AWS Cloud Practitioner - The Complete Guide

What is AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification?

AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification is a fundamental level certification designed for anyone who wishes to know the basics of cloud computing with a special focus on Amazon web services. It is an entry-level certification that validates your skill on the Amazon Web Services platform.

Is AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification for you?

This Certification is one of the best to start your journey in cloud computing. Even if you don’t hold a degree, you can still get a job in cloud computing after clearing this Certification and acquiring the right skills!

Companies worldwide are moving to the cloud, and according to IDC, the size of the public cloud market till 2022 is expected to reach $370 billion.

Format:

Online format with four months to complete the entire program. Each individual course must be completed in 6 weeks.

Companies need AWS professionals to :

Design Cloud infrastructure
Manage Cloud Services
Develop Cloud applications & databases

Innumerable businesses are using AWS cloud services, and they’re building new roles all the time.

There aren’t enough AWS professionals on the market to fill the positions. This talent gap puts AWS customers in a tricky situation, but it’s an excellent opportunity for anyone thinking of a career in the AWS market.

Considering the short supply of skilled cloud professionals, folks with the right experience to take on these roles hold all the aces. Indeed, they won’t be short of opportunities when it comes to getting a great job with a generous salary to match.

By 2022 the public cloud services market revenue is forecast to exceed 362.3 billion U.S. dollars, as stated by Statista.

Read: AWS vs. Azure

What Does an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Do?

Now that you understand why an AWS Cloud Practitioner certification can be your first step towards becoming a cloud architect, let’s explore what the job role is all about.

Cloud architects are responsible for managing an organization’s cloud computing architecture. Their role requires being involved in cloud migration initiatives, reviewing workload architectures, and managing their company teams to address high-risk issues.

They also act as a bridge linking the technical and the business sides of cloud adoption. Therefore, it’s a part of their responsibility to oversee that the developers’ technical decisions are closely aligned with business objectives.

What Skills are measured by AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification?

AWS has close to 200 services that they offer but you don’t have to remember all of them. This certification tests and validates your skills in the AWS ecosystem, including AWS compute, storage, networking, database, security, and management services.

What will you learn in AWS Cloud Practitioner certification?

This exam covers four domains, including cloud concepts, security, technology, and billing & pricing.

1.Cloud concepts

What are AWS cloud and its value proposition
Basics of AWS Cloud economics
Cloud architecture and design principles

2. Security

What is AWS’s shared responsibility model
What are AWS cloud security and compliance concepts
AWS access management capabilities
Resources for security support

3. Technology

Different methods of deploying and operating cloud in AWS cloud
AWS global infrastructure
Core AWS services
Resources for technology support

4. Billing & pricing

Comparing different pricing models for AWS
Understanding different account structures in relation to AWS billing & pricing
Resources available for billing support

What are the Prerequisites for AWS cloud practitioner certification?

There are no prerequisites. However, Amazon recommends that you have at least six months of AWS experience in any segment, whether sales, technology, services, or accounts.

If you have a basic understanding of IT concepts and a zeal to learn, you can easily pass this exam.

How to prepare for the AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification Exam?

Self-study resources are usually enough to pass the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam. Below are some suggestions:

Free Course from official AWS
Practice exams once you go through the videos. The link also has AWS Cloud Practitioner FREE Sample Questions.
Amazon also provides Free virtual webinars for preparing for the AWS. You can check out this link from AWS and filter on AWS Cloud Practitioner.
Amazon also provides excellent white papers, and these include:

Must Include exam topics for your AWS Study Plan:

Summarize the working definition of Amazon Web Services
Differentiate between on-premises, hybrid-cloud, and all-in-cloud models
Describe the basic global infrastructure of the AWS Cloud
Explain the six main benefits of the AWS Cloud
Describe and provide an example of the core AWS services, including compute, network, database, and storage services
Identify an appropriate solution using AWS Cloud services for various use cases
Describe the AWS Well-Architected Framework
Explain the AWS Shared Responsibility Model
Describe the core security services within the AWS Cloud
Describe the basics of AWS Cloud migration
Articulate the financial benefits of the AWS Cloud for your organization’s cost management
Define the core billing, account management, and pricing models
Explain how to use pricing tools to make cost-effective choices for AWS services

AWS Cloud Practitioner Exam Details:

Exam Format – 65 Multiple-choice, multiple-answer.The minimum score to pass the exam is 700 out of 1000 – 70%.
Exam Time – 90 minutes
Exam Language – Available in English, Japanese, Korean, and Simplified Chinese
Exam Cost – 100 USD

AWS Practice Exams and Why Are They Important!!

Just covering the course material of cloud practitioners is not enough, as answering a lot of technical questions in a limited time is not easy.

