Staying Salesforce certified
If you are a Salesforce admin, you probably already know you’ve got to maintain your certification three times a year to make sure you are on board with the latest release of Salesforce. With all the hard work you put into getting certified in the first place, it would be a shame – and a waste of money – to let your certifications expire.
The Salesforce seasonal releases contain an immense number of new features, and honestly, no-one has time to learn them all while working full-time. If you are working with Salesforce on a daily basis though, it’s even more important to keep your knowledge on it at a high level. That’s why Salesforce has made it easy for all certified users to catch up on the most important new features and maintaining their certs. Instead of doing scheduled tests on the Webassessor, all maintenance updates are now held in Trailhead.
How to access the Salesforce maintenance exams
It’s as simple as this:
- Go to https://trailhead.salesforce.com/en/credentials/verification.
- Type your Webassessor email in the box on the right.
- Check your inbox or other folders for new email from certification@salesforce.com.
- See your current credential status. If you are behind on your maintenance exams, there will be a direct link to it in the email.
- Click on the module link, and follow the instructions to complete your maintenance.
- You’re done!
The next time you check your certification status using the link provided, you’ll get an email which states that your credential status is up-to-date. You’ll need to give it one business day to get updated.
Best Practices for Maintaining your Salesforce Certifications
Regularly check the Certification Maintenance Schedule
Salesforce maintains a handy overview on Trailhead which will show you the upcoming release cycles, their availability and due date, as well as the modules that are available. Make sure you mark the dates from the Certification Maintenance Schedule and book enough time for yourself to study up and pass the exams before the due dates. Do check the schedule at regular intervals, as dates are subject to change.
| Release Cycle | Date Available | Due Date* | Maintenance Modules Available |
| Spring '20 | 15 April 2020 | April 2021 | Administrator B2C Commerce Developer CPQ Specialist Einstein Analytics and Discovery Consultant Marketing Cloud Email Specialist |
| Summer '20 | 26 August 2020 | August 2021 | Heroku Architecture Designer Pardot Specialist Accredited B2B Commerce Administrator |
| Winter '21 | 9 December 2020 | December 2021 | Marketing Cloud Administrator Platform App Builder Platform Developer I Designer maintenance module Accredited B2B Commerce Developer |
- Review your Maintenance List
From Trailhead you can also review all the available modules and their units. It’s good to regularly take a look at these, as you will know better what you are up against. All the modules are clearly described and have an estimate of the time it will take to complete. This makes it convenient for you to plan your studies for stress free certification management.
Familiarize yourself with the Expiration Policy
Salesforce is strict when it comes to passing exams by the deadlines. Make sure you are fully aware of their Expiration Policy and which conditions apply to you personally.
