12/5/2000 -- ProsoftTraining.com announced today that Novell will be merging its Certified Internet Professional (CIP) certification with Prosoft's Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW) certification.

According to the official Web site promoting the merger (www.cip2ciw.com), those with a CIP credential can "instantly" become dual certified in CIW -- i.e., no additional testing required.

Depending on the level of CIP certification achieved, a corresponding level of CIW certification is awarded. Click on the above link, then scroll down and click on "Certification Mapping Chart" to see how the two programs correspond.

"Novell's decision to merge the CIP program was based on several factors, including the strong growth of the CIW program and close alignment with Novell's own Net services strategy," said Debbie Maucieri, vice president of Novell Education, in a printed statement.

"The CIW i-Accelerate program is the perfect accompaniment to a Novell certification," Julie Rowe, Prosoft's vice president of products and programs, said in a printed statement. "It credits Novell professionals for their high levels of achievement and gives them the additional prestige of CIW certification. These dual-certified individuals will add tremendous value to employers running corporate and e-commerce systems."

According to Novell and Prosoft, CIPs and candidates will be officially notified of the merger via postal mail in the next few weeks. In the meantime, CIPs and candidates are encouraged to update their contact information and enroll in the CIP2CIW program at the URL above or by calling toll-free (800) 228-1027 in the U.S. or (602) 275-7700 from other areas.

Novell and Prosoft also announced that they will cross-map all their respective certifications to make it easier for professionals to attain dual certification. As part of that effort, Novell and Prosoft are making available a package of incentives for CIPs as well as the more than 150,000 current Certified Novell Engineers (CNEs) and Master CNEs (MCNEs). The package includes preferred access to CIW certification through Prosoft's i-Accelerate program (announced earlier this year) as well as special pricing on CIW exams. For more information on these programs, visit www.ciwcertified.com or www.novell.com. -B.N.

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