I’ve never really cared about certificates, except for those SSL ones (haha). Yet, I was able to pass AWS Certifications tests. Why? What can you do to prepare? How do I get through? What is the best way to pay 50% of the test cost? I have the answer to all questions in this article.
After completing both the Professional-level exam. As the DevOps Engineer and Solutions Architect, I shared my thoughts on the exams on Twitter. There was interest, so this blog post expands on the tweets by providing content that is universal to every AWS Certifications.
What do you mean by AWS certificates?
These Foundational, Associate and Professional-level certificates provide education pathways suitable for Architects and Engineers. They cover a vast array of AWS solutions and services built on AWS. Specialty certificates are focused on particular areas and provide a lot of specifics about the services that are covered.
What AWS certificate is right for you?
If you’re a “tech” person – don’t attempt the Cloud Practitioner Exam for Foundations. It’s very abstract and requires only the knowledge of the cloud, its benefits concepts, and the function of core services. But, it could be a good test for Marketing, Sales or agile people in your company, assisting them in understanding better the technology Engineers work with.
How much do AWS exams cost?
In the example from the image above as you can see in the illustration above, the Foundational test is the most affordable exam – it costs “only” 100 USD.
But you pay just 50% of the price! After passing an exam, you receive a certificate with 50% off the following one. If you study well and succeed on the first attempt, you can take half the cost of the tests after the first.
Do AWS Certificates expire?
Each certificate is valid for three years. To maintain the validity of your certificate, you have to either take the test or obtain the highest level of certification. The lines of connection in the illustration above indicate which certifications extend each other. It is possible to keep your Cloud Practitioner Certificate – Foundational by obtaining any Associate-level certificate. The DevOps Engineer – Professional certification extends an opportunity to use both SysOps Administrator and Developer certificates. SysOps Administrator certifications from the Associate level. Also, the Solution Architect Associate’s validity status is extended by passing the Solution Architect Professional test.
Why do certificates expire? Besides the obvious financial reasons, AWS constantly adds new features and services. Exams are periodically updated with new questions that reflect this. In three years it is always possible to find new, improved and more efficient methods to tackle specific problems.
Are they relevant to real work?
Each exam will expose you to situations and services you do not face in your daily work. This is because there are myriad options to deploy solutions on AWS. Making the certificate more customized will require more specific and not end with more than 50 certificates.
There’s no architect who works with all scenarios you will be being tested against to earn MS Azure Certification even in a short period. Solutions Architect – Professional certificate. Also, engineers will only utilize some databases and all the associated features you’ll need to pass the Database Specialty exam. Specialty test. This means you can appreciate the importance of the subject overlapping with your daily job.
How do you prepare for AWS Certificate?
I always count on these three elements to prepare in preparation for AWS Certificate exams:
- Practical experience
- Certificate course,
- Answering practice questions.
The first, which is practical experience, should be noticed. The more hands-on experience you can get in the service you’re asked about the more valuable. However, you could learn all you need to know in the classroom and pass the test. I highly recommend against this. A little prior experience in core services for the certification can make learning and taking the test much less difficult.
Many times when I took the AWS tests
I received a question and wasn’t sure of the answer immediately but I figured it out by referring to similar work I’ve done previously. Remembering what you’ve worked on is much simpler than the information you received in the course.
This leads us to the next section of the course. I recommend Udemy courses from Stephane Maarek. Although I’m not usually the biggest fan of video-based classes, this is the best and most complete way to understand the exam’s content and learn the most concise information I could find.
But don’t simply observe
Learning through active participation is more efficient!
Take notes. Make mind maps. Whatever you want to do. Most importantly, access AWS Console to learn the concepts and services you’ve learned. If you have set up the services by yourself either for a few times and you are more likely to remember them better for the test and know what alternatives could be used and what alternatives were isn’t.
