Earning Criteria

• Certified Solution Architects achieve Certification by successfully completing an interview by a Level 2 or Level 3 Certified Architect, based upon a comprehensive package of information describing project and other experiences.  The criteria used to decide on certification include all of the Skills mentioned above. At Level 1, Architects must be able to demonstrate these skills at an "applied" level, perhaps with support and mentoring.
• Certified Solution Architects must have at least 2 years of experience of contributing to the development of the architectural aspects of one or more  projects or engagements, possibly with support or mentoring, and must have participated in the role of Architect in two successful, complex architectural engagements or projects
• Certified Solution Architects have a variety of experiences that demonstrate their contribution to successful solutions to complex problems covering e.g., people, process, technology, management, and involving more than one dimension (products, technologies, services, processes, management, security, governance, etc.) and/or domain (Business, Data, Information, Application, Technology, Security, Integration, etc.)
• Certified Solution Architects have experience producing solutions that involve more than one type of technology and/or architecture.
• Certified Solution Architects must have demonstrated their appreciation of the impact of their architectural decisions on the realization and operation of a solution.
• A Certified Architect's experience must include the understanding and appreciation of the solution lifecycle from strategy, design, and implementation through to completion, enabling the them to produce solution designs that are successful.
• Certified Architects must have completed formal training in the discipline of architecture (i.e., methods/frameworks for designing and defining solution architectures), either through attendance at a taught course, or through self-study.
• Certified Architects must continually develop their technical and professional knowledge and skills in technology trends, vertical industry sectors, and architecture trends and techniques.
• Candidates must hold valid Open CA Level 1 (or 2)  Professional Communication and  Professional Development Milestone Badges plus two Open CA Level 1 Experience Profile Milestone Badges, at least one of which must be in Solution Architecture