Is Microsoft PL-300 exam hard? - Blog (2023)

Anyone who wants to begin their career in Microsoft Power BI has to go through the Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst (PL-300) exam. However, there have been several changes made to the new PL-300 exam after the DA-100: Analyzing Data with Microsoft Power BI exam. As we know, understanding Power BI’s workings and the methods that set inexperienced users apart from them was the main goal of the DA-100. The DA-100 exam has been replaced with a new exam, PL-300, as part of Microsoft’s redesign of its examinations, in which the old suite of exams was discontinued in favor of role-oriented certifications and a focus on Azure.

To understand the level of modifications, difficulty, and skill for the PL-300 exam, below we will be covering all the major areas to get clarity in passing this exam with a good score.

What is the Microsoft PL-300 Exam?

The Microsoft PL-300 exam is intended especially for:

• Power BI data analyst who uses available data and subject expertise to deliver meaningful insights.
• The Power BI data analyst determines business needs by consulting with significant stakeholders from a variety of sectors, cleans and transforms the data, and then utilizes Power BI to build data models.
• Furthermore, a Power BI data analyst with deployment and configuration capabilities enables others to execute self-service analyses and offers significant business value through easily comprehensible data visualizations.
• Candidates should also be comfortable writing DAX expressions and Power Query queries in order to pass this test.

Exam format:

In order to get a quick overview of the exam, it’s essential to be well-prepared for every certification exam. In other words, PL-300 exam details enable you to better understand the structure and format of the examination.

• Number of questions: 40-60 questions
• Exam cost: $165 USD
• Questions types: Multiple choice, build list, case studies, and additionally, it includes the introductory screens and instructions
• Passing score: 700
• Language: English, Japanese, Chinese (Simplified), Korean, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese (Brazil), Arabic (Saudi Arabia), Russian, Chinese (Traditional), Italian

Is the PL-300 exam difficult to pass?

It’s difficult to pass the exam unless you previously work for a company that has implemented Power BI and are familiar with the deployment and asset maintenance procedures. This indicates that if you like to analyze data and use Power BI to find and uncover data insights, this certification could be suitable for you. This is particularly true if you utilize those insights to create clear data visualizations that may contribute to the success of your team and company.

Furthermore, you will be the best fit for the Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst (PL-300) exam if you are someone who has:

• A fundamental grasp of data repositories and data processes, both on-premises and in the cloud.
• The Ability to use Power BI to help businesses get the most out of their data assets.
• Already worked towards certifications like:
  • MCSA: BI Reporting
  • MCSA: SQL 2016 BI Development
• Skills for creating scalable data models, cleaning and converting data, and providing sophisticated analytical capabilities that add real value to the business.
• Experience to work together with important stakeholders from different industries to give pertinent insights based on established business needs.

To get a meaningful pathway, below we will go step by step to learn about the various methods and training resources you can use to pass the PL-300 Exam.

Microsoft PL-300 Preparation Pathway

1. Go through the Exam Course Outline

For the Microsoft PL-300 exam, understanding the key concepts and domains using the test topics is essential. Exam objectives can help you study and comprehend the differences more effectively. This lists the objectives, test domains, and weightings for the exam. However, the following are the topics for the PL-300 exam:

1. Prepare the data (15–20%)

• Get data from different data sources
• Clean, transform and load the data

2. Model the data (30–35%)

• Design a data model
• Develop a data model
• Create model calculations by using DAX
• Optimize model performance

3. Visualize and analyze the data (25–30%)

• Create reports
• Create dashboards
• Enhance reports for usability and storytelling
• Identify patterns and trends

4. Deploy and maintain assets (20–25%)

• Manage files and datasets
• Manage workspaces

2. Gain Practical Experience

Utilize the abilities you’ve learned in your organization in order to gain practical experience. Try generating your own work reports to ensure that the tasks are properly allocated. Connect with professionals to help you or start working on their tasks with them. Make a to-do list to keep track of the things you must do before taking the Microsoft PL-300 test. You will improve your abilities and knowledge in relation to the exam topics by doing this. This consists:

• Working on data analysis and visualization project using Power BI.
• Follow a Power BI data analyst around.
• Completing more Microsoft Docs training.
• Using Power BI Learning catalog for training.

3. Use the effective Instructor-led Training

Microsoft offers instructor-led training for the PL-300 exam. This include:

Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst

• This course will cover a variety of approaches and best practices for modeling, visualizing, and analyzing data with Power BI that are in line with both business and technical needs.
• Additionally, the course will demonstrate how to access and use data from various data sources, including relational and non-relational data.
• Thirdly, the effective implementation of security standards and guidelines throughout the whole Power BI spectrum, including datasets and groups, will also be covered in this session.
• Lastly, the management and deployment of reports and dashboards for sharing and content distribution will also be covered in the course.

Audience Profile:

• The target audience for this course is business intelligence and data professionals who are interested in learning how to correctly analyze data with Power BI.
• Furthermore, this course is also intended for professionals who create data-visualization reports using data platform technologies that are available both on-premises and in the cloud.

