All you need to know about PL-300 Course Changes

Microsoft PL-300 is one of the most sought-after certifications from Microsoft in recent years. Adapted to frequent changes in the industry, the PL-300 Microsoft certification for Power BI Analysts has always been in demand. Now there are some major changes to the PL-300 course in June 2025, including the title change. In the recent update, it is noticeably clear that Microsoft has put its best efforts to align the PL-300 course with the modern analytics practices and requirements, and also better align with the Microsoft Fabric to enhance hands-on learning experiences.

In this blog post, we are going to break down what is new, why it matters, and how it will affect you if you are looking forward to taking the PL-300 certification very soon.

Rationale behind the change:

With the rapidly changing analytics requirements, Microsoft has decided to align Power BI with Microsoft Fabric, adopting Microsoft Copilot, and other advanced AI-driven insights with a strong emphasis on data governance. To give a backstory, Power BI was initially introduced as a part of Power Platform technology, along with Power Apps, Power Automate, and Power Virtual Agent (now Copilot Studio). But now, slowly in the last one and a half years, there have been serious efforts by Microsoft to put Power BI under its data technology.

That took complete shape when they introduced Fabric. However, the PL-300 course was still not updated as required, in line with Fabric technology. That is the number one reason for this realignment of the PL-300 course. Also, with the growing requirements of Gen AI, Microsoft also decided to pack the Power BI Copilot closely with the PL-300 course, which now includes an overview of using Copilot in Power BI, emphasizing report development. Although these two are the major triggers for the change, there have also been some updates in the labs.

Key Changes in PL-300 course (Effective June 27, 2025)

Here is the list of the major updates:

• Course Title Change: PL-300 has changed its name from ‘Power BI Data Analyst’ to “Design and Manage Analytics Solutions Using Power BI”, which clearly reflects the focus and purpose of the course. It clearly states that the PL-300 is not just about mere reporting, but there is more to it.
• Redesigned Day-wise Agenda: With the new day-wise agenda, you will notice that there is a change in the flow, which makes it more meaningful and smoother for the learners, giving importance to emerging technologies like Microsoft Fabric and Copilot for Power BI.
• Emphasis on Power BI Copilot & Fabric: As you can see in the above, Power BI Copilot and Microsoft Fabric topics have been moved into the right flow and have been kept as an essential part of PL-300.
• Removed Dashboard Module: As a shift towards more practical and meaningful usage of Power BI, the “Create Dashboard” module has been removed, which emphasizes the importance of building reports and storytelling.
• Updated topics on Security: Topics on Row Level Security and report security have been updated to keep up with the pace of the industry requirements.
• Changes in Lab: Other than removing the dashboard lab, they have also focused on improving the labs on data modelling and DAX, which now makes it easier for users to perform and understand them. Another good thing is that they have further broken down one seemingly complicated DAX lab into different labs, which are smaller in size and more meaningful.

The way forward for you

Whether you are a beginner aiming to break into analytics or a seasoned pro looking to validate your Power BI skills, the new PL-300 path provides a much more modern and realistic learning experience. The inclusion of DAX writing, visual analytics, and Copilot ensures you are not just consuming data—but creating meaningful insights and automated reports.

If you have already started your preparations for the old PL-300 materials, do not worry, your efforts still count. But it is a good idea to align your learning with the new structure. Always make sure to check out the latest updates and exam structure of PL-300 from the official MS learn page.

If you have not yet started your preparations and you are looking forward to an instructor-led training program, make sure you get the best training available for Power BI, where certified instructors will guide you through the latest curriculum.

The updated PL-300 is not just a facelift. It is a clear reflection of where business intelligence is heading and how Microsoft wants to place Power BI in the realms of Business Intelligence and Data Analytics.

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By: Shahab Muhammed