On average, more than half (53 percent) of the certificants studied reported they had received a raise within the first year of attaining their primary certification. Of those certificants who received a raise in salary, 74 percent said their primary certification had a significant impact on their salary increase. Thirty-nine percent of the certificants studied said they received a definite, certification-related raise within the first year of attaining their primary certification.

The average certificant studied reported a 10.2 percent salary increase within the first year of attaining the primary certification. While this constitutes a healthy raise, some certifications delivered noteworthy increases for certificants. Microsoft certifications were the top three certifications generating salary in-creases. Microsoft's MCSE (24.1 percent raise), MCSA (17.6 percent raise) and MCSD (14.6 percent raise) generated the most dramatic percent raises for certificants.