8/11/2004 -- Microsoft and recently announced that two new exams for the Microsoft Office Specialist 2003 track are now live: Word 2003 Expert and Excel 2003 Expert.

The release brings the total number of Office Specialist 2003 exams to four, with Word Core 2003 released in Oct. 2003 and Excel Core 2003 released earlier this year.

All Office Specialist exams are hands-on tests where candidates perform tasks in an application environment. With the 2003 track of exams, the exam environment switched from using the actual applications to a simulated environment.

Certiport, the company that produces Microsoft's Office Specialist exams, told CertCities.com earlier this year that this change would result in the 2003 track of exams rolling out more slowly than previous tracks. More 2003 exams -- such as Access and Outlook -- are forthcoming, Certiport said recently, although no official release dates have been announced.

Office Specialist exams are available through Certiport testing centers worldwide. To find a testing center near you, go here.

For more information on the Office Specialist certification program, go to www.microsoft.com/mcp or www.certiport.com. -Becky Nagel