Top Amazon Certifications

Amazon is a global vendor that offers 175+ different cloud solutions to help businesses around the world. As a rule, professionals and recruiters trust the AWS certifications as they represent a solid validation of cloud management skills. For example, AWS cloud solutions are not only used in international corporations but also improve the business processes for startups. Any practitioner who adds an AWS designation under his/her belt will significantly improve his/her capacity and skills to solve complicated issues and innovate business processes.

Structure of AWS Certification Program

The candidates interested in leveraging their skills in using AWS services can choose between 12 certifications. They are split into the following categories:

• Foundational certificate, which is suitable for those exam-takers who have 6-month prior experience working with AWS Cloud services. The AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner is the cert included in this category.
• Associate-level validations are dedicated to those specialists who already have one year of experience implementing and managing AWS cloud services. The certifications included in this section are the SysOps Administrator, Developer, and Solutions Architect.
• Professional designations are the ones as the DevOps Engineer and Solutions Architect. In case you have a minimum of 2 years of experience designing and troubleshooting different processes by using the AWS Cloud platform, then you can access the certifications available at this level.
• Specialty certifications are suitable for those individuals who want to consolidate their skills in Security, Data Analytics, Database, Machine Learning, Advanced Networking, or Alexa Skill Builder deployment and installation.

Now that you’re aware of the AWS certification program, let us get acquainted with some of the most popular designations of this vendor below.

AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner

An individual who works for an international organization, in a non-technical role, will find the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner qualification as the winning solution for consolidating his/her position in the company. Amazon doesn’t have mandatory prerequisites for this validation, but it recommends that the exam-takers should have spent a minimum of 6 months on a position that requires management of AWS Cloud infrastructure. Also, this designation can only be obtained by passing one exam coded CLF-C01. Its registration fee is $100 and the allotted time for completion is 1 hour and a half. To be successful in this test, the candidates will need to demonstrate that they understand how to manage the fundamental cloud concepts. They should also be able to handle compliance and security issues, as well as get familiar with pricing, billing, and other technical terms.

AWS Certified Developer – Associate

A specialist who wants to learn how to develop, deploy, and troubleshoot the AWS Cloud architecture should apply for the AWS Certified Developer – Associate certificate. However, the exam-takers should have a minimum of 1 year of expertise working with apps that will help manage AWS systems as well as knowing how to work with CLIs, SDKs, and other features that contribute to the development of AWS services. The necessary test to procure this certification is DVA-C01. Candidates have higher chances to secure the minimum passing score of 720 points if they can demonstrate that they know how to deploy the AWS cloud platform and its security topics. Besides, they should demonstrate knowledge of refactoring, troubleshooting, and monitoring, as well as developing & managing AWS services.

AWS Certified Data Analytics – Specialty

If you are interested in consolidating your skills in data analytics, then you can apply for the AWS Certified Data Analytics – Specialty designation. The vendor’s recommendation though is to have at least 5 years of experience handling different data analytics technologies and related tasks. Also, you should be familiar with using the AWS architecture for a minimum of 2 years. This certification can be obtained after getting a minimum of 750 points in DAS-C01 exam. The registration fee that you will need to pay is $300. By taking this certification test, you will validate your skills in managing the data collection process as well as data management and storage. You will also demonstrate that you are an expert in data security and processing. Finally, the AWS DAS-C01 test will help you become skilled in visualization and data analysis.

Official Courses for Amazon Certifications

When it comes to reliable training for the aforementioned designations, we recommend the succeeding options:

• AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials (Classroom)

  This is a one-day course, developed by AWS skilled instructors. In particular, it covers the fundamental level and the knowledge that the candidates need to know for the AWS Cloud Practitioner certification. During this class, the attendees will get a solid understanding of how the AWS Cloud concepts work as well as how to become independent in relevant technical positions. Also, it helps them get a detailed overview of cloud basic infrastructure and how different AWS methods can interact with AWS Cloud architecture. Applicants will also be exposed to concepts related to pricing and billing, together with learning how to ensure the proper security standards when working in a cloud environment. It’s noteworthy that this classroom course combines theoretical knowledge with hands-on lab experiences. Therefore, the exam-takers will know how to handle different situations that might appear in the real-world scenario.

• Developing on AWS

  This class is suitable for both the AWS Certified Developer – Associate and the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner certifications. The individuals who will take such a course will develop their knowledge of using the AWS SDK cloud apps. Then, you will learn how to use the Access Management and AWS Identity tools to keep the highest standards in service authentication. You will also be aware of the Web Identity Framework, Amazon Cognito, or ElastiCache concepts to help you with user authentication. All in all, this course targets fresh specialists who want to develop their skills for becoming experienced software developers. Thus, they should have an intermediate knowledge of using and troubleshooting AWS Cloud services. In general, the examinees can enroll in classroom sessions with the hands-on laboratory. Finally, such training will require the candidates to attend it for 3 days.

• Data Analytics Fundamentals

  During this self-paced class, the candidates will get a clear overview of how to plan different data analysis solutions. The course, in particular, offers candidates an overview of the five most important factors related to AWS's most important services. Therefore, the attendees will learn about analyzing, processing, collecting, and presenting their data. More so, while attending training like this, the examinees will learn about the specifics of different concepts such as Amazon Redshift, EMR, or AWS Glue. Besides, entrants will learn how to isolate the AWS services, together with becoming experts in consistency, atomicity, and durability. This course is delivered in digital format for 3.5 hours. Lastly, the course-takers should have some IT enterprise system experience.

Conclusion

The AWS certification program helps any specialist leverage his/her skills in managing cloud infrastructure. As this technology represents the future, investing in obtaining Amazon designations is one of the wisest investments you could make in your future. After choosing the type of certificate you want to acquire, you should pay attention to the available training opportunities proffered by the vendor itself. This is for sure the winning recipe for success!