Blind Civil Servant Paul Qualifies

Paul is employed by the civil service and has recently been promoted to Senior Product Support Specialist in a new department and as part of this new position, he was expected to qualify at Expert level in the Microsoft Office User Support program (MOUS). MOUS The MOUS qualification is a benchmark to validate users’ skills in using Microsoft Office. It allows users the opportunity to prove that they have the ability to use Microsoft Office to its true potential through a series of questions and practical assessments.

Paul was not the first person to sit the qualification but he was the first blind person to sit the exam and more importantly, he passed it, first time. Paul has now qualified to Expert level in MS Word and he is currently preparing to take the MS Excel paper and then MS PowerPoint. Dolphin are extremely pleased for Paul and are happy that Paul’s use of ScreenReader, which he uses at home and at work, has contributed to his success. Paul says of ScreenReader,

"I found it to be the most stable product around for the high security Windows environment in which I work all day. I cannot afford to use an access product that even periodically crashes my system. The product I use must not be fussy about the components in use on the computer, such as versions of video drivers etc. I appreciate that great care is taken by the Dolphin development team to ensure that the software they produce correctly complies with application standards under the Windows platform."

"I believe that by so doing, ScreenReader is able to keep up with new versions of the Microsoft operating systems without the need for Dolphin having to go back to the drawing board each time."

We asked Paul what goals he has set himself next, and he replied

"I intend to gain Expert certification in all the Office products". He continues "Following that, I would like to try and become a Microsoft Certified System Engineer (MCSE)."

Paul would recommend sitting the exam to other blind or visually impaired people.

"The way I see it, there is a real shortage of IT skills in the workplace and visually impaired people could really take advantage of this shortage. Presenting certification to a prospective employer cannot go unnoticed and can only serve to increase the chances of getting and holding down a job".