4. Grasp concepts more accurately with Microsoft Learning Paths

Microsoft offers learning pathways that are organized down into sections and contain the necessary information to assist you in understanding and learning as you get prepared to take the PL-300 exam. Learning paths for Microsoft Power BI Data Analyst (PL-300) exam are:

– Get started with Microsoft data analytics

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/data-analytics-microsoft/

You will study the skills, tasks, and procedures data analysts use to make a story with their data so that reliable business choices may be made in this learning path. You will discover how a data analyst uses the Power BI tool and service package to create reports and dashboards that tell a compelling story, as well as the necessity of genuine BI in the workplace.

Modules in this learning path:

• Learn about data analysis
• Start creating with Power BI now:

– Prepare data for analysis

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/prepare-data-power-bi/

As you learn to extract data from various data sources and select a storage mode and connectivity type, you will investigate Power Query. However, in order to prepare your data for modeling, you will learn how to profile, clean, and import data into Power BI.

Modules in this learning path:

• Power BI data collection
• Power BI- clean, transform and load data

– Model data in Power BI

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/model-power-bi/

You will discover how to create a data model that is user-friendly, efficient, and straightforward to maintain in this subject. You will gain knowledge of creating measurements using the DAX language. Moreover, you can come up with a wide range of analytical solutions with the aid of those measurements. You’ll also discover how to enhance the efficiency of your Power Query data retrieval jobs.

Modules in this learning path:

• Power BI- create a data model
• An introduction to using DAX to create measurements in Power BI
• Enhance a model’s functionality in Power BI

– Visualize data in Power BI

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/visualize-data-power-bi/

You will discover in this section when to employ which graphic to address which issue. Additionally, you’ll study report formatting and design. You will also learn how to leverage Power BI’s report navigation to construct an engaging, data-driven tale.

Modules in this learning path:

• Making use of Power BI visualizations
• Using Power BI reports, develop a data-driven story
• Power BI dashboard creation
• Make reports that are paginated

– Data analysis in Power BI

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/perform-analytics-power-bi/

In this, you will carefully evaluate your data and Power BI reports before doing a more in-depth analysis to extract value. Additionally, you will discover how to organize data and deliver the report coherently. You will discover how to export data from Power BI and obtain a statistical summary of your data. Further, you will apply and carry out advanced analytics on the report to gain deeper and more insightful data understanding.

Modules in this learning path:

• Analyze data in Power BI
• Work with Power BI’s AI visuals

– Manage workspaces and datasets in Power BI

Reference: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/paths/manage-workspaces-datasets-power-bi/

You will discover how to build workspaces in the Power BI service in this Learning Path. Here, you will share and deploy your Power BI artifacts with your users. A connection between Power BI reports and on-premise data sources will also be covered. Moreover, you will set up automatic refresh for your Power BI datasets since you know your users will love seeing the most recent data in your reports.

Modules in this learning path:

• Power BI- create and manage workspaces
• Power BI- manage datasets by
• Activate row-level security

5. Make revision stronger with Practice Exam tests

To advance and level up your preparation, it is crucial to take practice exams. With the help of these tests, you may evaluate yourself and discover your areas of strength and weakness. But getting the best Microsoft PL-300 practice tests is the most important step. There are several PL-300 study materials out there that provide original exam practice questions. However, in order to get the best practice examinations, you must do better research.

6. Be part of Microsoft Community discussions

Join the Microsoft community to discuss best practices and gain access to the most recent Microsoft exam information. You may get assistance from these forums with everything from technical support to help & education on relevant topics. Further, group discussions with subject-matter specialists about your queries will help you keep updated about exam modifications.

Still, getting doubts about the PL-300 exam?

7. Use basic certifications to enhance your skills

To get more confidence before appearing for the PL-300 exam, try to prepare and master the basic level of Microsoft certification.

– Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (CRM)

You could be a great candidate for the Microsoft Certified: Dynamics Fundamentals (CRM) certification if you’d want to:

• Recognize the fundamental features of the Dynamic 365 customer engagement applications.
• Verify your knowledge of Dynamics 365.
• Showcase your knowledge of business operations and consumer interaction.
• Demonstrate competency with Dynamics 365’s client engagement features.

Exam requirement: MB-910: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (CRM)

– Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (ERP)

You could be a good candidate for the Microsoft Certified: Dynamics Fundamentals (ERP) certification if you’d want to:

• Verify that you comprehend the platform’s foundational concepts.
• Showcase your thorough knowledge of Dynamics 365’s apps.
• Show a better grasp of corporate finance and operations and highlight your knowledge of how Dynamics 365 may interface with a variety of apps.

Exam requirement: MB-920: Microsoft Dynamics 365 Fundamentals (ERP)

– Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals

You could be a good candidate for the Microsoft Certified: Power Platform Fundamentals certification if you’d want to:

• Show that you have experience using the Microsoft Power Platform to develop solutions.
• Demonstrate your knowledge by using Power Automate to automate common business operations and by building straightforward Power Apps experiences.
• Emphasize your knowledge by creating useful chatbots using Power Virtual Agents and doing data analysis with Power BI.

Exam requirement: PL-900: Microsoft Power Platform Fundamentals

Final Words

Using the study materials listed above, you can master the test topics for the Microsoft PL-300 Certification. Make a study plan so you can complete each topic on time, review it again, and then take a break. You must schedule your study time. To enhance your skills enough to pass the test, start working as a data analyst on projects or volunteer to assist build a project. This will improve your planning and creation of scalable data models and help you gain real experience with Power BI Tools.