Certiport News
Certiport Announces 2017 Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Compete Worldwide in Microsoft Office 2013 and 2016
Salt Lake City, UTAH – December 12, 2016
Certiport (www.certiport.com), a Pearson VUE business, the leading test delivery solution provider for the global workforce and academic markets, today announces the 2017 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) World Championship, the most popular technology skills competition on Microsoft Office and the only one endorsed by Microsoft since its inception in 2002.
The 2017 contest marks the introduction of Microsoft Office Specialist 2016 exams to the competition. Students age 13 to 22 will compete in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint tracks for Office 2013 and 2016.
“Microsoft has proudly supported the MOS World Championship since its inception and we look forward to watching the high level of competition unfold every year,” said Anneleen Vaandrager, senior director of Worldwide Public Sector – Education at Microsoft. “While we are always impressed with the students and their mastery of Word, Excel and PowerPoint, what is even more amazing is their technology leadership at such a young age. The competitors we meet are leaders at their schools and many already have jobs – their peers go to them for help with Microsoft Office.”
The MOS Championship, entering its 16th year, will see countries from around the world host local competitions to determine country and regional representatives based on exam scores and completion times. The deadline for all qualifying exams is June 15, 2017. Selected finalists will then compete in the 2017 MOS World Championship held in Anaheim, California July 30 – August 2, 2017.
“Every year this competition grows — last year we had over one million exam entries and 150 student finalists from 48 countries competed in the final round of competition,” said Bob Whelan, president of Pearson Assessments. “Every student who enters is a winner because they have Microsoft Office Specialist certification to put on their resume. Certification aids employability and academic success and this competition encourages more students worldwide to take that extra step to validate their Microsoft Office skills.”
To participate, students must submit a passing score on the MOS Word 2013, Excel 2013, PowerPoint 2013, Word 2016, Excel 2016 or PowerPoint 2016 exams and attend an approved, accredited learning institution. Regional participation and availability varies by country. Further details can be obtained by contacting a local Certiport Solution Provider or MOSchampionship@pearson.com. The Microsoft Office Specialist certification is the only official Microsoft-recognized certification for Microsoft Office globally.
Participants who outperform their peers to make the final round of the World Championship generally have perfect or near-perfect exam scores and completion times well below the allotted examination time. The top three winners in each category will receive scholarship prizes for $7,500, $3,750 and $1,500, respectively.
A video highlighting last year’s winners and their worldwide press coverage can be found here, and the 2017 MOS World Championship promo video can be found here.
About Certiport
Certiport, a Pearson VUE business, is the leading provider of certification exam development, delivery and program management services delivered through an expansive network of over 14,000 Certiport Authorized Testing Centers worldwide. Certiport manages a sophisticated portfolio of leading certification programs including: the official Microsoft Office Specialist certification program, the Microsoft Technology Associate certification program, the Microsoft Certified Educator program, the Adobe® Certified Associate certification program, the Autodesk Certified User and Autodesk Certified Professional certification programs, the Intuit QuickBooks Certified User certification program, and the IC3 Digital Literacy certification. Certiport reliably delivers over three million tests each year throughout the secondary, post-secondary, workforce, and corporate technology markets in 148 countries and 26 languages worldwide. For more information, www.certiport.com or follow Certiport on Twitter at www.twitter.com/certiport.
"Certiport" and "MOS" are registered trademarks of Certiport, Inc. in the United States and other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
Press Contact:
Allison Yrungaray
Certiport
1.626.841.1640
allison.yrungaray@pearson.com