You can see it againUnder pressure people bring back shapes and positions long after the wording has gone.
Picture superiority · Shepard 1967, Standing 1973
DELL TECHNOLOGIESDell Data Engineering Optimize
The Dell Data Engineering Optimize certification validates your ability to design and manage modern data pipelines, from data warehousing with SQL and NoSQL to ETL offload with Hadoop and Spark. It is built for data engineers, data scientists, and technical professionals who process and govern large data sets. Earning it demonstrates hands-on skill in streaming, IoT, and Python-based pipeline development on Dell Technologies platforms.
Exam formatProctored exam
DeliveryPearson VUE
Free questions517
Content last reviewed 30 July 2026 · Up to date
The certification
What Dell Data Engineering Optimize proves, and what it asks of you
What this certification covers, who it is written for, and what the exam itself looks like on the day.
6domains
24objectives
164concepts
What it is
What this certification is
What it validates, who it is written for, and the experience it assumes.
About this certification
The Dell Data Engineering Optimize certification validates the skills required to architect, implement, and optimize data engineering solutions in modern enterprise environments. It covers the full data lifecycle — from relational and NoSQL data warehousing to ETL offload with Hadoop and Spark, streaming and IoT data processing, and building data pipelines with Python. The credential is designed for practitioners who manage or process data sets and want to demonstrate their ability to deliver scalable, governed, and secure data solutions.
Earning this certification shows that you can apply data engineering best practices across the Dell Technologies ecosystem, including data governance, security, and privacy for big data. The exam measures your ability to describe and apply key technologies such as Apache Spark, Kafka, Flink, and Airflow, and to make sound architectural decisions for batch and streaming workloads. It is a practical, role-based credential that helps you stand out as a data engineering professional.
Who it’s for
This certification is for practicing or aspiring data engineers, data scientists, data stewards, and anyone responsible for managing or processing data sets. It is also relevant for cloud architects, cloud consultants, infrastructure administrators, pre-sales solution architects, product specialists, solution architects, systems engineers, and technical consultants who design or support data solutions. You should be comfortable working with databases, data processing frameworks, and scripting languages, and have a working understanding of data governance and security principles. The certification is ideal for professionals who want to validate their ability to build and operate data pipelines in a Dell Technologies environment.
Recommended experience
Dell recommends completing the recommended training and gaining hands-on experience with data engineering concepts, including SQL, NoSQL, Hadoop, Spark, and Python. Familiarity with relational databases and SQL; Understanding of NoSQL data stores and their use cases; Basic knowledge of Hadoop ecosystem components and ETL processes; Experience with Python scripting and data processing libraries; Awareness of data governance, security, and privacy considerations for big data
The syllabus
What you’ll learn
Every domain and objective Dell Technologies measures, with the weight they carry on the exam.
The official Dell Technologies exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
The Role of the Data Engineer
- Describe the skills of a data engineer
- Describe the role of a data engineer in a data analytics project
Data Warehousing with SQL and NoSQL
- Describe characteristics and performance considerations of a relational database
- Describe relational database schemas and normalization techniques
- Describe use cases and features of various NoSQL tools
Extract-Transform-Load (ETL) Offload with Hadoop and Spark
- Describe ETL, ELT, and related schedulers
- Describe the Hadoop ecosystem, HDFS, and data ingestion tools
- Describe Apache Spark and its architecture
Data Governance, Security and Privacy for Big Data
- Describe data governance, key roles, and related models
- Describe metadata and Master Data Management
- Describe security considerations with Hadoop and the Cloud
- Describe the uses of Apache Atlas, Ranger, and Knox
- Describe privacy regulations and ethics
Processing Streaming and IoT Data
- Describe uses and application of IoT tools
- Describe the Apache Storm system and topology
- Describe the Apache Kafka queueing system and architecture
- Describe Apache Spark - Streaming processing and architecture
- Describe Apache Flink and its architecture
- Describe Pravega and its storage architecture
- Describe EdgeX Foundry and its architecture
Building Data Pipelines with Python
- Describe Python, reasons to use, and its libraries
- Describe the use of lists, dictionaries, tuples, sets, and strings
- Describe the use of Apache Airflow
- Describe data pipeline best practices
On the day
The exam itself
Everything Dell Technologies publishes about sitting it, and nothing we inferred.
