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DevOps Engineer Expert Certificate Prerequisites: One is being phased out

Kaleb B 20 Reputation points
2026-05-21T20:28:11.6666667+00:00

Sometime in the next couple of months, I would like to get the DevOps Engineer Expert Certificate. I can see that the prerequisites are:

The Azure Developer Associate is being retired and replaced with the Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate certificate very soon.

Does that mean I should instead achieve the Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate instead?
Will that count as a valid prerequisite for the DevOps Engineer Expert Certificate?
If I achieve the Azure Developer Associate before July 31st, what happens if I take the DevOps Engineer Expert Certificate test after July 31st?

Thanks!

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AI answer

2026-05-21T20:28:28.8433333+00:00

For Microsoft Certified: DevOps Engineer Expert, the documented prerequisite remains:

  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate or
  • Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate

The available context does not state that Microsoft Certified: Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate is an accepted prerequisite for DevOps Engineer Expert.

From the current DevOps Engineer Expert page, the prerequisite is explicitly described as Azure Administrator Associate or Azure Developer Associate, and the supporting blog posts reiterate the same requirement. No replacement prerequisite is mentioned.

Regarding timing:

  • The context specifies only that, as a prerequisite, either Azure Administrator Associate or Azure Developer Associate is required; it does not describe what happens if Azure Developer Associate is retired or how long it will continue to count after retirement.
  • It also does not specify any date-based rules (for example, what happens if Azure Developer Associate is earned before a certain date and DevOps Engineer Expert is taken after that date).

Because the provided information does not cover how retirement of Azure Developer Associate interacts with DevOps Engineer Expert prerequisites or whether Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate will be accepted, no further details can be given from this context.

References:

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Answer recommended by moderator

Julian Sharp 25,551 Reputation points
2026-05-22T21:35:39.4866667+00:00

When the Azure Developer Associate certification is retired it will still be a valid prerequisite for the Azure DevOps Engineer certification for a period of time before being removed, however there is no date as to when it will be removed.

The Azure AI Cloud Developer Associate certification is currently in beta and when it is goes live, it will be added as a prerequisite for the Azure DevOps Engineer certification.

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  1. Kaleb B 20 Reputation points
    2026-05-21T20:34:09.6+00:00

    I was unaware that it only required 1 prerequisite which solves the overall issue, since I could just do the one that will not phase out.

    However, I am still interested in answering the last two questions for the rest of the community.

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