An Amazon Web Services (AWS) certification is a way to substantiate your understanding of Amazon’s most fundamental cloud concepts. IT professionals just have to pass one or more exams to be certified. You have to remember that certifications don’t mean you have more technical knowledge than the other guy, but it does mean you have a foundation to build on. It also says that you are eager to learn and familiar with cutting edge technology.
The real drive behind AWS certifications is to get you to understand the different services that are available within their infrastructure. These AWS services allow you to easily and efficiently migrate your on-premise systems into the cloud regardless of on-premise complexities that exist today.
AWS Exam Focus Areas
Amazon offers five different areas of certification that start off with Cloud Practitioner, Solutions Architect, Developer, Operations, and very specific specialties.
The Cloud Practitioner exam is all about validating your overall skill sets as it relates to Cloud technology. This exam focuses on being industry-recognized and increases your professional credibility.
A Solutions Architect exam focuses on learners being able to display their ability to architect advanced applications using the AWS infrastructure.
The Developer exam gives you an opportunity to display your understanding of deploying, developing, and debugging applications using AWS technologies. This can be a focus for anyone with one year of hands-on experience and with a solid understanding of a programming language.
The Operations exam, also called AWS Sysops exam, emphasizes an individual skill set as it relates to a system administrator who focuses on automating and designing deployments of networks, systems, and applications within the AWS platform.
Finally, the Specialties exams validate AWS-certified learners in a more in-depth fashion based on their specific industry skill set. One specialty is for advanced networking, which validates a learner’s ability to understand networking concepts with the AWS infrastructure. The other specialty is focused on security. The security-based specialty is all about your experiences in a security role, and is associated with the Amazon network and your on-premise systems.
About the AWS Exam: Cost and Length
Let’s talk about AWS certification costs. The costs range from $100 to $300 depending on which certification exam you are pursuing. The associate level exams are all $150, the practitioner exam is $100, and the professional certification exam is $300.
The AWS Sysops Admin exam is set at 80 minutes, while the AWS Solutions Architect is 130 minutes. The AWS Cloud Practitioner exam is only 90 minutes, and the professional version of the AWS exams are set at 170 minutes.
Posted by: John Brooks