For the best chance of passing the exam, do as many mock tests as you can before appearing for the exam.

The Practice Exam tests are timed just like the actual exam. You can take the exam in practice mode or exam mode at Reviewnprep.

At the end of the AWS Cloud Practitioner practice test, you can check and evaluate your strengths and weaknesses by going through the detailed explanations for each practice exam question.

It is highly recommended to read the explanations given after every practice test, not just for the right choices but also for the wrong ones.

This will help improve your knowledge and increase your score dramatically. By paying attention to these and repeating all the tests until you get more than 90% on each one, you should be able to ace the real exam with confidence.

Don’t forget to take the AWS Cloud Practitioner Practice Tests.

How to schedule the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam?

To register for the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam:

Sign in to AWS training and click Certification in the top navigation.
Click the AWS Certification Account button, followed by Schedule New Exam.
Find the exam you wish to take and click either the Schedule at PSI or the Schedule at Pearson VUE button. You will then be redirected to the test delivery provider’s scheduling page, where you will complete your exam registration.
You can appear for the AWS Cloud Practitioner exam from a testing center or remotely from work or home, considering the present scenario.

What if you fail the AWS Cloud practitioner exam?

You need to wait for 14 days before retaking the exam and need to pay the total cost for the exam again. Therefore it is always recommended to take practice exams first so that you can avoid failure and save time and money.

Does AWS Cloud Practitioner certification expire?

Yes, they have a validity of 3 years.

Do I need to Practice Labs for AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification?

AWS Practitioner Certification is an entry-level cert and the exam doesn’t gauge you on the finer details of the services offered. So, you can skip the labs. However, it is highly recommended that you familiarize yourself with the AWS console.

Create a Free AWS account and explore the dashboard. Click on popular services like EC2 (think servers), DynamoDB (database), S3 (storage), and subnet (network). This will help you better understand the concepts.

How much money can you make after getting AWS Cloud Practioner certified?

The average salary for AWS-certified professionals is $105,000 US According to PayScale.

Note* Salary varies according to skill set, company, and location.

AWS cloud practitioner certification alone wouldn’t make you eligible for high-paying jobs.

AWS Cloud Practitioner certification validates your basic understanding of AWS cloud concepts. To ultimately benefit from your AWS career, you should pursue advanced-level accreditation if you aspire for a high-paying job.

What jobs can you get with an AWS cloud practitioner certification?

This entry-level certification is intended for:

Sales
Legal
Marketing
Business analysts
Project managers
AWS Academy students
Other IT-related professionals

AWS offers six different certifications, grouped into four main paths – Cloud Practitioner, Architect, Developer, and Operations – and additional subpaths. There is also a Specialty Path, divided into five subpaths. Check out each certification path in detail here.

Amazon has a variety of cloud certifications, below are the certificates provided by AWS:

Amazon offers various certifications due to the multiple services it offers. Make sure to be clear on the area you want to focus on in the AWS world to avoid confusion.

How To Choose Which AWS Certification Is Right For Us?

Confused!! Not sure which Amazon web services certification would fit your career the best?

Check out Career Journey, a one-stop shop on how to prepare for a certification.

Career Journey is a free tool from ReviewNPrep that allows you to navigate certifications based on your current industry or role.

The tool will help you determine which AWS certificate would be suitable for you and provides excellent baseline content such as duration, cost, and even expected salary boost.

You can check the tool for AWS here.

A glimpse of the Career journey tool :

Learn From Others!

If you want to know the best and effective strategy to prepare for the exam, pay attention to the experience of successful AWS cloud practitioner holders in the industry who have already passed the exam.

Once you clear the exam, now it’s time to help others. Anyone who has taken the pain of going through the journey is proud of their achievement. Sharing your experience can help many others save their time and energy while preparing for the exam, and we all understand how valuable time is for everyone.

Here is an invitation from Reviewnprep’s community to share your journey and encourage others.

Let’s learn and grow together.

We also believe that anyone who has taken one Certification is looking to enhance their expertise by taking the next level certification.

And here, the role of “share your journey” comes into play.

Check out this informative blog by a certified AWS Cloud Practitioner professional to jumpstart your exam preparation!

Pass the AWS Cloud Practitioner Exam with these tips.

Conclusion

The growth of cloud computing has been indisputable because the cloud enables businesses and their employees to access valuable information from just about anywhere. AWS has the services to help you build complex applications with increased flexibility, scalability, and reliability. Whether you’re looking for compute power, database storage, content delivery, or other functionality, with AWS, you pay just for the specific services you require, for as long as you use them, without complicated licensing. If you are looking forward to getting skilled as a developer or technology professional to the next level, getting AWS certified is worth it, considering the mentioned facts and figures in the blog.

AWS Cloud Practitioner – The Complete Guide