Update your skills - take the new Google Advertising Fundamentals exam

As part of our ongoing efforts to improve the training that we provide to Google Advertising Professionals, we have updated and improved the certification exam and learning centre in 21 languages.

The new Google Advertising Fundamentals exam will be more rigorous and strategy-oriented and today replaces the old one-size-fits-all Google Advertising Professionals exam. From today, new entrants and those looking to renew their expired exam, will be directed to the updated exam. Our teams have been working hard on the new curriculum and exam to equip advertising professionals with useful, relevant training to manage AdWords campaigns.

Here’s a summary of the changes:

• We're testing a wider range of AdWords knowledge and the passing score is higher than the previous exam - 85% vs 75% on the previous test.

• There’s an increased focus on priority topics such as ads quality and account optimisation and an increase in testing focus on best practice and application of features and functionality

• New content includes improved coverage of Google Content Network targeting options as well as coverage of new AdWords features such as Ad Extensions.

Another key benefit is that advertising professionals will now own their exam pass as an individual, which will follow them if they move companies. Although employers can get credit at the Company level for an employees pass by inviting employees to join their company account, employees can leave at any time and take their exam pass with them.

Accessing the exam is slightly different so here’s some pointers:

• Access the new exam through a Google Advertising Professionals account - sign in to your existing account or create an new account and then navigate to the My Exams tab.

• Locate your candidate ID in My Exams and then follow the links to either the Learning Centre or if you’re ready - the Exam Testing Site.

• You will be required to enter your candidate ID on our testing site so that we can identify your results and credit them to your Google Advertising Professionals account.

The new exam is now available in 21 languages - Arabic, Brazilian Portugese, Chinese simplified, Chinese traditional, Czech, Dutch, English UK, English US, French, German, Hebrew, Hungary, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Spanish, Turkish and Ukrainian.

Just like the previous exam, those based in countries where their language is not covered will be able to choose to study and test in whichever available language they prefer. To change the language, visit the testing site or the learning centre and change language in the drop-down on that page.

Our goal was to bring the materials and exam up-to-date to ensure that they cover all current products and best practices to help run and manage AdWords campaigns and to respond to feedback from our users that they wanted to take their exam passes with them as they moved between companies. Stay tuned for more changes to come as we focus on improving the overall programme.

Congratulations to those of you who've taken and passed the new exams and good luck to all test takers.

Posted by Matthew Davison, Account Strategist