Apple’s history of introducing innovative technologies has led to the development of a programming language that’s as easy to learn as it is powerful to use. And, it’s called Swift. Swift was designed by Apple engineers with educators at the drawing board—which is why it’s a great tool for teaching and learning to code — it was designed that way.
The Develop in Swift offering from Apple prepares students for college or a career in app development using Swift. And, Apple provides resources for aspiring developers, including the App Development with Swift Associate and App Development with Swift Certified User certifications.
App Development with Swift certification
Apple announced two certifications at the end of March to help high school and higher education students earn recognition to help them stand out in their journey to the app economy: App Development with Swift Associate and App Development with Swift Certified User certifications.
App Development with Swift Associate exam
High school or higher education students who successfully complete the App Development with Swift Associate exam demonstrate knowledge of the impact of computing and apps on society, economies, and cultures while exploring iOS app development. This certification is aligned with Develop in Swift Explorations course made available for free from the Apple Book Store.
App Development with Swift Certified User exam
Higher education students who successfully complete the App Development with Swift Certified User exam demonstrate fundamental iOS app development skills with Swift. They have knowledge of core concepts and practices that professional Swift programmers use daily. This certification is aligned with Develop in Swift Fundamentals course made available for free from the Apple Book Store.
What topics are covered in the App Development with Swift exams?
The App Development with Swift Associate exam is aligned to the Develop in Swift Explorations course and focused on the following categories:
- Planning, Design, and Theory
- Summarize the design cycle
- Summarize how sensitive data can be protected and compromised
- Project Navigation
- Differentiate between basic file types
- Recognize the assets available in a project
- Define how assets are used
- Import an asset to a project and use it correctly
- Select the appropriate actions to hide or show different areas of the user interface
- Interface Builder/iOS
- Given a scenario, select the appropriate object(s) on a storyboard or the Document Outline
- Use the Attributes inspector to non-programmatically modify the properties of objects and/or a view
- Connect UIKit objects on storyboard to a Swift file
- Programmatically modify the properties of objects and/or a view
- Swift Language Usage
- Write, call and/or evaluate the execution of functions
- Calculate the results when using various operators
- Create and evaluate structures
- Create and manipulate arrays
- Demonstrate how to control the flow of execution
- Create, use and/or compare custom enumerations
- Declare and/or evaluate constants and variables of different data types
- Use the appropriate naming conventions
- Debugging
- Use the Connections inspector to evaluate whether a connection error has occurred
- Given a connection error scenario, determine a solution
- Differentiate between syntax and run-time errors when building and running an app
- Interpret console error messages
- Recognize the purpose of breakpoints
The App Development with Swift Certified User exam is aligned to the Develop in Swift Fundamentals course and questions fall into three categories:
- Xcode Developer Tools
- Identify and use the features of the Xcode interface
- Demonstrate how to build and run an app
- Use debugging techniques to resolve errors
- Position and lay out UIKit objects
- Swift Programming Language
- Declare and use basic Swift types
- Manage data using collection types
- Know how and when to apply control flow and loops
- Use functions
- Demonstrate proper use of structs, classes, and enums
- Demonstrate the use of Optional types
- Evaluate variable scope and shadowing
- iOS UIKit
- Create view controllers to implement app logic
- Describe the view controller lifecycle
- Use segues to link view controllers to prepare for, pass data, and unwind segues
- Create a multi-view app with navigation hierarchy
- Create and manipulate UIKit objects
What are the benefits of certifying?
According to Burning Glass, demand for software skills is expected to grow nearly 29% over the next ten years. Earning the App Development with Swift Associate or App Development with Swift Certified User certifications can help students stand out and compete for in-demand jobs in the app economy.
What are the certification prerequisites?
Students are expected to have completed at least 150 hours of instructional time with Swift and Xcode before taking either certification exam. Students should complete either the Develop in Swift Explorations or Develop in Swift Fundamentals course to prepare for the App Development with Swift Associate or App Development with Swift Certified User exams.
How can I prepare to teach Swift?
If you’re an educator who may be new to the world of Swift, Apple has you covered. Apple Professional Learning offers a free online course for Develop in Swift available through Canvas by Instructure. Educators will learn the foundational knowledge needed to teach Swift and Xcode directly from Apple experts, making this an ideal introductory course for teaching Develop in Swift in any educational environment.
Register now for the Develop in Swift free online professional learning course here.
Are the practice tests available for the App Development with Swift certifications?
Yes. Certiport offers CertPREP for practice tests that will prepare students for the App Development with Swift certification exams. Learn more about practice tests here.
If you have any additional questions about the App Development with Swift certifications, please reach out to your Certiport Territory Manager here.