What transfers from accounting
More than you might expect. Microsoft's MB-310 audience profile asks for a foundational understanding of accounting principles and financial operations. Then it lists the feature sets a candidate covers: general ledger, cash and bank management, tax, accounts receivable, credit and collections, accounts payable, expense management, budgeting, fixed assets, cost accounting, and consolidation and elimination. An accountant who has run month-end, chased aged debt or built a depreciation schedule already knows why each of these exists. Consultants without that background spend years learning it.
The close is where you will stand out. The exam covers designing period-end and year-end processes, consolidation and elimination, and ledger settlements. When a client's controller says the intercompany eliminations never tie out, you will know what they mean. You will also know which questions to ask. That credibility in a workshop is the main thing an accountant brings that a technical hire does not.
What is new
Configuration is the big shift. As a user you post journals. As a consultant you decide how the system behaves before anyone posts. The MB-310 skills list is full of setup work: financial dimensions, account structures and advanced rules, posting profiles, journal controls, posting layers, currency revaluation profiles and fixed asset books. You need to know what each setting does downstream and how it shapes reporting. Most new consultants find this the steepest part.
The other new skills are workshops, data and project tooling. Microsoft's guidance says functional consultants gather and analyze requirements and map them to product capabilities. It also says they work across configuration, data migration, testing and support. In practice you run design sessions with people who disagree, write up decisions, and load opening balances and master data. Then you test it all before go-live. Microsoft also names Lifecycle Services, Power Platform admin center and Azure DevOps as everyday tools for this role.
The super-user route inside an employer
The cleanest way in is to already work for a company that is implementing Dynamics 365 Finance, and volunteer. Microsoft's implementation guidance recommends that each project workstream have a lead subject matter expert from the matching business function. That person should be able to represent the business's needs. On a finance workstream, that is often a senior accountant or finance systems lead. Super users who test, train colleagues and support go-live do similar work.
Treat that seat as an apprenticeship. Sit in every design workshop, ask the partner consultants why they chose each setting, and own your own test scripts. After go-live, the company still needs someone who understands the configuration. That leads to an internal finance systems role or a move to a Microsoft partner. Partners hire people who have lived through a go-live from the client side, because they already know where projects go wrong.
MB-310 and the certification
Passing Exam MB-310 earns Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Finance Functional Consultant Associate. The exam lasts 100 minutes, is proctored, is offered in English and Japanese, and needs a score of 700 to pass. In the skills measured from August 14, 2026, financial management carries 35 to 40 percent. Accounts receivable, credit, collections and subscription billing carry 15 to 20 percent. Accounts payable and expenses, budgeting, and fixed assets carry 10 to 15 percent each.
Microsoft's instructor-led course for this exam, MB-310T00, runs four days, and free self-paced paths are on Microsoft Learn. The certification renews every 12 months at no cost through an online assessment. A certification will not replace project experience, but it gets your CV past the first screen. It also gives you structure for learning the setup screens you never saw as a user. Get hands-on time in a trial or sandbox environment before you sit the exam.
Pay
USD a year, before tax. D365 Market advertised pay from US adverts that state pay, snapshot 2026-11-05: 14 adverts from 12 employers. These are advertised figures, not earnings, and they lean toward states with pay transparency laws. Entry roles for career changers will usually sit below the median. Refer to the Dynamics 365 Finance & Operations salary guide for figures from live adverts.
What you need
- Accounting backgroundMicrosoft expects a foundational understanding of accounting principles and financial operations. Hands-on GL, AP, AR and close experience is the asset you bring.
- Exam MB-310Earns the Dynamics 365 Finance Functional Consultant Associate certification. It is 100 minutes and proctored, with 700 needed to pass.
- Configuration knowledgeKnow how financial dimensions, account structures, posting profiles, journals and fixed asset books are set up. Knowing how to use them is not enough.
- Workshop and documentation skillsYou need to run requirements sessions, map business processes to the product and write up design decisions.
- Data and testingExpect to help with data migration, opening balances and test scripts before go-live.
- Annual renewalRenew the certification every 12 months by passing a free online assessment on Microsoft Learn.
How to get there
- Before you startStrengthen your finance baseGet solid hands-on experience with GL, AP, AR, fixed assets and the month-end and year-end close.
- During a projectJoin an implementation as SME or super userVolunteer for your employer's Dynamics 365 Finance project. Attend design workshops, write test scripts and train colleagues.
- Months 1-6Learn the setup sideWork through Microsoft Learn paths or the four-day MB-310T00 course. Practice configuration in a sandbox.
- Months 3-9Pass MB-310Earn the Finance Functional Consultant Associate certification. Focus on financial management, the largest exam area.
- Year 1-2Take a consultant or finance systems roleMove to a Microsoft partner as a junior functional consultant, or into an internal finance systems team.
- Year 3+Broaden and lead workstreamsAdd depth in tax, consolidation, budgeting or supply chain costing, then lead a finance workstream.
Open now on D365 Market
Questions people ask
Do I need to be a qualified accountant to become a Dynamics 365 Finance consultant?
No. Microsoft asks for a foundational understanding of accounting principles, not a professional qualification. A CPA, ACCA or CIMA still helps with credibility in client workshops, especially for close and consolidation work.
Which exam should an accountant take first?
Exam MB-310, which earns Microsoft Certified: Dynamics 365 Finance Functional Consultant Associate. It covers financial management, receivables, payables and expenses, budgeting and fixed assets. Those are the areas an accountant already knows from the user side.
How hard is MB-310 for someone from accounting?
The accounting concepts will be familiar. The hard part is configuration: dimensions, account structures, posting profiles and journal controls. Plan for hands-on sandbox practice, since you need 700 to pass in 100 minutes.
Can I move into consulting without project experience?
Some partners hire certified career changers as junior consultants, but project experience makes the move much easier. Serving as the finance subject matter expert or super user on your employer's implementation is the most reliable way to get it.
Does the certification expire?
Yes. The Finance Functional Consultant Associate certification renews every 12 months. You renew at no cost by passing an online assessment on Microsoft Learn.
What does a Dynamics 365 Finance role pay in the US?
US adverts on D365 Market that state pay show a median of $165,295 a year, from 14 adverts as of November 5, 2026. That is advertised pay for all experience levels. A first consulting role after a move from accounting will usually pay less.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Dynamics 365 Finance Functional Consultant Associate certification
- Microsoft Learn: Study guide for Exam MB-310
- Microsoft Learn: Course MB-310T00-A, Manage Financial Operations with Dynamics 365 Finance
- Microsoft Learn: What is a functional consultant in Dynamics 365 implementations?
- Microsoft Learn: Organize your Dynamics 365 project team
- D365 Market: advertised salaries
