The answers were much clearer and seemed designed to genuinely help you succeed, giving the impression that the goal was for you to pass!

I don’t want to give too much away about the questions, but some areas I was asked about included:

• Project planning
• Content modelling
• CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment)
• GDPR & data protection module
• Page builder (widgets, templates, etc)
• Data retrieval
• Extending the admin site (e.g., custom modules and extenders)
• Installing/upgrading an Xperience by Kentico instance

These topics cover a wide range of skills and knowledge necessary for effectively working with Xperience by Kentico.

Ready to take the test? There's a purchase link on the certification landing page. Good luck! 🤞

Conclusion

In summary, I highly recommend taking the certification now it is released. It’s a great way to validate your knowledge and might even highlight areas where you need to focus more if you find you don't know enough about a particular topic. I look forward to seeing everyone share their certificates on LinkedIn once they’ve passed!