I’m retaking it again this May. In less than 30 days to be exact. So I’m utilizing this blog now as my resource center.
The exam I failed is for the Certified Force.com Developer.
The Salesforce.com Certified Force.com Developer certification exam encompasses the declarative capabilities of the Force.com platform. To achieve this credential, a candidate must successfully complete the exam. This exam is a prerequisite to the Salesforce.com Certified Force.com Advanced Developer exam.
The Salesforce.com Certified Force.com Developer exam is intended for an individual who has experience developing custom applications on the Force.com platform, including practical application of the skills and concepts noted in the exam objectives below. The candidate has successfully completed the Building Applications with Force.com and Visualforce course (DEV 401) from salesforce.com or an Authorized Training Center or possesses equivalent experience and knowledge. The candidate:
:: May not necessarily manage or configure a standard Salesforce CRM application, but has experience with the Salesforce user interface and data model
:: Has broad knowledge of the declarative functionality of the Force.com platform, can describe various use cases for this functionality, and can use this functionality to create applications using the standard Salesforce interface
:: Has a good understanding of the capabilities of the declarative functionality and can identify what application design specifications require the use of Apex or Visualforce
:: Is capable of designing and developing reports/analytics
:: Can identify appropriate solutions to specific business challenges/process requirements by applying knowledge of these features in the current version of the Force.com platform
:: Has invested time in studying the materials from the course and the additional required study materials provided by salesforce.com
So this are what I need to focus on. I’ll be updating this post to link to several new post I would be creating related to my preparation.
Exam Outline are the following:
5% Applicaton Design
List and describe components of an application
Describe the model-view-controller design paradigm
Given a scenario, determine whether sufficient information is available to plan/build/design an application5% Overview of Force.com Platform
List and describe the steps required to design and deploy a successful application built using the declarative capabilities of the Force.com platform
List and describe the building blocks of an application provided by the Force.com platform32% Data Model
Describe how to create a functional data model for a business application
Given a scenario, select the features required to create a functional data model for a business application
Describe the properties and implications of choosing one object relationship type over another and distinguish among relationship types
Given a scenario, distinguish among object relationship types, describe how to create relationships, and determine which relationship should be recommended
List and describe the features used to set permission and data access in a custom app
Given a scenario, select the appropriate feature (e.g., profiles, defaults, roles) to provide appropriate permissions and data access in a custom app
List and describe optional (Salesforce -enabled) features for managing the application (e.g., create audit fields, encrypted fields, multicurrency)15% User Interface
List and describe the components of any Force.com application user interface (e.g., tabs, applications, detail pages, list views)
Given a scenario, determine the capabilities and constraints of the declarative framework for building a user interface (e.g., what can and can’t be done in a page layout)
Describe use cases for how Visualforce can extend the user interface in the declarative framework and when to do so
Describe the capabilities and functionality of Force.com Sites.23% Business Logic
List and describe how to create formulas, validation rules, and workflow rules
Given a scenario, determine which Force.com feature to use to solve a business requirement and/or describe how to apply the solution
List and describe the capabilities of the Force.com approval processes
Given a scenario, select the appropriate features of Force.com approval processes to satisfy business requirements
List and describe the features of the Force.com platform for debugging and monitoring automated business processes
Describe use cases for extending business logic through Apex10% Data Management
List and describe the capabilities and constraints of import wizards
List and describe the capabilities and constraints of API-based tools for managing data
List and describe the functions of the Force.com data loader
Describe use cases and functions of external IDs and upsert
Given a scenario, determine appropriate uses of the GUI and command-line interface for the data loader
Describe the characteristics of Force.com record IDs10% Reporting and Analytics
List and describe capabilities and constraints of reports and analytics of the Force.com platform
Given a scenario, determine methods for analyzing and displaying data
Download the full Salesforce Certified Developer Guide Spring ’10 here.
The link you provide for the study guide is one I’ve found before, but it’s only a partial. It only has a couple of chapters (9 and 10), and is really intended as a supplement to the master. It’s the master I can’t seem to find. Any idea how to get my hands on chapters 1-8?
Thanks Paulo!
Hey Scott, the link Paulo provided is the complete version of the Developer Study Guide. Look closely and you’ll notice that sections 1-8 detail the exam, recommended prep, sample questions, etc. The comprehensive guide that you are looking for is called “Force.com Fundamentals” and is available here: http://wiki.developerforce.com/index.php/Force_Platform_Fundamentals. This book is contains all you need to know for the Dev 401 exam with a brief exception. Come back to the study guide link that Paulo provided for any updates or new release information which can be found in Section 9, Supplemental Study Material.
Chris