77-426 MOS Word 2013 Expert Part 2 Exam Guide
Microsoft exam 77-426, MOS Word 2013 Expert Part 2, validates advanced ability to manage, structure, revise, reference, and prepare Word documents for professional use. It is intended for candidates who already work confidently in Word 2013 and need to demonstrate expert-level document production rather than recall isolated commands. This guide helps you decide whether your current skill is ready for a performance-based project, which objective areas require deliberate practice, how to sequence your study, and what to confirm before scheduling through Certiport.
What 77-426 validates
77-426 tests whether you can complete an integrated Word 2013 project using advanced document-management features. The supplied skills outline emphasizes document sharing, change management, outlines and master documents, indexes, reference tables, and internationalization and accessibility preparation. The assessment is therefore best approached as applied production work, not as a vocabulary test.
The exam identity and product scope
The official title is “MOS Word 2013 Expert Part 2.” Its scope is Word 2013, and the outline is centered on advanced tasks performed within documents and document sets. Practice should use the same product generation wherever possible, because commands, galleries, and workflow details can differ between Word versions.
Certiport describes MOS 2013 testing as project-based and designed around real-world Microsoft Office exercises. Its Word description says candidates are presented with a project to complete rather than a simple series of disconnected required tasks. That means a successful study session should produce a usable document or document set and then verify the result.
How the credential fits the Word Expert path
Passing 77-426 alone does not complete the Microsoft Office Word 2013 Expert credential. Certiport states that candidates must pass both Word 2013 Expert Part One and Word 2013 Expert Part Two. Treat 77-426 as the second expert component, while checking the current Certiport information for the exact credential path that applies to your goal.
Certiport also lists 77-426 among the examinations used in Microsoft Office Specialist 2013 Master certification tracks. That makes the exam relevant to candidates building a broader MOS 2013 record, but it does not replace the need to verify the other required examinations for a particular Master route.
Who should take this exam
This exam suits an experienced Word 2013 user who can already create and format ordinary documents without relying on step-by-step instructions. It is a reasonable target for document specialists, administrative professionals, students in an Office-focused program, and workplace users who routinely assemble controlled, referenced, or multi-document content. Beginners should build core Word fluency first.
Signs that your baseline is sufficient
You are closer to readiness if you can explain why a template, style, building block, master document, or reference field is appropriate for a requirement—not merely where its command is located. You should also be able to recover from an unexpected result by inspecting document structure, field behavior, styles, tracked changes, and linked content.
A useful diagnostic is to create a structured report from a blank file and then revise it as if another author had supplied the content. Add headings, references, an index, tracked changes, and accessibility information without following a tutorial. Record every point at which you must search for a command or guess at the correct setting. Those records form your first study list.
When to postpone scheduling
Postpone the appointment if your practice depends on memorizing menu paths, if you cannot distinguish a table of contents from an index, or if changing one source document regularly breaks formatting elsewhere. Also postpone if you have not used Word 2013 recently and cannot complete a realistic document workflow without frequent assistance. A short review period is more useful than rushing to schedule.
Which skills are measured
The official outline does not supply percentage weights in the research provided here, so no domain should be treated as more heavily weighted than another. Prepare against every named objective: manage and share documents; manage document changes; create advanced ordering and grouping; create and manage indexes; create and manage reference tables; and prepare documents for internationalization and accessibility.
Manage and share documents
This domain covers work across more than one document. The outline names modifying templates, merging documents, managing versions, copying styles, copying macros, linking to external data, and moving building blocks. These are related but different operations: practice each one as a controlled workflow, noting the source, destination, dependency, and expected result.
Build a small document set for practice. Use a reusable template, a source report, and a second report with different styles. Move a building block, copy a style, merge content, and inspect the resulting formatting. Then deliberately create a version difference and document how you identify which file is current. Do not limit practice to opening commands; verify that the assembled files remain coherent.
