If you’re wondering if you should pursue an IT certification, but you’re unsure which to obtain, consider the IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) framework as it is well-known and has been implemented in many organizations today. Professionals who have an ITIL certification are pursued by companies because these certifications reflect your industry expertise. This month, we’ll focus on the ITIL® v3 Foundation certification for our certification profile.
What is ITIL®v3 Foundation?
The ITIL certifications are broken down into five levels: Foundation, Practitioner, Intermediate, Expert, and Master. Each level recognizes a deeper knowledge of the ITIL framework and how you can apply its principles in your company. Certification at the Foundation level, gives you a basic understanding of the ITIL terminology, concepts, lifecycle stages, and key elements (AXELOS). ITIL has released a few versions and the current version is known as v3.
Global Knowledge conducted a research survey this past fall and revealed the top 15 paying certifications. The ITIL® v3 Foundation certification claims the #14 spot on the list with an average pay of $99,869. IT professionals who are in entry-level roles, such as Service Deck and IT Support Technicians, Application, Hardware, and Network Support Specialists, would benefit from being ITIL Foundation certified.
It’s noted on Simpli Learn that the ITIL framework is predominantly used in the IT industry, but it has also been adopted in other industries such as healthcare and higher education.
Certification Process
There is only one exam you need to pass to be ITIL Foundation certified, and while training courses are available, you can study the material on your own and sign up for an exam near you. There are also free practice tests found online that help prepare you for the exact format of the exam. It’s timed at 60 minutes and consists of 40 questions. You must answer 65% of the questions correctly to pass. The cost of taking the exam varies based on which institution you take the exam through; however, the average cost is $150 before tax.
If you’re interested in re-certification, you will only need to pass one exam from the current version of the ITIL Foundation; in this case v3 is the latest version. On the other hand, if you’re interested in being certified at one of the higher levels, you will need to pass one exam at the corresponding tier.
Take a look at our other certification profiles here!
Posted By: Jaclyn Roman