SAS Certification – A World of Opportunity!
Certification Magazine’s 2009 salary survey revealed a 9% increase in average salaries compared to 2008. They conclude that “IT has been widely recognized as a growth industry – even in this climate.” They also discovered that, “a full 96% of respondents from the top five countries with the highest salaries said they were certified.”

By the close of 2009, a total of 26,296 SAS credentials had been awarded. The graph below shows the global dispersion of SAS credential holders.

Congratulations to our latest SAS Certified credential holders!

UK Innovative SAS Certification Prep Program Short-Listed for IT Award
SAS UK’s SAS Professionals Convention has recently been short-listed for the Institute of IT Training’s (IITT) “Innovation in Training Services” award. The July 2009 SAS Professionals Convention featured a novel and highly effective preparatory program for SAS Certification combining social media, Live Web courses and collaborative study groups. 

Featured in the July 2009 edition of SAS Global Certification News, SAS UK’s pioneering approach succeeded in doubling the usual pass rate for the exams.

As part of the submission for the award, SAS UK interviewed a number of participants in the pioneer prep program. Here are some snippets from what they said:

• Abdul Owdud, MRM London: "Certification has given me a lot of confidence..."
• Riana Smit, London Fire Brigade: "I received great support and training via the online classes..."
• Jorge Ribeiro, Provident Financial: "I decided to become SAS certified to enhance my career..."

What's New for Base Pogrammers in SAS®9.2?
The SAS Certified Base Programmer for SAS®9 exam has been updated to include enhancements and new functionality that are available in SAS 9.2.

New topics:

• Accessing an Excel workbook.
• Proc APPEND.

Topics that have removed:

• Proc REPORT.

These are the main differences. You'll find that there are also some new functions and new ODS destinations, etc. that could come up. You can find a full topic list on the exam Web page.

Base Programming

• Retrieve Names of Files That Are Stored in a Zip File Without Unzipping
  This Samples & SAS Notes topic provides details and full code to list names of files in a zipped file…click on the link to access the file or cut and paste the full code into your program editor.
  

• Reading Delimited Text Files into SAS®9
  This 7-page paper delves into the new and improved options for using SAS 9.2 informats to read files and offers a troubleshooting section to help with common problems.

Advanced Programming

• How Can I Use Robust Macro to Write a Delimited File?
  This Samples & SAS Notes topic will give you the means to generate a delimited file and also provide information on creating a CSV file with ODS.

• Determine the Open ODS Destinations Programmatically
  Check out this Samples & SAS Notes topic to gain knowledge on how SAS 9.2 gives you the capability to programmatically query which ODS destinations are open. 

Predictive Modeling

• The Next Generation: SAS® Enterprise Miner™ 6.1
  This 10-page white paper, written by Wayne Thompson and David Duling, discusses an array of new features in SAS Enterprise Miner 6.1, including the integration with SAS 9.2, improved reporting and more.

• SAS® Enterprise Miner™ 5.3 Extension Nodes: Developer’s Guide
  This guide (191 pages) delves into the functionality of a SAS Enterprise Miner installation. Read how extension nodes can be developed to provide custom solutions.

Combining and Modifying SAS Data Sets: Examples, Second Edition
Completely updated for SAS 9.2, this book presents examples that show solutions to common programming tasks that involve combining, modifying, and reshaping data sets.

Output Delivery System: The Basics and Beyond
This example-driven book starts with syntax and progresses to more complex techniques and custom styles updated for SAS 9.2.

Andreas Mangold
HMS Analytical Software GmbH
Germany
As managing director for an IT analytics consulting firm in Germany, Mangold shares his views on the importance of SAS Certification and training.

Tell us how SAS credentials are empowering you and your organization to achieve success.  Send your story along with your contact information to sascertificationnews@sas.com.

SAS® Global Forum 2010
April 10
Seattle, Washington
SAS Global Forum is the premier event for SAS professionals worldwide. Registered attendees can receive a 20% discount on the SAS Certification exams and training courses held in conjunction with this conference. Arrive in Seattle a few days early and take advantage of this great opportunity! 

In addition to exams being administered by Prometric, numerous SAS Certification test events are held at local SAS offices throughout the year.

BELGIUM
All exams offered

• Tervuren – March 26

BRAZIL
Programming exams offered

• Sao Paulo – Feb. 26 and March 27

DENMARK
Programming exams offered

• Copenhagen –March 25 and June 17

FRANCE
Programming and Predictive Modeling exams offered

• Vincennes –Feb. 19

Base & Advanced certification preparation courses (starting dates)

• Vincennes  – Feb. 5, April 6 and June 18

GERMANY
All exams offered

• Heidelberg – Feb. 12 and June 7
  

INDIA
Base Programming exam

• Bangalore – Jan. 29 and March 11
• Mumbai – Jan. 15, Jan. 29, Feb. 15 and
  April 29

Advanced Programming exam

• Bangalore – Mar. 11
• Mumbai – Jan. 11 and April 29

Predictive Modeling exam

• Bangalore – Jan. 29, March 11 and April 9
• Mumbai – Jan. 29, March 11 and April 9

ITALY
Base Programming review training and exam (starting dates)

• Milan – Feb. 8 and May 17
• Rome – Feb. 22 and May 5
  

Advanced Programming review training and exam (starting dates)

• Milan – March 10 and June 30
• Rome – March 24 and June 7

Predictive Modeling exam

• Milan – April 23 and June 18
• Rome – April 23 and June 18

KOREA
Advanced Programming review training classes (starting dates)

• Seoul – Feb. 22

All exams offered

• Seoul – Feb. 2, March 24, April 28, May 26 and June 23

NORWAY
Programming exams offered

• Oslo – March 22

POLAND
Programming and Predictive Modeling exams offered

• Warsaw – March 26 and May 25
  

SWEDEN
Programming exams
(Predictive Modeling exam available upon request at time of registration)

• Stockholm – Feb. 26 and May 21

UK
Base and Advanced Programming exams

• Glasgow – Feb. 5 and June 11
• Manchester – April 1
• Marlow – March 1 and May 5

Predictive Modeling exam

• Marlow – Feb. 12, March 26, April 23 and June 18

UNITED STATES
All exams offered

• Cary, North Carolina – Feb. 12, April 23 and June 18
• Dallas, Texas – May 17
• New York – Feb. 12 and March 26
• Seattle (SAS Global Forum) – April 10

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