Manage document changes
The change-management objectives include tracking changes, managing comments, configuring markup options, resolving multi-document style conflicts, and displaying all changes. These tasks require judgment about what is visible, what is recorded, and what is finally accepted or rejected. Practice the complete review cycle rather than only turning Track Changes on and off.
Use two author roles in a practice file. Make formatting and wording changes, add comments, alter markup display, and review the document in more than one view. Resolve a style conflict between documents, then inspect the final file for leftover comments, unexplained formatting, and hidden revisions. The final state should be intentional and reviewable.
Create advanced ordering and grouping
The outline covers creating outlines, promoting outline sections, creating master documents, inserting subdocuments, and linking document elements. These capabilities matter when a long publication is divided into manageable parts. Your practice should show how hierarchy and relationships are maintained as content is reorganized.
Start with several short, consistently styled chapter documents. Promote and demote outline sections, assemble them through a master-document workflow, insert a subdocument, and test the links between the parts. Observe what changes when a heading level is altered. Keep a backup copy before structural experiments because master-document operations can affect the organization of a document set.
Create and manage indexes
Index objectives include marking index entries, updating indexes, and using index auto-mark files. An index is not the same as a table of contents: it points readers to marked subjects or terms, while a contents table is generated from document structure. Learn how marking decisions affect the final index, especially after content moves.
Create a short technical report containing repeated terms, synonyms, and terms that should not appear in the index. Mark selected entries manually, update the index after editing pages, and test an auto-mark file against the same content. Compare the result and correct poor entries. This develops both command knowledge and editorial judgment.
Create and manage reference tables
The reference-table objectives include tables of contents, tables of figures, tables of authorities, captions, footnotes, and citations. These features depend on correctly marked source content and fields that can be updated. A document that looks correct before an edit may become inaccurate after headings, figures, or citations change.
Prepare one report with heading levels, figures, captions, footnotes, and citations. Generate the relevant tables, change the report structure, and update them. Inspect numbering and links after the update. For a table of authorities, concentrate on the relationship between marked citations and the generated table instead of treating the feature as ordinary text formatting.
Prepare documents for internationalization and accessibility
The outline explicitly includes language options, alt text, accessibility tools, theme fonts, global content standards, and tab order. This domain tests whether a document can be prepared for varied readers and publishing requirements. Accessibility and internationalization should be applied while building the document, not appended as a cosmetic final check.
Use a document containing headings, images, tables, and navigational elements. Set appropriate language choices, add meaningful alt text, inspect accessibility tools, apply theme fonts, and review tab order. Check that content is understandable without depending solely on color, visual position, or an image. Record the reason for each setting so you can reproduce the workflow under time pressure.
How to prepare for a project-based assessment
Study by completing end-to-end document projects with realistic dependencies. Certiport describes the Word 2013 evaluation as a comprehensive project with project- and standards-based outcome testing, so isolated command drills are not enough. For every exercise, define the required output, perform the task, update dependent fields, and inspect the final document as a reader and reviewer.
Use the skills outline as a coverage matrix
Microsoft states that MOS exam detail pages include a downloadable Skills measured outline summarizing covered topics. Use the supplied 77-426 outline as a checklist with one row for each named capability. Add columns for “performed without help,” “performed with reference,” “result verified,” and “needs repetition.” This separates recognition from dependable execution.
Do not assign invented percentages to the domains. The supplied research gives no 77-426 blueprint weights. Instead, allocate study time according to your evidence: give additional sessions to objectives you cannot complete, produce inconsistent results in, or fail to verify after an update. This is a practical recommendation, not an official weighting claim.
Practice in the right order
A productive sequence is to establish document structure first, then add references and change management, then work across documents, and finally perform internationalization and accessibility checks. Structure affects tables and navigation; references depend on marked content; collaboration changes the review state; final preparation checks the finished artifact.
