Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Status in Word 2016 Achieved!

Posted on March 23, 2018 Updated on March 25, 2018

At 9:15am On 3/23/18 I attended the Certiport certification lab presented by Certiport at the 2018 NCCIA Conference located at Asheville-Buncomb Technical Community College in Asheville, NC.

Tyler Dockery Achieves Microsoft Office Specialis status with Word 2016

Microsoft Office Specialist status in Word 2016 Achieved!

I chose to attempt this exam because of my success with the interactive PowerPoint certification program I had taken earlier. During the course of this examination I had to clearly establish my ability to perform a number of Word tasks, such as creating and managing documents, formatting text, paragraphs and sections, creating tables and lists, applying references and inserting and formatting objects.

The straightforward Word evaluation challenges individuals to complete a comprehensive project that depicts real-world functionality with project and standards-based outcome testing. Probably the most difficult thing about this product certification was the unrelenting amount of projects required to achieve success, each with multiple courses to completion and numerous tasks which needed to be completed to receive the material. Worst still, was that this timed examination required all the materials to be completed in a timely manner, as one might find in the workplace. Not knowing a particular function might easily eat up time during the examination and stop you from being able to complete numerous projects in the time required. I was pleased with my progression.

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The Official Breakdown of Subject Matter

Certiport’s official exam study page for this test: Word 2016: Core Document Creation, Collaboration and Communication; Exam 77-725 outlines the following fundamentals will possibly be covered:

Create and Manage Documents

1.1 Create a Document

1.1.1 Create a blank document

1.1.2 Create a blank document using a template

1.1.3 Open a PDF in Word for editing

1.1.4 Insert text from a file or external source

1.2 Navigate Through a Document

1.2.1 Search for text

1.2.2 Insert hyperlinks

1.2.3 Create bookmarks

1.2.4 Move to a specific location or object in a document

1.3 Format a Document

1.3.1 Modify page setup

1.3.2 Apply document themes

1.3.3 Apply document style sets

1.3.4 Insert headers and footers

1.3.5 Insert page numbers

1.3.6 Format page background elements

1.4 Customize Options and Views for Documents

1.4.1 Change document views

1.4.2 Customize views by using zoom settings

1.4.3 Customize the Quick Access toolbar

1.4.4 Split the window

1.4.5 Add document properties

1.4.6 Show or hide formatting symbols

1.5 Print and Save Documents

1.5.1 Modify print settings

1.5.2 Save documents in alternative file formats

1.5.3 Print all or part of a document

1.5.4 Inspect a document for hidden properties or personal information

1.5.5 Inspect a document for accessibility issues

1.5.6 Inspect a document for compatibility issues

Insert and Format Text, Paragraphs, and Sections

2.1 Insert Text and Paragraphs

2.1.1 Find and replace text

2.1.2 Cut, copy and paste text

2.1.3 Replace text by using AutoCorrect

2.1.4 Insert special characters

2.2 Format Text and Paragraphs

2.2.1 Apply font formatting

2.2.2 Apply formatting by using Format Painter

2.2.3 Set line and paragraph spacing and indentation

2.2.4 Clear formatting

2.2.5 Apply a text highlight color to text selections

2.2.6 Apply built-in styles to text

2.2.7 Change text to WordArt

2.3 Order and Group Text and Paragraphs

2.3.1 Format text in multiple columns

2.3.2 Insert page, section, or column breaks

2.3.3 Change page setup options for a section

Create Tables and Lists

3.1 Create a Table

3.1.1 Convert text to tables

3.1.2 Convert tables to text

3.1.3 Create a table by specifying rows and columns

3.1.4 Apply table styles

3.2 Modify a Table

3.2.1 Sort table data

3.2.2 Configure cell margins and spacing

3.2.3 Merge and split cells

3.2.4 Resize tables, rows, and columns

3.2.5 Split tables

3.2.6 Configure a repeating row header

3.3 Create and Modify a List

3.3.1 Create a numbered or bulleted list

3.3.2 Change bullet characters or number formats for a list level

3.3.3 Define a custom bullet character or number format

3.3.4 Increase or decrease list levels

3.3.5 Restart or continue list numbering

3.3.6 Set starting number value

Create and Manage References

4.1 Create and Manage Reference Markers

4.1.1 Insert footnotes and endnotes

4.1.2 Modify footnote and endnote properties

4.1.3 Create bibliography citation sources

4.1.4 Modify bibliography citation sources

4.1.5 Insert citations for bibliographies

4.1.6 Insert figure and table captions

4.1.7 Modify caption properties

4.2 Create and Manage Simple References

4.2.1 Insert a standard table of contents

4.2.2 Update a table of contents

4.2.3 Insert a cover page

Insert and Format Graphic Elements

5.1 Insert Graphic Elements

5.1.1 Insert shapes

5.1.2 Insert pictures

5.1.3 Insert a screen shot or screen clipping 5.1.4 Insert text boxes

5.2 Format Graphic Elements

5.2.1 Apply artistic effects

5.2.2 Apply picture effects

5.2.3 Remove picture backgrounds

5.2.4 Format objects

5.2.5 Apply a picture style

5.2.6 Wrap text around objects

5.2.7 Position objects

5.2.8 Add alternative text to objects for accessibility

5.3 Insert and Format SmartArt Graphics

5.3.1 Create a SmartArt graphic

5.3.2 Format a SmartArt graphic

5.3.3 Modify SmartArt graphic content

Conclusion

Microsoft Office Specialist certification is the only official Microsoft-recognized certification for Microsoft Office globally. All in all, this test was a great deal harder than I suspected, but then again it was a Specialist Designation. To succeed I truly needed to have an in-depth understanding of the Microsoft Word environment and the ability to complete tasks independently based on written instructions only. This included demonstration of the correct application of  principle features in Word 2016 by creating and editing 2-to-3-page documents for a variety of purposes and situations. Document examples included professional-looking reports, multi-column newsletters, résumés, and business correspondence.

MOS 2016 certification exams seem to introduce a performance-based format for improved testing of a candidate’s knowledge, skills and abilities using the MOS 2016 programs. MOS PowerPoint 2016 exam task instructions generally did not include the command name as in previous versions. For example, function names were avoided, and were replaced with descriptors instead. This meant I had to understand the purpose and common usage of program functionality in order to successfully complete the tasks in each of the projects, and there were many projects to be completed in the time allowed.

The materials had an excellent amount of in-depth knowledge requirement,s and while I suffered a bit with the knowledge of managing multiple papers at once, I was able to break through with a score in the mid 800s. It was a good challenge, and I felt my skills were pushed, especially since this was a time-sensitive examination.