Apple on Wednesday announced two new Apple Professional Training courses — Apple Device Support, and Apple Deployment and Management — along with accompanying examinations for each certification.
What’s more, the tech giant has also redesigned its training program and moved it entirely online.
“Apple Professional Training helps anyone with an interest in technology — whether they are changing careers or upping their skill set — pursue high-paying IT jobs with certifications that will stand out to potential employers,” said Susan Prescott, vice president of Enterprise and Education Marketing at Apple.
“We believe deeply in inclusion in technology, so the new courses are self-paced and freely available, and we are working to ensure ability to pay isn’t a barrier to earning Apple certification.”
Both of the new courses are available for free. However, you’ll need to take an exam after completing either course to get certified, and that exam costs $149 USD right now.
The Apple Device Support course comprises around 14 hours of learning material that covers the tools, services, and best practices used by a technical coordinator, help desk professional, or service provider at an organization that relies on Apple products such as iPhones, iPads, and Macs. Once you pass this course, you become an Apple Certified Support Professional.
The Apple Deployment and Management course entails an estimated 13 hours of material to teach you how to configure, manage, and secure Apple products using mobile device management (MDM).
This course trains you to develop a deployment strategy for Apple products in an enterprise setting, use Apple Business Manager and Apple School Manager, and configure devices with an MDM solution. Passing the exam at the end of this course awards the Apple Certified IT Professional certification.
A certification or two from Apple definitely won’t hurt an IT professional’s chances of being hired by an organization, especially considering Apple’s big plans to dominate all parts of the enterprise sector. According to a report from earlier this year, analysts believe Apple is poised to see even more growth in the enterprise segment.
Both of the new courses in Apple’s IT series, and more, are available starting today at training.apple.com.