A workable cycle is: create a structured report; add captions, footnotes, citations, and a contents table; mark index entries; revise with tracking and comments; merge or link related content; assemble or reorganize document parts; update every generated element; and run the final accessibility and language review. Repeat with different content so you learn the operations rather than one fixed sequence.
Keep an error log that describes causes
An error log is more useful when it records the failed outcome and the likely cause, not just the command you forgot. Write entries such as “index did not include revised term—entries were not marked,” “contents table was stale—fields were not updated,” or “merged file changed appearance—source and destination styles conflicted.” Recreate each error later and fix it without notes.
Group errors by skill domain. If several failures come from fields not updating, schedule a field-refresh and verification session. If failures come from style conflicts, compare source and destination styles before merging. This approach turns practice results into targeted preparation instead of repeatedly starting from the beginning.
Use timed complete projects carefully
A timed project is useful only after you can perform the skills accurately. Early timing encourages guessing and hides structural weaknesses. First work slowly and explain each decision; then remove reference material; finally complete a mixed project while reserving time to update fields, inspect changes, and check the final output.
Do not use leaked questions, exam dumps, or memorized answer sets as a substitute for skill. They cannot establish that you can manage a document when content, structure, or dependencies differ. Practice files should be your own varied scenarios, created from the official objectives and checked for the intended result.
A practical study roadmap
A roadmap should move from diagnosis to controlled practice, then to integrated execution and a scheduling decision. The exact length depends on your starting ability and available practice time; the stages below are recommendations rather than official exam requirements. Advance only when you can verify outcomes, not merely repeat steps from memory.
Stage 1: Diagnose your Word 2013 workflow
Begin with a short, self-directed project that includes a structured report, a reference element, revisions, and at least one operation involving another document. Work without a tutorial. Mark each hesitation, failed result, and unverified assumption. Compare the project with every objective in the official outline and identify the two or three areas that create the greatest risk.
Also confirm your working environment. Use Word 2013 for the main practice where possible, organize source files clearly, and keep untouched copies of templates and source documents. Separating originals from working files makes it easier to understand whether an error came from the operation or from an earlier change.
Stage 2: Build structural and reference control
Focus first on outlines, heading hierarchy, master documents, subdocuments, and linked elements. Then practice tables of contents, tables of figures, captions, footnotes, citations, indexes, and auto-mark files. After each structural edit, update generated elements and inspect the result. This stage establishes the relationships that later review and sharing tasks depend on.
Use small files before long ones. A compact chapter set makes it easier to see how promoting a heading affects navigation or how a changed caption affects a generated table. Once the behavior is clear, repeat the operation in a longer report with multiple dependent elements.
Stage 3: Add collaboration and multi-document workflows
Next, combine tracked changes, comments, markup settings, style conflict resolution, template modification, merging, version management, copied styles, copied macros, external data links, and moved building blocks. Make the source and destination deliberately different so you must diagnose the outcome. Finish each exercise by deciding what should remain, what should be removed, and what should be updated.
A common mistake is accepting all changes or deleting all comments without reviewing their meaning. Another is assuming that a visually similar document has the same underlying styles or links. Inspect the review state and the document relationships before declaring the workflow complete.
Stage 4: Apply accessibility and internationalization checks
Treat accessibility and internationalization as a production requirement. Review language options, alt text, accessibility tools, theme fonts, global content standards, and tab order in a document that already contains real content. Check the effect of your settings on headings, images, tables, and navigation rather than testing them only in an empty file.
Use purposeful alt text rather than repeating a filename or writing a generic label. Check whether the document remains understandable when visual styling is reduced. Review theme fonts and global standards for consistency across the document set, and verify tab order through the interactive elements that readers must reach.
Stage 5: Run a readiness review
Before scheduling, complete at least one mixed project from source files through final review without step-by-step help. Your readiness evidence should include accurate structural results, updated reference tables and indexes, controlled tracked changes and comments, predictable multi-document behavior, and a completed accessibility and internationalization review. If one domain still depends on trial and error, keep studying it.
