CBT Systems Wins Highest Honors From Prestigious Institute of IT Training; Gold Winner of Self Study Course of The Year Award for Third Consecutive Year.

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 27, 1999--

CBT Systems, a leading provider of interactive education software for information technology (IT) training, has been awarded the Institute of IT Training's Gold Award for the Self Study Course of the Year for the third consecutive year. This year, CBT Systems again submitted a Microsoft course--Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5: Connectors--for consideration by the judging panel. CBT Systems was also awarded Silver in the Training Company of the Year category for the second year running, against strong competition from some of the industry's other leading IT training vendors.

"This third consecutive win for CBT Systems is a resounding endorsement of the superiority of the quality of our training content," said Gregory M. Priest, CBT Systems president and CEO. "At a time when there is much industry and customer excitement around the technology associated with IT training delivery, it is clear that quality content must come first and foremost. Content is king; in the absence of quality content, the other much talked-about elements of online learning solutions--deployment, management, testing and reporting mechanisms--are essentially irrelevant."

The Winning Course--Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5: Connectors

CBT Systems' Microsoft Exchange Server 5.5: Connectors course was shown with CBTCampus, and CBT Systems' online mentoring service, which gives students 24-hour tutorial support from certified learning advisors, over the Internet. CBT Systems was also awarded extra merit for the depth of its partnership with Microsoft, proven design methodology, research initiatives and certification endorsements, as well as customer and industry endorsements.

Nancy Lewis, general manager, training and certification at Microsoft congratulated CBT Systems on winning this prestigious award. Lewis said, "We have found, in our relationship with CBT Systems over the years, that the quality of their product is consistently high, and that they map their curricula well to Microsoft's MCP and MCSE certification paths."

According to the criteria for the Self Study Course of the Year award, CBT Systems' self-study courseware was rated "excellent", scoring highly in the following areas: definition and objectives, definition of the audience, definition of skills needs, structure of content, use of graphics, interaction within the course, use of hands-on exercises, measurement of skills transfer, impact on "on-the-job" performance, client reactions/endorsements, quality of presentation and response to questions, and, finally a superb overall impression. The course was also given high marks for being available in French and German as well as demonstrating other new features such as advanced simulations.

About the Institute of IT Training

The Institute is an independent non-profit organization, registered in the UK, and is the world's first professional body for IT training managers and practitioners. It was formally launched on 30th November 1995. The Institute's mission statement is "To create an environment in which the effectiveness of investment in IT is maximized through continuous improvement in training and skills transfer practices."

About CBT Systems

CBT Systems, a subsidiary of CBT Group PLC (Nasdaq:CBTSY), is a leading provider of interactive education software to individuals and business, education and government markets worldwide. The company's comprehensive library covers a range of information technology topics, as well as education on business, management, and professional development. CBT Systems' courseware, which features in-depth, interactive content, engaging graphics, and hands-on simulations, is optimized for enterprise-wide deployment over networks, intranets, and the Internet.

For information about CBT Systems products, call [phone], fax [phone], or send an email to [e-mail]. CBT Systems is located on the World Wide Web at http://www.cbtsys.com.

-0-

Note to Editors:

CBT Systems and the CBT Systems logo are trademarks of CBT Group PLC. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the respective companies with which they are associated.