AWS Certifications

Certification Roadmap

Why AWS Certifications?

AWS Certification helps IT professionals distinguish themselves in a crowded marketplace. In a time where more and more applications and workloads are moving to the cloud, the industry is taking notice.

Achieving AWS Certification demonstrates you have the skills and knowledge required to design, deploy, and operate applications and infrastructure on the world’s largest cloud platform. Which means wherever your career takes you, you’ll be taken seriously.

Overview of AWS Certifications

AWS training is structured around certification that enables employers and IT professionals to validate employees’ skill levels and expertise in the specific functions and features of AWS. There are four types of AWS certification: Foundational, Associate, Professional, and Specialty.

1. Foundational
   Students must have at least six months of fundamental AWS Cloud and industry knowledge. After passing the exam, students then become AWS Certified Cloud Practitioners.

2. Associate
   Students must have at least one year of experience solving problems and implementing solutions using the AWS Cloud. Associate Certifications are available for Solutions Architect (AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate), SysOps Administrator (AWS Certified SysOps Administrator - Associate), Developer (AWS Certified Developer - Associate), and Data Engineer (AWS Certified Data Engineer - Associate)..

3. Professional
   To attain professional certification, students must have two years of comprehensive experience designing, operating, and troubleshooting solutions using the AWS Cloud. Professional certifications are available for Solutions Architect (AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional) and DevOps Engineer (AWS Certified DevOps Engineer - Professional).

4. Specialty
   AWS also offers certifications that confirm students’ expertise using specific capabilities of the AWS Cloud. Specialty certifications are available in Advanced Networking (AWS Certified Advanced Networking - Specialty), Security (AWS Certified Security - Specialty), and Machine Learning (AWS Certified Machine Learning - Specialty).

Benefits of AWS Certification

Benefits of AWS Certifications for Employers

AWS certifications give employers confidence that their IT staff have the knowledge and skills to enable their organisation to gain maximum benefit from their investment in AWS.

How can upskilling existing staff save time and cost compared to recruiting new staff?

• Retain knowledge: Existing employees maintain/pass along institutional knowledge, keeping up momentum on existing and new cloud projects.

• Maintain productivity: Valuable time is saved by freeing up colleagues and managers from the burden of training new employees

• Recruitment costs: Recruitment costs are typically 20 percent of an annual salary and can be higher for specialist roles. Training is often a less-costly option.

• Save time: The average time to hire an IT professional is 56 days. Training and certification can reduce these long delays

• Improve reputation: Certification shows an organisation invests in their staff, making it a more desirable place to work. It establishes an organisation’s reputation as an ambitious, forward-looking enterprise.

Benefits of AWS Certifications for IT Professionals

AWS Training and Certification represent a proven, globally recognised way for IT professionals to validate their technical skills; skills that employers are willing to pay for.

AWS Certification demonstrates an employee has the skills and knowledge required to design, deploy, and operate applications and infrastructure on AWS, the world’s largest cloud platform.

How can up-skilling can increase an individual’s employability and validate their expertise?

• Competitive salary: Certified individuals command higher salaries. Four of the six highest-paying IT salaries in North America are for reserved for individuals certified in either AWS or Google Cloud.

• Increased employability: AWS Certifications are often a prerequisite for certain IT roles — some employers will only consider a candidate who has the relevant certifications.

• Better performance: AWS Certified employees perform at higher levels. They troubleshoot problems and complete projects faster, and they are more productive.

• Increased job satisfaction: Certification enables IT professionals to validate their expertise in the areas they are most interested in and can enable them to explore different career paths

• Expand your network: Certified professionals gain access to the AWS Certified LinkedIn community, receive invitations to exclusive events, and are allowed into the AWS Certification lounges at AWS re: Invent and select AWS Summit events.

FAQs

Why is a AWS certification important? How can it help my career?
AWS Certification enables you to gain recognition for your knowledge and skills in working with AWS services. Preparing for certification requirements provides an opportunity to expand your expertise working with AWS services.

What’s the best AWS certification to get/which AWS certification is most valuable?
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate and AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional are two of the most popular AWS certifications. To learn about each AWS Certification exam and to find out which is the right AWS certification for you click here.

How do I schedule an AWS exam?
To register for an exam, sign in to aws.training and click Certification in the top navigation. Next, 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 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.

How much does an AWS certification cost? **
Prices for exams vary by level and by currency. Foundational exams such as Cloud Practitioner are 100 USD. Associate-level exams are 150 USD. Professional-level and Specialty exams are 300 USD. Please note that taxes may apply.

Do AWS certification exams expire?
AWS requires you to update your certification (or “recertify”) every two years. View the AWS Recertification page for more details.

What is AWS’s exam retake policy?
Test takers who do not pass an exam must wait 14 days before they are eligible to retake the exam. There is no limit on exam attempts until the test taker has passed. For each exam attempt, the full registration price must be paid. Beta exam test takers are eligible for one attempt only.

** Exam prices are correct as of November 2023 and are subject to change.