Use a simple decision rule: schedule when you can explain the purpose of each major operation, complete it in an unfamiliar document, and verify the result afterward. If you can perform a task only in a memorized sample, classify it as incomplete and create a new variation.
Common preparation mistakes
Most weak preparation plans overemphasize visible formatting and underemphasize document relationships. They practice making a page look correct but do not test what happens after a merge, update, revision, style change, or structural reorganization. Correct this by judging every exercise on both appearance and document behavior.
Treating the exam as a command quiz
A project-based Word assessment requires an outcome, not just a familiar ribbon path. Knowing that a feature exists does not prove that you can configure it correctly or preserve it through later edits. Replace flashcard-only study with tasks that begin from a requirement and end with a checked document.
Ignoring updates and dependencies
Tables of contents, tables of figures, indexes, citations, and other generated elements can become stale after edits. Make updating and verification part of every practice workflow. A final visual scan may not reveal that a generated element still reflects an earlier version of the document.
Confusing review display with review status
Changing markup options changes what you see; it does not necessarily resolve, accept, or reject the underlying changes. Practice inspecting tracked revisions and comments separately from choosing a display mode. Finish with a deliberate review state and confirm that the output matches the intended handoff.
Merging without examining styles
Copying or merging content between documents can expose differences in style definitions, templates, and linked elements. Before combining files, identify the source and destination formatting systems. Afterward, inspect headings, captions, numbering, and generated tables rather than assuming that the merged document inherited the intended structure.
Leaving accessibility until the last minute
Late accessibility checks often reveal missing alt text, unsuitable navigation, inconsistent language settings, or an order that is difficult to follow. Apply these checks during document construction and repeat them at the end. This creates a habit of preserving accessibility as content changes.
Scheduling and delivery decisions
For a Microsoft Office Specialist exam, Microsoft’s scheduling guidance directs candidates to choose Certiport in the scheduling flow. Confirm the current 77-426 listing, available appointment choices, location, language, identification requirements, and any delivery conditions with Certiport before committing. The supplied sources do not establish a current appointment duration, price, or availability for every region.
Where to start the registration process
Microsoft says to begin from the certification overview or the available certifications area, open the relevant certification or exam details page, and use the Schedule exam control. Its provider guidance says candidates taking a Microsoft Office Specialist exam should select “Schedule with Certiport.” Follow the provider’s current instructions because scheduling arrangements can vary by candidate context and region.
Microsoft also recommends using a personal Microsoft account for certification records in the cited guidance. Ensure the legal name in the profile matches the identification requirements before the appointment. If you need an accommodation, request it before scheduling so the provider has time to review and support the arrangement.
What the supplied sources establish about delivery
The Microsoft scheduling page explains that online proctored exams are not offered by Certiport at this time and that an online option should not be assumed when it is absent from the provider’s choices. For 77-426, use the current Certiport registration information to determine the available test-center arrangement and any local instructions.
Do not transfer details from a different Microsoft certification to 77-426. The supplied Microsoft page for Excel Expert, for example, describes another product and exam. Its duration, language, retake, and certification details are not evidence for Word 2013 Expert Part 2 and should not be used to plan this exam.
Checks to complete before paying or confirming
Confirm that the exam code and title shown by the provider are 77-426 and MOS Word 2013 Expert Part 2. Check the provider’s current language and appointment information, the testing location, acceptable identification, cancellation or rescheduling terms, and whether your chosen center supports the required examination. Keep the confirmation details in one place.
If your scheduling screen presents an unexpected provider or no suitable appointment, stop and verify through the official Microsoft and Certiport pages rather than relying on an unofficial listing. Microsoft’s general guidance says exams can be scheduled no more than 90 days in advance, while also noting that scheduling through Certiport is not changed by its Pearson VUE policy.
