Cloud computing is at the heart of modern IT infrastructure, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the leading cloud provider. AWS certifications validate your expertise, open career opportunities, and enhance your credibility in the aws training and certification.
Whether you are a beginner exploring cloud computing or an experienced IT professional looking to specialize, this guide will provide a step-by-step roadmap to AWS training and certification, helping you move from beginner to expert.
Why Pursue AWS Certifications?
✔ Industry Demand – AWS skills are highly sought after by employers.
✔ Career Growth – Certifications can lead to promotions and new job opportunities.
✔ Higher Salaries – AWS-certified professionals earn competitive salaries.
✔ Hands-On Experience – Training programs help build practical skills.
✔ Specialization Options – AWS offers multiple paths to fit different career goals.
Before diving into specific certifications, let’s understand the four certification levels and how they fit into the AWS learning path.
AWS Certification Levels Overview
AWS certifications are categorized into four levels:
| Level | Who It’s For | Certifications Available |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational | Beginners with no AWS experience | AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner |
| Associate | IT professionals with basic AWS knowledge | Solutions Architect – Associate, Developer – Associate, SysOps Administrator – Associate |
| Professional | Experienced AWS professionals | Solutions Architect – Professional, DevOps Engineer – Professional |
| Specialty | Experts in specific domains | Security, Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Networking, Database, SAP on AWS |
Now, let’s break down the roadmap from beginner to expert.
Step 1: Start with the Basics (AWS Cloud Practitioner – Foundational Level)
Who Should Take This?
- Beginners with little or no cloud experience.
- Business professionals working with AWS teams.
- IT professionals transitioning to cloud computing.
What It Covers:
✅ Basic AWS cloud concepts, services, and architecture.
✅ AWS pricing, billing, and cost optimization.
✅ Security, compliance, and support models.
How to Prepare:
📘 AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials Course – Free on AWS Training.
📝 AWS Whitepapers – Read AWS Well-Architected Framework and security best practices.
🛠 Hands-On Labs – Experiment with AWS Free Tier.
Next Step: Once you have a solid foundation, move to Associate-level certifications based on your career interests.
Step 2: Gain Technical Expertise (Associate-Level Certifications)
Associate-level certifications focus on practical AWS skills. Choose based on your career path:
(a) AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
✅ Best For: Solutions Architects, IT Administrators, and Cloud Engineers.
✅ Covers: AWS networking, storage, compute services, high availability, and fault tolerance.
Study Resources:
📘 AWS Architecting Training Course
🛠 Hands-on labs with EC2, S3, RDS, IAM, and VPC
(b) AWS Certified Developer – Associate
✅ Best For: Software Developers, DevOps Engineers, and Cloud Engineers.
✅ Covers: AWS SDK, Lambda, API Gateway, DynamoDB, and CI/CD pipelines.
Study Resources:
📘 AWS Developer Training
🛠 Hands-on labs with AWS Lambda, CodeDeploy, and DynamoDB
(c) AWS Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate
✅ Best For: System Administrators, IT Support Engineers, and Cloud Operations Engineers.
✅ Covers: AWS system management, monitoring, and security best practices.
Study Resources:
📘 AWS SysOps Training
🛠 Hands-on labs with CloudWatch, Auto Scaling, and CloudFormation
Next Step: After earning an Associate-level certification, move to Professional-level certifications.
Step 3: Master Advanced AWS Concepts (Professional-Level Certifications)
Professional-level certifications require deep AWS expertise.
(a) AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional
✅ Best For: Senior Cloud Architects, Cloud Consultants, and Enterprise Architects.
✅ Covers: Advanced cloud architecture, hybrid cloud strategies, automation, and cost optimization.
Study Resources:
📘 AWS Advanced Architecting Course
🛠 Hands-on labs with AWS Organizations, Multi-Region architectures, and AWS CLI
(b) AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional
✅ Best For: DevOps Engineers, Cloud Engineers, and Automation Specialists.
✅ Covers: CI/CD pipelines, infrastructure as code, security automation, and monitoring.
Study Resources:
📘 AWS DevOps Engineering Course
🛠 Hands-on labs with AWS CodePipeline, CloudFormation, and ECS
Next Step: Choose a Specialty Certification if you want to specialize in a specific domain.
Step 4: Specialize in Advanced AWS Domains (Specialty Certifications)
AWS Specialty certifications focus on niche expertise. Choose based on your career interest:
(a) AWS Certified Security – Specialty
✅ Best For: Security Engineers, SOC Analysts, and IT Auditors.
✅ Covers: AWS security best practices, encryption, and incident response.
(b) AWS Certified Machine Learning – Specialty
✅ Best For: Data Scientists, AI Engineers, and Machine Learning Experts.
✅ Covers: AWS AI/ML services like SageMaker, Rekognition, and Lex.
(c) AWS Certified Data Analytics – Specialty
✅ Best For: Data Engineers, Data Analysts, and BI Specialists.
✅ Covers: AWS data lakes, analytics tools, and visualization.
(d) AWS Certified Advanced Networking – Specialty
✅ Best For: Network Engineers, Cloud Architects, and IT Security Experts.
✅ Covers: AWS networking concepts, hybrid cloud solutions, and VPC design.
(e) AWS Certified Database – Specialty
✅ Best For: Database Administrators, Cloud DBAs, and Data Engineers.
✅ Covers: AWS database services like RDS, DynamoDB, and Aurora.
(f) AWS Certified SAP on AWS – Specialty
✅ Best For: SAP Professionals, Cloud Consultants, and Solution Architects.
✅ Covers: Running SAP workloads on AWS.
Step 5: Gain Real-World Experience
🔹 Work on AWS Projects – Deploy real-world applications using AWS services.
🔹 Contribute to Open-Source Projects – Gain hands-on experience.
🔹 Participate in AWS Community & Events – Join AWS re:Invent, AWS Summits, and user groups.
AWS Training & Study Resources
📘 AWS Official Training: AWS Training & Certification Portal
📝 AWS Whitepapers & Documentation: Best practices and use cases
🎥 Online Courses: Udemy, Coursera, A Cloud Guru, Whizlabs
🛠 Hands-on Labs: AWS Free Tier, Qwiklabs, Cloud Academy
Conclusion
Becoming an AWS expert requires structured learning, hands-on practice, and continuous certification.
AWS Roadmap Recap:
✔ Start with AWS Cloud Practitioner for basics.
✔ Move to Associate-level certification based on your career path.
✔ Advance to Professional-level certifications for expert knowledge.
✔ Specialize in AWS Security, ML, Data, or Networking with Specialty certifications.
✔ Gain real-world experience with projects and hands-on practice.
🚀 Start your AWS journey today and become a cloud expert! 🚀