Prerequisites
No mandatory prerequisites — this certification has no required predecessor exam or credential.
CertificationDell Data Engineering Optimize
Exam formatProctored exam
DeliveryPearson VUE
LanguagesEnglish, French
After you pass
Where this credential goes next
The path Dell Technologies lays out, how the credential is kept, and where to book.
Step-by-step path to Dell Data Engineering Optimize
Credential earnedDell Data Engineering Optimize Certification Lifecycle status
This certification is currently active and available. Dell Technologies maintains this certification to validate current skills and industry relevance.
Exam status: ActiveMaintained by Dell Technologies
Exam registration
Register for the exam through Pearson VUE, Dell Technologies’s authorized testing partner.
Schedule your examVisit the official Dell Technologies certification page for exam policies and requirements.
View the official pageYour coach
And when you are serious, your coach Pip takes over
Your coach in the app reads what you have answered with the book closed and tells you one thing to do tonight. It will not count an answer you gave with the page open, and it will tell you when you are not ready.
See how the coach worksBefore you book
Questions people ask
How does the Data Engineering Optimize certification relate to the Data Science Optimize certification?
Both are Solution Badges in the Dell Proven Professional program. Data Engineering Optimize focuses on data pipelines, warehousing, and streaming, while Data Science Optimize covers data science and analytics. They are separate credentials and can be earned independently.
Is the Data Engineering Optimize exam proctored?
Yes. Skills Certification exams like D-DS-OP-23 are proctored exams administered through Pearson VUE testing centers and OnVUE online proctoring. Achievement tests and practice tests are unproctored and web-based.
What is the retake policy if I fail the exam?
If you do not pass on your first attempt, you must wait 7 days to retake. After a second failed attempt, you must wait at least 14 days between each additional attempt. If you need to retake an exam you have already passed to fulfill a certification track requirement, you may do so after 3 months.
Are there any hands-on or lab-based components in the exam?
The official exam description does not mention a hands-on or lab-based component. The exam is a proctored, computer-based test covering the published topics.
How soon will I receive my exam results?
Exams are computer scored immediately upon completion, and you will receive a provisional score report right away. The final score is transmitted to your CertTracker account within 72 hours after statistical analysis is completed.
What job roles does this certification map to?
The certification is designed for data engineers, data scientists, data stewards, cloud architects, solution architects, and technical consultants who manage or process data sets in enterprise environments.
Can I take the exam online from home?
Yes. Dell Technologies Skills Certification exams are available through Pearson VUE's OnVUE online proctoring, as well as at physical test centers.
Are there any prerequisites for this certification?
No, Dell does not list any mandatory prerequisites for the D-DS-OP-23 exam. However, completing recommended training and gaining hands-on experience is advised.
Information freshness · Content last reviewed on 2026-07-30 Up to date
Practice free questions 517 questions, free, no account needed.
The curriculum
The whole exam, mapped and written
Every domain, every objective, and every concept Dell Technologies measures — each one written out.
6domains
24objectives
164concepts
114free pages
The domains, and what sits inside them
Every objective below is a page you can open and practise now, without an account.
The official Dell Technologies exam outline · checked 30 July 2026 · See the source
1The Role of the Data Engineer20 questions
2Data Warehousing with SQL and NoSQL24 questions
3Extract-Transform-Load (ETL) Offload with Hadoop and Spark56 questions
4Data Governance, Security and Privacy for Big Data130 questions
Describe data governance, key roles, and related models6 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Describe metadata and Master Data Management6 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Describe security considerations with Hadoop and the Cloud7 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Describe the uses of Apache Atlas, Ranger, and Knox10 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →Describe privacy regulations and ethics5 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →
5Processing Streaming and IoT Data189 questions
Describe uses and application of IoT tools9 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →Describe the Apache Storm system and topology7 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Describe the Apache Kafka queueing system and architecture6 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Describe Apache Spark - Streaming processing and architecture6 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Describe Apache Flink and its architecture10 concepts · 6 pagesOpen →Describe Pravega and its storage architecture7 concepts · 5 pagesOpen →Describe EdgeX Foundry and its architecture6 concepts · 7 pagesOpen →
6Building Data Pipelines with Python98 questions
Not a table of contents
Every line on this map already opens
In front of every objective the practice pages are already there, free and without an account. This is one objective, opened.
