Exam Profile 77-882: Excel 2010
- Exam Details / Trouble Spots
- Preparation Hints / Recommended Study Resources
- Exam Objectives / Where to Go from Here
Exam 77-882 is an entry level exam that is designed to quantify a candidate’s expertise with Microsoft Excel 2010.
Exam Details
- Number of questions: Microsoft does not disclose the number of questions on the exam, but many of those who have taken the exam have reported seeing about 20 questions.
- Type(s) of questions: Primarily multiple choice.
- Passing score: The Microsoft Web site does not disclose the passing score for this exam. Typically the passing score for Microsoft exams is 700 / 1000. However, some who have taken the exam have reported that the passing score may be as low as 550.
- Time limit: Microsoft does not disclose the time limit for this exam, but it is estimated to be about 50 minutes.
- How to Register: Certiport
Trouble Spots
Although not an expert level exam, Exam 77-882 requires candidates to be familiar with the majority of the Excel 2010 feature set. While learning so many features can be challenging, the thing that gets a lot of people into trouble on this exam is that the exam requires candidates to have some mathematical knowledge.
Not only are you expected to know how to create various types of formulas, you are expected to know how to enforce precedence within those formulas. For example, you need to know that in a mathematical operation items within a set of parenthesis are always processed first. You also need to know that according to the order of operations, multiplication and division operations are always processed before addition and subtraction if multiple operations occur within a single formula.
While there is no denying that the exam places a heavy emphasis on formulas (and all things related) it is important to remember that you will also need to know how to apply visual elements such as cell formats, sparklines, and views.