The Amazon Web Services (AWS) Cloud Practitioner Certification has been on my to-do list ever since I graduated from Fullstack Academy’s DATA program, where I was introduced to some of the services of AWS. Well, I finally took the test and passed!
Similar to the Tableau Desktop Specialist Certification Exam, which I wrote about here, this exam is theory-based with 65 multiple choice and multiple response - not these again - questions. The overview states the test is 90 minutes long and the guide declares the minimum passing score is 700.
Before I continue, I want to include the disclaimer that I do not (yet) use AWS in my professional life. My exposure to AWS is through the aforementioned bootcamp program and the AWS Skill Builder, which was my primary resource in preparing for this exam. I studied using the provided sample questions and AWS Skill Builder for two and a half days and took my test on a Wednesday afternoon.
Within the AWS Skill Builder, there is a Cloud Essentials Learning Plan. There are a number of digital training courses, but I recommend focusing on (1) AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials and (2) Exam Prep: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner.
1. AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials
I like the way this course was formatted; there were videos, readings, some interactive activities, regular quizzes, and the occasional pop quiz question to keep me involved. I took a lot of notes and appreciated the repetition to help me retain information. I especially liked the final assessment of 30 questions at the end of the course; this assessment was an effective gauge of my AWS knowledge.
2. Exam Prep: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
The most helpful part of this course was the question walkthroughs. (One of these questions actually appeared on my test!) I only watched those specific videos because the verbal explanation at the end of each video was valuable in understanding the answer and distractors.
In my first run through the 65 test questions, I flagged 16 questions. I had scratch paper at my testing center to calculate that I flagged 24% of questions. If I’m uncertain about those questions, but correctly answer the remaining 76%, I would pass. In my second run, I halved the number of flagged questions. The odds are better, but I still want to maximize my chances of passing. Even after triple-checking my answers, I completed my exam in about 60 minutes. (I thankfully have become more decisive in answering multiple choice questions.)
That doesn’t mean there were questions that surprised me. There were some services in the multiple choice answers I’ve never heard of and I temporarily forgot about the six pillars of AWS’s Well-Architected framework. Despite the difficulty of some questions, I felt adequately prepared by the resources listed above.
I want to eventually tackle the AWS Data Analytics Specialty, but based on these sample questions, I am nowhere near ready to attempt this exam. I’ll add this certification to my to-do list and undertake it another day.