What else should you do to prepare for your board interview?  Not much really.  I believe this to be a certification that you either know or don't know prior to going in front of a board.  For example, if you were weak on methodologies you really can't learn the pros, cons, and nuances of the agile family of methodologies just before walking into a board.  If you were weak on the breadth of a particular technology, you wouldn't be able to develop the skills in that area beyond the marketing fluff in time.  You really possess or don't possess the competency and can provide evidence on demand during the board interview. 

So what do I suggest?  Review some areas where you might have let your innate skills atrophy a bit.  If you are deep in integration technologies and have worked with Tibco in the past, do a quick review of their latest offerings and what they have that is new, or what other companies might be offering these days.  If you haven't worked on a non-agile project in a while - take a pass at the popular notions in the RUP space.  Don't spend too much time with this because it won't pay dividends.

If you know someone that is already an MCA you may ask them to conduct a mock board review for you.  You could also request one from the program.  If you take this route, please ask the person to be very critical - you are going to be better served by finding out what you need to work on prior to going in front of the board.  If they tell you that you will pass, be skeptical and re-review the competencies - don't let them set your expectations because I have heard too many times where a "mentor" has been wrong.

I also suggest relaxing and not worrying about it too much.  In my mind it is kind of like the SAT.  You really can't study for it, but you might review some things you already know or concepts you have worked on in the past.

As with any type of test like this, there will be some stress leading up to the board.  There is not a lot of advice I can give other than deal with it the way you handle stress in other situations.  If you are traveling to the board, make sure you get there a day early with plenty of time to relax with a nice dinner or movie the night before.  Put aside your other distractions like work e-mail and focus on a fun and relaxing evening in the city where the board is held.

You also might try to request a time slot for the board that works best with your natural "best time of the day".  There are three boards a day - morning, after lunch, and late afternoon.  Based on how your body clock works, and how far you traveled, you might try to match that up appropriately.

This post is part of a series of articles about the MCA program.  The opinions here are solely my own and may not reflect the opinions of Microsoft or anyone affiliated with the MCA program.