2012 Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office
The popularity of the competition is a reflection of the global footprint Office has–more than 750 million users worldwide. Students who have put in the extra effort to master it will be increasingly productive in their schoolwork and in the workplace.
American Fork, UT (PRWEB) September 21, 2011
Certiport (http://www.certiport.com), the official test delivery solution provider for the global workforce and academic markets, today announced the launch of the 2012 Certiport Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office. This popular technology skills event provides a platform for students to showcase their expert skills using Microsoft Office tools, giving them an upper hand in today's competitive academic and professional marketplace.
Students will compete on Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint tracks for the Office 2007 and 2010 system. The 2012 contest also marks the introduction of the 2010 Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) PowerPoint exam for the first time in the history of the competition. With a 49 percent increase in the number of students who participated in 2011, Certiport expects more than 300,000 students from over 50 countries to compete for the title of “World Champion.”
Details about the Certiport Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office:
http://www.officecompetition.com
Entering its eleventh year, countries from around the world will host local competitions to determine country and regional representatives based on exam scores and completion times. The deadline for all qualifying exams will be June 15, 2012. Selected finalists will then compete in the 2012 World Championships which will be held in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 29–31, 2012. The top three winners in each category will receive scholarship prizes for $5,000, $2,500 and $1,000 respectively.
"This event is becoming very popular among students worldwide, and I enjoy watching these kids really master Office and have fun competing,” said Takeshi Numoto, Corporate Vice President, Microsoft Office Division, Microsoft Corp. “The popularity of the competition is a reflection of the global footprint Office has – there are more than 750 million Office users worldwide. Office is a powerful product, and these students who have put in the extra effort to master it will be increasingly productive in their schoolwork and ultimately in the workplace.”
The Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) certification was created to meet the growing demand for individuals to leverage the full features and functionality of Microsoft Office Systems. Students who earn a MOS certification demonstrate proficiency using the newest versions of the world's foremost desktop computing applications including Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
"The Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office has been gaining incredible momentum over the years, and the student competitors are incredibly passionate about preparing for the exams and representing their countries,” said Ray Kelly, Chief Executive Officer, Certiport. “The competition has become a technology olympics as students demonstrate their tremendous skills and compete against the best of the best. Certification is a valuable tool for students – it helps them to be college and career ready. It also proves that they have desirable skills and gives them confidence in using these applications more fully than most other users in the world.”
Participants who outperform their peers to make the final round of the competition generally have perfect or near-perfect exam scores and completion times well below the allotted examination time. Certiport recently added a new practical component to the Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office, requiring contestants in every category to take the standard MOS exam, and also recreate an existing Word, Excel or PowerPoint document from a provided, printed example.
“The Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office allows students to connect with peers from around the world and compare their impressive level of know-how with others, while having fun at the same time,” said Lutz Ziob, General Manager, Microsoft Learning. “We are thrilled to see the tremendous dedication and support from teachers who encourage, train and support the participating students. Without their ongoing involvement, this competition would not have the same level of performance and success.”
Current students who pass a qualifying exam and are enrolled in an approved, accredited learning institution are eligible to compete. The student must be between the ages of 13 – 22 on June 15, 2012.
View Certiport's promotional video for the 2012 Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office. Learn the rules for eligibility in the 2012 Worldwide Competition on Microsoft Office at http://www.officecompetition.com.
About Certiport
Certiport is the leading provider of certification exam development, delivery and program management services which include practice tests via MeasureUp® delivered through an expansive network of over 10,000 Certiport Authorized Testing Centers worldwide. Certiport manages a sophisticated portfolio of leading certification programs including: the official Microsoft Office certification program, the Microsoft Technology Associate certification program, the Adobe® Certified Associate certification program, the CompTIA Strata™ IT Fundamentals, the Autodesk Certified User certification program, the Intuit QuickBooks Certified User certification program and the Internet and Computing Core Certification (IC³®). Certiport reliably delivers over two million tests each year throughout the secondary, post-secondary, workforce and corporate technology markets in more than 150 countries and 25 languages worldwide. For more information, please visit http://www.certiport.com or follow Certiport on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/certiport.
"Certiport," "IC³" and "MeasureUp" are registered trademarks of Certiport, Inc. in the United States and other countries. "Microsoft" is either a registered trademark or trademark of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.
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