Detailed Review Of Preparation

Hey there!

Here is a little summary of my Docker Certified Associate journey. I hope it will be helpful!

The Docker certified Associate Exam is not an easy one. As you probably know, Docker is a really vast product and knowing everything is unfortunately not possible. Even more when Kubernetes is a part of the exam. Thus, here are some recommendations that, hopefully, will help you to win some time: 

1. Find the proper course for you. I've followed Zeal's Vora course on Udemy and had no prior Docker knowledge. However, feel free to choose another one. Just make sure that the course you choose contains all the required sections of the exam (Kubernetes in particular). 

2. Set an expected end date for training. As this is a long journey, it's better to plan when it will end. Set an expected end date for training and try to stick to it. 

3. Read Docker and Kubernetes documentation. Among all the different courses and practice tests you will encounter, there is a high probability that something will be unclear or wrong. If you have any doubt about the accuracy of the info, always take Docker/Kubernetes documentations as a reference. 

4. Do the practice tests. Following a course is nice, but doing the practice tests is better. Run the commands on your computer and check the results. This will help you to memorize the outputs. 

5. Register for a Docker Entreprise Trial. Use the 1-month free Docker Enterprise Trial to practice even more. This is a part of the exam. I would recommend starting the trial after having some Docker knowledge. 

6. Check the DCA Study Guide. Check the guide and make sure that you know all the required info. There are also some sample test questions that you can use to practice. 

7. Practice, practice and ... practice. The previous Udemy course contains 5 sample tests (one of 26 questions and four of 50 questions). Do the practice tests, write your incorrect answers and check the results using Docker/Kubernetes documentations if you have any doubt.

8. Practice for the DOMC questions. As DOMC questions are not supported by Udemy, what I would recommend is practicing until you're capable of giving the answer by only reading the question. You shouldn't need to read the answers to find the correct one. 

9. Read Kubernetes documentation. The previous course I was referring to contains some Kubernetes notions. However, unfortunately, at the moment the sample tests don't. What I would recommend here is checking the Docker guide and try to understand which parts of Kubernetes are valuable. Then, a good practice would be to read the proper sections in Kubernetes documentation directly.

10. Schedule your exam. When you think you're ready, schedule your exam and prepare a little training schedule for the remaining days.

11. Rest. The day of the exam, practice a little bit but also rest. It's not a few hours that is going to change the fate of the exam. 

12. Celebrate. Congratulations, you've passed the exam! Take the time to celebrate and rest a little bit before moving to the next one. :)