Stuart, Curtis,
Actually getting certified is not that expensive. While the courses maybe more
that you want to pay, following them is not a requirement for certification.
The only requirement is passing the 6 required exams at about $100 a piece. If
you know your stuff and read the material MS tells you the exams are based on,
you will have a very good chance of passing the exams.
There is a lot of material on the certification and even sample exams on CIS.
If you know anyone with an MS technet subscription, the material is also on the
technet CD's (so you don't have to download over 10 MB from CIS).
-Ronald-