Describe the skills of a data engineer2 pagesOpen →
Free in front of it
8 questions on this objective, five to a page. Every range above is a real page, open now, with no account.
Reading the map is not the same as knowing the ground
The curriculum tells you what is on the exam. Proving you know it is a different job — and it is the one the closed-book run does.
Free questions
517 questions. No account, no card.
The whole bank is open. 5 questions to a page, every answer explained, and a discussion thread on each one.
517questions
114pages
24objectives
Freealways
Browse by domain
Every objective, and every page range, is a link — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.
1The Role of the Data Engineer20 questions
2Data Warehousing with SQL and NoSQL24 questions
3Extract-Transform-Load (ETL) Offload with Hadoop and Spark56 questions
4Data Governance, Security and Privacy for Big Data130 questions
5Processing Streaming and IoT Data189 questions
6Building Data Pipelines with Python98 questions
What a practice page gives you
1Five to a page
Short enough to finish, long enough to matter.
2Every answer explained
Not only which one is right — why the others are wrong.
3A discussion on each
Ask, answer, and vote. Every question has its own thread.
A question, and the idea behind it
Every question comes from a concept
These are not trivia. Each one is written against a concept in the book, so when you get one wrong there is somewhere to go and find out why.
The visual book
See it once. Carry it into the exam.
The pages shown here come from our AI-900 book — an example of how each concept is written in plain language and, where the idea needs one, drawn as a full page you can take in at a glance.
164concepts
517free questions
Why a picture, and not another paragraph
Three reasons, and each one is a real finding rather than a slogan.
You can see it againThe whole idea at onceWhere it starts, what happens in the middle, what comes out, and the mistake to avoid.
Multimedia principle · MayerThe look-alikes sit togetherThe pairs the exam tests are drawn side by side, so the difference is seen, not told.
Dual coding · PaivioWhat one page is made of
You are never asked to read a poster here — only to see how one is built. After that, every other page is legible at a glance.
1A numbered strip on top
The idea as a sequence, followed with a finger before a word is read.
2Panels for the parts
What it is, how the machine learns it, when it is the right tool.
3The trap, framed
The distinction the exam tests, given its own box instead of buried in prose.
4One line at the bottom
The sentence to carry into the exam room.
Open book, on purpose
Answer it with the picture beside you
This is the part that teaches. The illustration and the written explanation stay where they are while you work, so a scenario stops being a memory test and becomes something you can simply look at.
It teaches · it does not count
A smartphone uses AI to unlock when the owner looks at the camera. Which AI capability is being used?
AImage classification
BFacial recognition
COptical character recognition
DObject detection
Look at the five steps. Detect finds a face, align straightens it, encode turns it into numbers, search compares it with a stored face, and decide answers one question: is this the same person? Classification would only say “a face”. Detection would only draw a box. Neither decides whose.
Then the page shuts, and it starts counting
The same questions come back with the book closed — that run is the one that counts. After it, your coach picks one thing for tonight, sized to the time you have, and brings pages back before you lose them.
Testing effect · Roediger & Karpicke 2006 · spacing effect · Cepeda et al. 2006
Official resources
Straight from Dell Technologies
Where the exam is defined, scheduled and scored.
3official links
164concepts mapped
The source
Dell Technologies’s own pages
We link to them rather than repeat them, so nothing here goes stale behind them.
Checked against the source
Every objective on the official Dell Technologies outline already has questions here
We build from the official skills outline, not from a summary of it — 24 objectives, 164 concepts written under them, and free questions against every one. When Dell Technologies changes the outline, this page changes with it.
24objectives on the outline→164concepts written→517free questions
An official page tells you what will be asked. It cannot tell you what you will get right.
That is the only question worth answering the night before, and no link answers it. You answer it by taking the questions with the book closed, and seeing what comes back.