2/25/2003 -- Citrix Systems yesterday announced a new certification, the Citrix Certified Integration Architect (CCIA), that will debut later this year.

According to Karl Liebman, director of Citrix education, the CCIA is a complementary certification to the company's current high-level title, the CCEA. Citrix decided to develop this new title in response to customer demand for an architect-focused credential, Liebman said.

"The CCEA's key focus is on building, testing and administration," Liebman explained. "Our customers wanted something that would focus on the analysis and design process."

CCIA Project Manager Mark Carter said that the CCIA will consist of three exams: two proctored and one lab exam.

The lab exam will be the first hands-on exam for Citrix's program. "It's modeled after Cisco's CCIE," Carter explained.

According to Carter, details regarding the lab exam's content, length and pricing are still being decided. It is expected to be available at select locations throughout North America by the end of the year.

As for the proctored exams, the first, #610 Citrix Core Technologies and Architecture, is currently in beta and scheduled to debut in March. The second proctored exam is still in development — no release date has been set. Both will be available through Prometric testing centers.

The CCIA will have two prerequisites: Citrix's CCA title, and one "design-focused" certification exam from another certification program, such as Microsoft's. The list of exams that will fulfill this requirement has yet to be released.

When the CCIA debuts later this year, it will focus on Citrix technologies used in a Windows environment, Liebman said. There are no plans at this time to develop a track for those using MetaFrame for Unix.

The first of four training courses for the CCIA, CTX-6100: Citrix Core Technologies and Architecture, is currently available through Citric Authorized Leaning Centers (CALC). The rest will debut throughout the year. Training is not required to obtain the CCIA. For more on Citrix training, visit the company's new training locator at http://apps.citrix.com/calclisting/calc.asp.

More detailed information on the CCIA will be published on Citrix's Web site as the development process continues. For more information on Citrix certification, click here.