In September 2018 Microsoft announced it was moving to role-based certifications, and the MCSE (Microsoft Certified Solutions Expert) is on its way out. (Update: Microsoft retired all remaining MCSA, MCSD and MCSE exams on January 31, 2021.)
I have been in IT long enough to remember when an MCSE was the credential that separated people who knew Windows Server from people who just thought they did. It carried real weight. Hiring managers knew what it meant. Candidates knew what it took to earn it. It was one of those credentials that had genuine market recognition built up over two decades of consistent presence in enterprise environments.
What Replaced the MCSE?
And then Microsoft looked at the cloud, looked at how their certification program was structured, and decided to blow it up and start over. The new direction is role-based certifications. Instead of technology-centric tracks organized around products, you now have certifications organized around what a person actually does on the job. Azure Administrator. Azure Solutions Architect. Azure Developer. Security Engineer. The idea is that the credential should map to a job title that exists in the real world, not to a product version that will be superseded in eighteen months anyway.
Is this a smart move? Honestly, yes. The old structure had a real problem. An MCSE: Cloud Platform and Infrastructure certified that you understood a specific set of Microsoft technologies at a specific point in time. But hiring managers were increasingly asking questions that the traditional cert structure did not answer cleanly. Can this person actually administer Azure? Can they design solutions? Can they handle security? The role-based model answers those questions more directly.
What Happens to Your MCSE Now?
So what does this mean for you practically, right now in early 2019?
If you held an MCSE and you are worried about it losing value, take a breath. Microsoft has not deleted your credential from the internet. It remains on your transcript and it still signals that you have a solid foundation in Microsoft technologies from an earlier era. What you should not do is put it on your resume as a current credential without context if you are applying for roles that require modern Azure skills. The distinction matters to people who know what they are looking at.
What If You Were Mid-Way Through an MCSE?
If you were in the middle of pursuing an MCSE when Microsoft pulled the rug, I genuinely sympathize. The answer is to pivot to the role-based path that most closely matches what you were working toward. If you were going for MCSE: Server Infrastructure, the Azure Administrator Associate is the natural landing spot. If you were working toward MCSE: Cloud Platform and Infrastructure, look at the Azure Solutions Architect Expert track. The conceptual overlap is real even if the exam content is different.
Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ-104) Boot Camp
Instructor-led, with the exam voucher included.
Which Microsoft Certification Should You Start With?
If you are starting fresh in 2019 and asking which Microsoft certification to pursue, the role-based path is the clear answer. The AZ-100 and AZ-101 exams for Azure Administrator Associate are already available, and the market has been responding to those credentials well. Hiring managers understand what an Azure Administrator is. It maps to actual job postings in a way that MCSE never quite did in its later years.
Microsoft has published the full role-based certification roadmap at Microsoft Learn and the detail is worth reading through. The way the certifications stack, from Fundamentals through Associate to Expert, makes the progression logic clear in a way the old MCSE tracks never did.
The death of the MCSE feels like a bigger deal than it probably is in practice. The underlying skills have not become less relevant. Microsoft infrastructure and Azure are everywhere in enterprise IT and that is not changing. The credential path has just been restructured to reflect how people actually use those skills. Adjust your study plan, stay on the current track, and do not mourn the MCSE longer than a long weekend.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you still earn an MCSE?
No. Microsoft retired all remaining MCSA, MCSD and MCSE exams on January 31, 2021, after first setting June 30, 2020 and extending it. Microsoft now offers only role-based and specialty certifications in their place.
Does an MCSE you already earned expire?
No. Microsoft’s policy says MCSA, MCSD and MCSE certifications do not expire. Retired credentials move from the active to the inactive section of your transcript two years after retirement.
Which exam do you need for Azure Administrator Associate in 2026?
As of 2026, the Azure Administrator Associate requires a single exam, AZ-104, which replaced the AZ-100 and AZ-101 pair mentioned in this 2019 article. ExamNav offers an AZ-104 boot camp.
How long do Microsoft role-based certifications last?
Role-based associate and expert certifications are valid for one year. You renew them for free by passing an online assessment on Microsoft Learn before the expiration date.
What do you need for the Azure Solutions Architect Expert today?
You need the Azure Administrator Associate certification plus exam AZ-305, Designing Microsoft Azure Infrastructure Solutions. The AZ-300 and AZ-301 exams that existed in 2019 are no longer part of the path.
Related reading
- Azure Role-Based Certs: Microsoft's Smartest Move in Years
- AWS vs Azure Certs: Picking the Right Cloud Horse in 2025
- Microsoft Azure Administrator (AZ-104) boot camp
Brian Rhoades is a Senior VMware Instructor and IT veteran with more than 15 years of hands-on experience in virtualization, systems engineering, and cloud infrastructure. He has trained thousands of IT professionals to confidently work with VMware vSphere, vSAN, and NSX, and has authored multiple books and study guides for outlets across the industry. Brian has a habit of being somewhere new every few weeks, which if you've ever tried to pin down a good VMware instructor, explains a lot.
