New Atlassian certification designations - coming soon! 🎉

[#1]

Hello, Training & Certification Community! We understand how eager many of you are to learn about the upcoming replacement for the Atlassian Certified Expert (ACE), so I'm thrilled to share some details about what’s coming.

We're excited to announce that we are replacing the retired ACE program with new designations for Atlassian Specialists and Atlassian Experts. This new program will create multiple tracks for users and admins to demonstrate advanced proficiency with Atlassian products and solutions by earning and combining related certifications.

What makes this new approach truly special is that candidates will have the chance to earn Specialist designations by obtaining Atlassian Certified Associate (ACA) certifications. Additionally, there will still be an Expert designation for those who achieve Atlassian Certified Professional (ACP) certifications.

Our favorite part? The Specialist designations will align with the Atlassian system of work by focusing on areas such as Agile DevOps (ADO), IT Service Management (ITSM), Teamwork foundations, the Atlassian Cloud Platform, and more. This opens up exciting opportunities for growth and recognition for a wider range of roles and teams.

Initial Release

For the initial release, there will be two paths to earn a designation:

Atlassian Certified Administration Expert - Designation for candidates holding any four of these certifications.

• Jira Admin for Data Center

• Jira Admin for Cloud

• Jira Service Management Project Admin

• Org Admin

• Jira Project Admin for Data Center

• Jira Project Admin for Cloud

Atlassian Certified Agile DevOps Specialist - Designation for candidates holding these four certifications that relate to agile DevOps practices using Atlassian solutions.

• Jira Essentials

• Board Configuration

• Cloud Foundations

• Confluence Essentials

So when will this be live? The new feature is being actively developed and tested in CertMetrics. The plan is to go live in November 2024, and there will be an additional Community post shared when the designations are available.

Here is a sneak peek at how designations will appear in the candidate portal, in the card and list views.

FAQs

• Will additional paths be coming soon? Yes, in fact, the certification team is developing a new ACA for JSM agents to be launched in the coming weeks, which will enable the ITSM Specialist designation to go live soon after.

• Will additional certifications be added to the initial two paths? Yes, as the certification catalog grows, there will be additional certifications added to each path.

• What counts as “holding” a certification? This means that the certification has not reached its suspension (inactive) date. Certifications are valid for 24 months, after which a three-month grace period is provided for renewal before the certification expires. It's important to renew your certification(s) before they suspend to ensure they contribute to your designation(s). For further information on renewing your certification(s), refer to How to Maintain Your Certification.

• I hold the ACP-EE certification that was granted to candidates that held the ACE standing in the past; is there any change to that certification? No, you will still hold the ACP-EE certification, and as a reminder, that certification does not expire.

The Atlassian certification team is excited about these specialized designations, which will enable candidates to earn a higher level of recognition, boost their careers, and prove their broad expertise in Atlassian solutions.

                                         

UPDATE: Hello everyone! I wanted to share that designations are now LIVE!!!

Please see this post to learn more, 🎉 Designations Are Now Live 🎉 

[Jimmy Seddon]

Awesome!  Thanks for the information @Ree Kent!

[Laurie Sciutti]

👏🏼👏🏼

[Fernando Eugênio da Silva]

Love it the new design. Thanks for sharing @Ree Kent 

[Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM]

Updated jackets?

[Ree Kent]

@Shawn Doyle - ReleaseTEAM There will be swag! More to come. 

[Dietmar Doerschlag]

Hello @Ree Kent  thank you for this information, this is really exciting.

Is my understanding  correct that for those who hold the 4 required certifications (e.g. ACP-120 - Jira Admin for Cloud; ACP-420 - JSM Project Admin;  ACP520 - Cloud Org. Admin; ACP-620 - Jira Project Admin) will see the ACE designation automatically appear on the CertMetrics profile in November, and there is no submission required for that? I'll be looking forward to it!

[Kai Krause]

Hi, 

Great News and great job. 🎉🎉🎉

[Kishan Sharma]

Exciting news, thank you @Ree Kent 

[Rebekka Heilmann _viadee_]

Very Excited for the Release after being blessed by the opportunity to provide Feedback early on!

[Stephen_Lugton]

This is an interesting change, look forward to hearing more about it @Ree Kent 

[Tomislav Tobijas _Koios_]

Looking good! Cheers for sharing! 🙌

[Ree Kent]

Hello @Dietmar Doerschlag ,You will receive the designation automatically. No submission is needed.

[Chance Webb]

So exciting!!! 

[Dietmar Doerschlag]

Thanks Ree. That is great news. Looks like Christmas arrives a bit earlier in 2024. Cheers!

[Robert Wen_Cprime_]

Awesome news!

[Chris Rogers]

Glad to hear it.  Thanks @Ree Kent  :D

[Andy Gladstone]

I really like how these new paths are aligned with the core competencies that Atlassian Admins specialize in. The two tiered approach to Specialists and Experts is a welcome change from the previous system and will make the certification path and opportunities accessible to more admins and users interested in pursuing a certification to display their skills and further their careers.

[P_D_ Foerster]

Great, thank you for the information! Now I can prepare for my last remaining exam :) 

[Jakub Szczygielski]

Looking good, thank you for update.

[Shikha Verma]

Great news!
We're excited about this. Thank you for the update!

[zachery ward]

Jira Admin for cloud

[Michael Krass]

Once released, I'll focus on the Certified Agile DevOps Specialist

[Ankit Srivastava]

Exciting news, Thank you @Ree Kent 

[Mark Mierkowski]

Sweet. I think the Jira Admin for Cloud for me. But having separate certs for business users Jira Project Admin.  Should lead to more self service in the Jira ecosystem.  

[Harrison Ponce]

Thank you!