What is AWS Certification?

The full form of AWS is Amazon Web Services. AWS is one of the most valued cloud-associated expertise credentials obtained by professionals after passing the subsequent exams offered by the AWS Cloud platform. The ultimate goal behind attaining AWS-level certification is to demonstrate and validate their technical cloud knowledge and skills and become eligible to practice as a cloud practitioner.

AWS certification is a credential that validates cloud expertise and demonstrates technical cloud knowledge and skills. There are different types of AWS certifications available, each designed for a specific role or specialty. AWS certifications can help professionals advance their careers in cloud computing, highlight in-demand skills, and build effective, innovative teams for cloud initiatives.

Furthermore, one can find the various role-based certification options available (including cloud engineers, administrators, architects, etc.) that aim to certify a candidate in that specific position within the cloud domain. Thus, helping them upskill their intermediate cloud expertise to proficient levels.

All of this is explained below, along with other quintessential details, such as what is the AWS certification course and how one can become certified.

Why is AWS Certification important?

AWS is known to provide more features than any other cloud provider that is equipped with the essential cloud domain services like cloud computing, storage, databases, ML, AI, data lakes and analytics etc. All these factors highly contribute to its relevancy and the subsequent course.

So once we have understood “what an AWS course is”, the factors elevating its importance become clearer.

Organisations constantly look out for candidates adept at cloud skills to help transform their businesses. This way, getting an AWS certification promotes such candidates to validate their experience to the recruiters. AWS Certification exams are renowned for thoroughly assessing the most in-demand cloud concepts, indicating that the certificate holder has industry-centric cloud competencies across the most prevalent cloud computing domain.

Furthermore, as the incorporation of AWS services increases across multiple platforms, it becomes evident that AWS certification will soar in value.

How do I become AWS Certified?

Even though no concrete steps are described to attain AWS certification, there are certain strategically ebbed moves to get a head start.

• Foremost, enrol in an AWS certification training program with a credible record of the candidate passing the test.
• Thoroughly devise a plan to complete the preparation. Review the study guides, white pages, and practice tests until you get confident in your respective field.
• Explore and use the AWS cloud platform.
• Attain practical experience from real-time AWS projects and some necessary skill sets to improve your understanding of AWS cloud operations.
• Schedule the exam once your training is completed.

How long does it take to become AWS certified?

The exact duration is variable, depending on an individual’s prior AWS knowledge. For instance, if a candidate is entirely fresh in the cloud initiatives yet has some IT experience, they can take up to 90-100 hours of steadfast preparation to pass the AWS certification exam. The exam itself will take 90 min approx, and you’ll have to take it in one of the hundreds of test centres available.

What are the various role-based AWS Certifications?

Amazon Web Services certification includes 12 certification programs categorised based on a specific industry-related role in the cloud domain.

• Cloud developer
• Cloud Architect
• Solutions Architect
• DevOps Engineer
• AWS network engineer

Respectively, AWS offers a variety of certification exams to attain these role-based credentials. Some of which can be mandatory, whereas others are required based on the certification level. All the role-based AWS Certification exams are categorised on the basis of their difficulty level below:

Foundational Level:

• AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner

Foundational exams are not compulsory; however, they are highly preferred due to being designed to test basic Cloud Computing skills.

Associate Level:

• AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate
• AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
• AWS Certified Developer – Associate

If you plan to attain a professional or Speciality certification, then clearing the associate exam is mandatory to become eligible.

Professional:

• AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional
• AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional

Professional certifications denote an advanced knowledge of cloud skills and therefore are highly sought out by companies during recruitment.

Speciality:

• AWS Certified Security – Specialty
• AWS Certified Machine Learning – Specialty
• AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty
• AWS Certified Database – Specialty
• AWS Certified Data Analytics – Specialty

Speciality exams are optional and designed only for those aspirants who wish to verify their specific technology-based skills, such as data analytics, security, networking, etc.

FAQS about AWS Certification

What do you mean by AWS Certificate Manager?

Another widely popular question about the AWS domain is What is AWS Certificate Manager? Let’s explore.

AWS certificate manager (ACM) is a service the AWS platform provides to provision, deploy, and manage the public and private Secure Sockets Layer/Transport Layer Security (SSL/TLS) certificates for use. These SSL/TLS certificates are used to protect and secure network communications and establish the website’s identity all over the internet, along with resources on a private network. Furthermore, ACM removes the time-consuming manual process of purchasing, uploading and renewing these SSL/TLS certificates.

Which AWS Certification is the best for a career beginner?

The AWS cloud practitioner certification is often considered the best for a career beginner; this is because the certificate only involves the fundamental concepts of the cloud domain without divulging much into the technical aspects of the operations. Therefore, this is an ideal option for candidates with no prior IT training and looking to start their journey in the AWS cloud platform. Moreover, one can continually advance to the associate Level of certification once one completes this program. To become an AWS-certified cloud practitioner, you must pass the CLF-C01 exam.

Where can I get to know more details about the AWS course details?

To learn more details, you can always visit the official page for Amazon Web Service.

Are there any AWS beginners courses?

There are several AWS courses available online that are suitable for beginners wanting to learn the core AWS services, key AWS security concepts, basics of building serverless AWS applications etc. Most recommended courses are AWS fundamentals specialisation, Ultimate AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate, and AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate SAA-C02 (2023) by Neil Davis, etc. These will provide you with a comprehensive overview of the AWS solutions.

What are the steps involved in AWS certification?

To attain an AWS certification, a candidate can follow specific steps that are identified as giving fruitful results to aspirants effectively:

• First, select the Amazon certification you wish to earn, and schedule to attempt the exam.
• Go to its official page, and download the relevant detailed guidelines along with the crucial topics contributing to the exam.
• Map out a plan including the essential tasks, such as going through the exam material, white pages, and sample questionnaires.
• Attempt Practice AWS Certification exams for self-assessment.
• Take the official AWS certification exam when fully prepared.

Lastly, all certification expires after two years, after which the IT pros will have to recertify their specific certification.