Official preparation resources
Start with the official 77-426 skills outline, then use Microsoft’s exam-preparation guidance for the exam sandbox, available practice assessments, learning modules, and any exam-prep videos listed for the relevant exam. These resources support orientation and diagnosis; hands-on Word 2013 projects remain necessary for the document operations named in the outline.
The 77-426 skills outline
The Certiport outline is the primary source for the assessed objectives supplied here. Download or retain a copy and convert each bullet into an observable task. For example, “manage comments” becomes a workflow in which comments are inserted, reviewed, resolved or removed as appropriate, and the final document is checked for the intended state.
Use the exact objective language when building your checklist. This reduces the risk of spending all your time on familiar formatting while overlooking master documents, auto-mark files, external data links, tab order, or global content standards.
Microsoft Learn preparation tools
Microsoft’s preparation guidance points candidates to the Skills measured outline for MOS exams, self-paced learning resources, exam-prep videos where available, and the exam sandbox. The sandbox is useful for becoming familiar with the assessment interface. A practice assessment, if offered for this exam, can help identify knowledge gaps, but it should complement rather than replace application practice.
Microsoft notes that practice assessments may be available in multiple languages and that an exam may not be available in the same languages as a practice assessment. Check the actual 77-426 provider and exam information before choosing a language for study or scheduling.
Certiport MOS 2013 information
Certiport’s MOS 2013 information describes the program as project-based and presents a learn, practice, and certify pathway. Its Word 2013 page supplies context for the performance-based project model and the relationship between Word Expert Part One and Part Two. Use those pages for program context, while relying on the 77-426 outline for the specific skills covered here.
Your final readiness checklist
Schedule only after you can complete a varied Word 2013 project and verify its underlying structure. Your final review should cover every official objective, not just the features you use most often. The checklist below is a practical recommendation built from the supplied outline, not an official scoring formula.
Document and collaboration checks
Confirm that you can modify and use templates, merge documents, manage versions, copy styles and macros, link to external data, and move building blocks. Confirm that you can track changes, manage comments, configure markup, resolve style conflicts, and display the intended revision state. Repeat these tasks with different source and destination documents.
Structure and reference checks
Confirm that you can create and reorganize outlines, work with master documents and subdocuments, and maintain links between document elements. Then create and update indexes, including entries marked through an auto-mark file, and create the required reference tables using captions, footnotes, citations, and correctly structured headings.
Accessibility and logistics checks
Confirm that your document review includes language options, alt text, accessibility tools, theme fonts, global content standards, and tab order. Then verify the current exam code, title, provider, location or delivery choice, language, profile name, accommodation status if relevant, and appointment instructions through the official provider.
Next actions after reading this guide
Your next action should be evidence-based: download the official 77-426 outline, mark each objective as known or unproven, and create one project that exposes the largest gaps. After practice, update the checklist with results. Schedule through Certiport only when your performance is consistent across unfamiliar document sets and you have confirmed the current provider details.
A focused first session
Create a report with multiple heading levels, at least one figure, citations, footnotes, and terms suitable for an index. Add a second document with different styles, make controlled revisions and comments, and finish with language, alt-text, accessibility, and tab-order checks. Do not look up every step immediately; first identify where your process breaks.
How to use the result
If the session exposes one weak domain, study that domain through two or more different document scenarios. If several domains fail, return to the structural workflow before attempting another mixed project. Once the project is reliable, use Microsoft’s sandbox or any available practice assessment to familiarize yourself with the interface and identify final knowledge gaps.
Conclusion
77-426 is a practical Word 2013 Expert Part 2 assessment focused on controlling complex documents and document sets. The strongest preparation combines the official skills outline with repeated hands-on projects: build structure, generate and update references, manage revisions, coordinate multiple files, and check accessibility and internationalization. Do not rely on unsupported blueprint assumptions or memorized questions. Use your error log and final project results to decide when to schedule, then confirm current Certiport arrangements and exam details before booking.
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