{"id":257573,"date":"2026-10-28T15:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T22:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/?p=257573"},"modified":"2026-10-28T15:12:49","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T22:12:49","slug":"preparing-for-your-next-certification-could-start-with-your-visual-studio-subscription","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/preparing-for-your-next-certification-could-start-with-your-visual-studio-subscription\/","title":{"rendered":"Preparing for Your Next Certification Could Start with Your Visual Studio Subscription\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Blog<\/a><\/p>\n

Are you thinking about earning a Microsoft certification to help advance your career, build on your existing skills, or meet new requirements at work?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

If so, you may already be wondering where to start. Which courses, labs, and hands-on exercises will help you prepare? How much time will it take to find the right resources, and how much will that training cost?<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Here’s something you may not be aware of:\u00a0Eligible<\/span> Visual Studio Subscriptions already include many of the learning resources you need to prepare for your next certification.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Visual Studio subscribers can access training from Cloud Academy and Pluralsight, including certification-focused courses, structured learning paths, and hands-on\u00a0labs that can help you build your\u00a0skills and prepare for certification exams.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Let’s look at a few ways you can put those benefits to work.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Interested in AI-powered applications? <\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

If <\/span>Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Apps and Agents Developer<\/span> is a certification you’re considering, your subscriber benefits\u00a0can provide a useful starting point preparing for the required <\/span>AI-103 exam.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

For developers looking to build AI skills, preparing for AI-103 offers an opportunity to learn how to develop generative AI applications, integrate AI services, and create intelligent agents and workflows.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pluralsight offers AI-103-aligned learning resources that can help you work through relevant concepts and build your knowledge of AI applications and agents.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"AI<\/a><\/p>\n

Preparing for Azure administration?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

If you want to be a <\/span>Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate, your Visual Studio Subscription learning benefits can help you get\u00a0ready\u00a0for the necessary AZ-104 exam.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Whether you’re new to Azure administration or looking to strengthen your existing skills, preparing for AZ-104 can help you develop practical knowledge of virtual networks, storage, compute resources, and identity management.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Cloud Academy and Pluralsight offer AZ-104 training, helping you focus on relevant administration skills through\u00a0in-depth coursework and learning experiences.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Cloud<\/a><\/p>\n

Hoping to develop a higher level of cloud architecture expertise?<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

If you\u2019re Interested in becoming a Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, preparing for the required AZ-305 exam can help you strengthen your skills in designing Azure solutions for infrastructure, security, data storage, and business continuity. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Pluralsight and Cloud Academy offer training aligned with the AZ-305 exam requirements, providing additional resources to study Azure architecture concepts as you work toward your certification goals.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Note: To become a Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert, you must earn the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate certification.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Put what you’re learning into practice<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

Courses are a useful starting point, but applying what you’ve learned can help reinforce new skills.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Your Visual Studio Subscription provides opportunities to do both. Pluralsight and Cloud Academy offer guided labs, technical courses, and practical learning experiences that can help you work with Azure technologies as you study. Beyond just providing content to study, they provide hands-on, practical application\u00a0labs that allow you to grow your skills actively, with added support from AI powered learning assistants.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

And if your Subscription includes <\/span>Azure monthly credits, you can use eligible Azure services to explore configurations, test ideas, and practice skills in a development environment. These opportunities can help you move beyond\u00a0just reading about a technology and help you actually start working with it.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Start preparing for your next certification with your Subscription benefits<\/span><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n

These are just several examples of the opportunities your\u00a0Visual Studio Subscription provides. If you’re considering\u00a0furthering your career,\u00a0honing your\u00a0technical skills, or meeting new professional requirements, you have a solid starting point through your Subscription benefits. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Visit the Visual Studio Subscriptions portal<\/a> to activate your eligible Cloud Academy and Pluralsight benefits and start preparing with\u00a0learning resources aligned to your certification goals. Begin\u00a0making progress toward your next certification today with the learning paths and hands-on resources you already have.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Note: Learning benefit availability, eligibility, access duration, and course selection vary by Visual Studio Subscription. Specific training content may change or may not be included in every subscriber benefit offering. Certification exams and exam fees are separate from the learning benefits described here unless otherwise specified. Visit <\/span><\/i>Professional and Technical Credentials and Certifications | Microsoft Learn<\/span><\/i><\/a> for more information on certifications and requirements.<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Are you thinking about earning a Microsoft certification to help advance your career, build on your existing skills, or meet new requirements at work?\u00a0 If so, you may already be wondering where to start. Which courses, labs, and hands-on exercises will help you prepare? How much time will it take to find the right resources, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":216051,"featured_media":257592,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[155],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-257573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-visual-studio"],"acf":[],"blog_post_summary":"

Are you thinking about earning a Microsoft certification to help advance your career, build on your existing skills, or meet new requirements at work?\u00a0 If so, you may already be wondering where to start. Which courses, labs, and hands-on exercises will help you prepare? How much time will it take to find the right resources, […]<\/p>\n","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/216051"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257573"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":257617,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257573\/revisions\/257617"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/257592"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/devblogs.microsoft.com\/visualstudio\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}