Certification FAQs

Red Hat certification programs validate people's technical skills and knowledge. Organizations hiring employees, contractors, and consultants can look to Red Hat certifications as an input into hiring, assignment, promotion, and other management decisions. Similarly, individuals who earn these certifications benefit by having official, impartial validation of their skills and knowledge.

Performance-based testing is testing by doing — that is, by having examinees perform real-world tasks similar to those they must perform in a job role. Performance-based testing is also called hands-on or practical testing. All Red Hat certification exams are performance-based tests and Red Hat is the industry leader in IT performance-based testing.

A government-issued photo identification is required in most areas. Candidates in regions for which government-issued photo IDs are not available should contact their local Red Hat office or their authorized Red Hat training partner for guidance on acceptable forms of identification.

Individual Exam Sessions are a convenient alternative to Red Hat's open enrollment exams that are delivered in classrooms. A professional proctor observes an examinee remotely as an exam is taken on a secured system in a testing center. Learn more by visiting the www.redhat.com/training/certifications/exam-kiosk/.

Exam results are emailed to candidates within 3 US business days, assuming they have provided accurate contact information. Red Hat Certificate of Expertise Exam results are emailed within 3 US business days. Unfortunately, some mail servers mistakenly treat results emails as spam and filter them, which can cause delays. Candidates who do not receive their results within 3 US business days (3 for Expertise Exams) should contact Red Hat Certification at www.redhat.com/training/certification/comments.html

You will be issued an electronic certificate that will be attached to your results email.

A description of each certification, and its requirements, is provided at www.redhat.com/certification/.

RHCSA is intended as the "core" system administration certification offered by Red Hat. From the release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6, everyone who wishes to earn a system administration certification from Red Hat will begin by earning this credential. RHCE is intended as a senior system administration certification. In order to earn RHCE under Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 and after, one must earn RHCSA and pass a separate RHCE exam.

Having a current RHCE certification remains an eligibility requirement for taking any Red Hat Certificate of Expertise Exam, and thus it remains a requirement for upper-level credentials such as Red Hat Certified Architect, Red Hat Certified Security Specialist, and Red Hat Certified Datacenter Specialist.

Log into Red Hat Certification Central portal at www.redhat.com/wapps/certifications/.

Verify a Red Hat certificate is current by entering the certificate number at www.redhat.com/wapps/training/certification/verify.html.

View the re-certification policy page for detailed information on these policies.

Red Hat is now offering a new JBoss certification, Red Hat Certified JBoss Developer. This credential validates the core skills and knowledge that developers working on the JBoss Enterprise Application Platform must possess. The name of this credential illustrates a more broad change: all JBoss certifications will be renamed as Red Hat certifications and new certifications in the future will follow this convention. Renaming in this way will make it clear that developers and other IT professionals earning these credentials have participated in a program as rigorous as the more widely-known RHCSA and RHCE programs.

JBoss Certifications will be renamed as follows:

• JBoss Certified Application Administrator (JBCAA) will be retitled Red Hat Certified JBoss Administrator
• JBoss Certified Developer in Persistence will be retitled Red Hat Certificate of Expertise in Persistence
• JBoss Certified Developer in Seam will be retitled Red Hat Certificate of Expertise in Seam
• JBoss Certified Developer in ESB will be retitled Red Hat Certificate of Expertise in ESB

A Red Hat Certificate of Expertise is a credential that typically represents more specialized, advanced skills, often using a particular technology. Red Hat has offered these credentials as add-ons for Red Hat Certified Engineers for years. Combinations of these credentials lead to senior credentials such as Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA). By retitling and reorganizing the program, Red Hat will be able to create a similarly tiered program for JBoss professionals.

Anyone who has earned a JBoss certification will continue to hold a credential, although the name of the credential will be different as described above.