Lessons Learned From Taking AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner Exam

AWS (Amazon Web Services) is a cloud computing solution from Amazon offered to enterprises and government agencies globally. It offers a pay-as-you-go approach for pricing for over 160 cloud services with no upfront fees hence; its increasing popularity and demand. AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner is the entry point and sole foundation to start your journey with AWS certification.

AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification is designed for Systems Engineers, Network Engineers, Developers, Marketing, Sales, Purchasing, or Finance specialists. Although it does not go deep on any particular service, it focuses on the general structure of AWS imparting knowledge of what major cloud computing services are available.

Preparing for the Exam
The AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification Exam covers four domains on AWS, which include Cloud Concepts, Security, Technology, Billing, and Pricing. There are numerous online resources that helped me prepare for exams including, Udemy courses, online videos, practice questions, and most important AWS free white papers, which are very important resources to get detailed knowledge of services. Amazon provides a free tier account, which offers the ability to explore and try out AWS services free of charge up to specified limits for each service for 12 months, which is enough time to practice for the certification.

The exam is scaled on a score between 100 and 1000 with the minimum passing score set at 70%.  AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification Exam has multiple choice and objective questions with no negative marking. The time limit to complete the exam is 90 minutes.  You can opt to sit for the exam in a center within your locale. AWS training website provides a list of all the examination centers near you. Alternatively, you can take the exam from the comfort and convenience of your home or office with the online-proctored exam. I preferred to use the examination center to avoid distractions that are inevitable in the office or at home.

After completing Cloud Practitioner certification I got confidence and overall understanding of the AWS platform, with this knowledge I can work on most of the services which are included in this exam and can proceed towards the next level of certification.

To Schedule Exam
To schedule your exam, sign in into AWS website Certification on the top navigation of the page. You will be directed to the AWS Certification Account, followed by a Schedule New Exam. There are two options for the type of examination you wish to undertake: PSI or Pearson VUE where you will be redirected to the test delivery provider to complete the registration process. In the event of an unforeseen circumstance that prevents you from taking the exam on the scheduled day, you have up to 24 hours before the exam starts to cancel and reschedule without incurring any cancellation fees.

AWS Whitepapers & Guide
As part of the study plan, AWS offers a 6-hour video course and comprehensive white papers with detailed information to advance your knowledge. The three white papers for this exam include:

• Overview of Amazon Web Services (94 pages)
• Architecting for the Cloud: AWS Best Practices (50 pages)
• How AWS Pricing Works (22 pages)

I would recommend using AWS whitepaper and other resources to prepare for the exam and practicing the services using a free tier account will help you to clear the certification, each AWS Certification is valid for a period of 3 years. In the 15 years, we have been in operation, we have partnered with Fortune 500 companies and SMBs in offering the required solutions to implement cloud computing infrastructure.