This week was the certification week for our cohort. The certifications planned were the Tableau Data Analyst and the Alteryx Core. In this blog, I will be sharing my take on the Tableau Data Analyst certification.
The Tableau Data Analyst Certification is a relatively new certification from Tableau. Until mid of January, it was on the beta version in which they had more questions and was for an extensive period of 150 minutes than the regular one. I had taken the regular version of the certification.
Exam Preparation:
According to Tableau, this certification is targeted at those with 6+ months of product experience. One should also note that this test also covers topics from Tableau Prep Builder and the very basics of SQL. The Exam Prep guide provided by Tableau is a very useful document to understand the topics that need to be prepared for the certification. On top of this, we had also worked on some practical exercises prepared by Andy. Also, have a look at the first impression from Tableau Tim on the beta version.
Initial Set up for the exam:
You have 30 minutes for the so-called Check-in before the exam. During this period you will have to run system requirements check on the computer. Followed by you will need to take your photo, photos of the front and backside of your valid id card, and the photos at a different angles of the room you take the exam and need to be uploaded. The complete process is very well explained and one should not usually face any issues. Ensure that the examination room is clear from all irrelevant things.
The Exam:
The exam is scheduled for 1 hour and 52 minutes and has 55 questions consisting of theory and practical sections. This is mentioned at the beginning of the exam. The exam was divided into three sections, two sections of theory and one of the practical questions. For the practical questions, you will be connected to a virtual machine and have to use the Tableau Desktop available in that machine to answer the questions. One should also note that it is allowed to revisit the questions only within each section. So before you leave a section ensure that you have answered all the questions of that section. Of course, you can bookmark a question that you would like to revisit later before you exit the section. Overall my experience was good.
I hope this blog provided you with some insight into the preparation and the exam in general. I wish you the best for your certification!