12-08-2011, 10:32 AM

Hi,

I would like to obtain certification for Mac software and hardware. I am new to mac products. What are the certification available to take? Also, where is a good place to obtain study material so I can study on my own. As for taking the exams, is it similar to Comptia's exams? Do I schedule it at an authorized exam location?

12-09-2011, 03:37 AM

Unless you're quite wealthy, you're not going to be able to do this on your own. The exams are rather expensive and with the exception of the MacTech conferences, there's not many places that can help you.

The basic study tools are books you can buy from Amazon (look for them by Author: Apple), but the way you are really going to pass the tests is by hooking up with an authorized repair facility who will take you on as an apprentice (and will often pay for the tests if you are promising).

12-09-2011, 08:53 AM

To be certified to do Mac troubleshooting and hardware repair, the certification you want is the ACMT, or Apple Certified Macintosh Technician. To acquire the cert, you have to pass two exams: the Mac Service Certification Exam and the Mac OS X v10.6 Troubleshooting Exam. Each one costs $150 to take unsubsidized, and you can find excellent training books for the Troubleshooting Exam published by Peachpit (Apple does not sell training books for these exams). Pretty inexpensive in the grand scheme of things, really. And the exams are very similar in format to the CompTIA certification exams in that you have to go a Prometric tsting center and answer a bunch of multiple choice questions on a computer screen.

That said, proper training materials for the hardware exam are going to be difficult to come by in your position: the official ones cost $300+, and the only training materials I know of outside of that require you to already be working for an Apple Authorized Service Provider with access to GSX. However, I can tell you right now that aside from the service manuals, the only things on that exam that you will need that are not necessarily common sense are related to ESD safety and technician safety when working on a CRT monitor. As it turns out, those are also the two areas in which getting even one question wrong will cause you to fail the entire exam regardless of how well you do otherwise. I'm inclined to say that you'd stand a good chance at passing the exam just by going through all the service manuals and reading up about those two topics in great detail.

All this said, the grade of job this specific certification will get you is pretty much always entry level, and employers looking for people in those positions will be fine if you don't have the certification, since they can just get you on the GSX portal where you will have access to the real training materials - and I think it's more or less impossible to read through those and not pass the exams. Just get a job as a technician with an IT company that does some Apple service, get on their GSX portal, learn what you need, take the exams on their dime, and then leave for whatever you actually want to do.

You can read up on the certification in more detail here: http://training.apple.com/certification/acmt

12-09-2011, 09:54 AM

Originally Posted by Discerptor

I can tell you right now that aside from the service manuals, the only things on that exam that you will need that are not necessarily common sense are related to ESD safety and technician safety when working on a CRT monitor. As it turns out, those are also the two areas in which getting even one question wrong will cause you to fail the entire exam regardless of how well you do otherwise.

Actually, this makes sense. ESD's a serious concern, and only growing as circuits become denser. That and, lemme tell ya, there's serious risk of injury discharging the capacitors in a CRT.

So for case #1, you can ruin hardware while working on it if you don't follow ESD procedures, and case #2 is a workers comp claim waiting to happen.

12-09-2011, 10:51 AM

Originally Posted by Dysfunction

Actually, this makes sense. ESD's a serious concern, and only growing as circuits become denser. That and, lemme tell ya, there's serious risk of injury discharging the capacitors in a CRT.

So for case #1, you can ruin hardware while working on it if you don't follow ESD procedures, and case #2 is a workers comp claim waiting to happen.

I meant they weren't common sense knowledge, i.e. I wouldn't expect the average person to get all the questions right without ever having read related material.

12-09-2011, 11:33 AM

Originally Posted by Discerptor

I meant they weren't common sense knowledge, i.e. I wouldn't expect the average person to get all the questions right without ever having read related material.

Oh yea, most people have no idea how sensitive components are, or how dangerous that cap is. To be honest, it's pretty esoteric in most people's lives.

12-09-2011, 11:41 AM

People still repair CRTs? I can't imagine that an Apple tech ever sees one.

12-09-2011, 11:47 AM

Originally Posted by BrianLachoreVPI

People still repair CRTs? I can't imagine that an Apple tech ever sees one.

I haven't cracked one open in about.. ohhh... 15-20 years?

I don't miss it.

12-09-2011, 11:48 AM

Originally Posted by Dysfunction

I haven't cracked one open in about.. ohhh... 15-20 years?

I don't miss it.

Hehe - I'd be willing to bet most Apple Techs wouldn't have a clue if one walked into their shop. Most of them are probably half your age (maybe mine too)

12-09-2011, 11:51 AM

Originally Posted by BrianLachoreVPI

Hehe - I'd be willing to bet most Apple Techs wouldn't have a clue if one walked into their shop. Most of them are probably half your age (maybe mine too)

I think we're the same age

12-09-2011, 11:51 AM

Originally Posted by Dysfunction

I think we're the same age

Hmmm...you just look older

12-09-2011, 11:53 AM

Originally Posted by BrianLachoreVPI

People still repair CRTs? I can't imagine that an Apple tech ever sees one.

Apple maintains ability to do authorized repairs/part replacements on all Macintosh computers until five years after the discontinuation date, at which they become classified as vintage. Due to buyer protection laws in the state of California, Apple maintains ability to do authorized repairs/part replacements on all Macintosh computers purchased in the state of California until seven years from the date of discontinuation, at which point they are classified as obsolete.

Apple stopped selling the last eMac model in September of 2006, so until pretty recently, eMac repairs were still fair game everywhere. They are still fair game in California. And I can tell you from my experience as an ACMT that there are still a lot of these present in public schools. That said, it's the technician safety section in general (in addition to the ESD safety section) you can't get anything wrong on - CRT safety just happens to be a large part of it right now.

12-09-2011, 11:59 AM

That's true. I forgot about the schools - they are loaded with them still.