AWS Certifications Guide

We offer the entire range of AWS official courses, most of which are aligned with their certifications.

Below is a list of our most popular AWS courses, including a brief outline, the exam that they align with and the number of days the course runs for. 

Depending on your previous experience and background in AWS, some of these certifications may require additional study to be able to pass the related exam. 

AWS Cloud Practitioner - 1 day

- This fundamental-level, one-day, instructor-led classroom course is intended for individuals who seek an overall understanding of the AWS Cloud, independent of specific technical roles. Aligned with the Cloud Practitioner exam. 

AWS Technical Essentials - 1 day

- AWS Technical Essentials introduces you to AWS products, services, and common solutions. Also useful preparation for the Cloud Practitioner exam. 

Architecting on AWS – 3 days  

- This course covers the fundamentals of building IT infrastructure on the AWS platform. Aligned with the Certified Solutions Architect – Associate exam. 

Developing on AWS – 3 days

- Helps developers understand how to use the AWS SDK to develop secure and scalable cloud applications. Aligned with the Certified Developer – Assoicate exam. 

Cloud Operations on AWS – 3 days

- Designed to teach those in a Systems Administrator or Developer Operations (DevOps) role how to create automatable and repeatable deployments of networks and systems on the AWS platform. Aligned with the Certified SysOps Administrator – Associate exam. 

Advanced Architecting on AWS – 3 days

- Intended for individuals who are experienced with designing scalable and elastic applications on the AWS platform it builds on concepts introduced in Architecting on AWS. Aligned with the Certified Solutions Architect – Professional exam. 

DevOps Engineering on AWS – 3 days

- Demonstrates how to use the most common DevOps patterns to develop, deploy and maintain applications on AWS. Aligned with the Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional exam. 

Security Engineering on AWS – 3 days

- Demonstrates how to efficiently use AWS security services to stay secure in the AWS Cloud. Aligned with the Certified Security – Specialist exam. 

Which course(s) should you choose? 

We recognise that just taking the official AWS course may not be enough for you if you are re-skilling or changing career. We have produced a series of learning paths for various job roles, which include additional courses that will provide additional background knowledge suitable for that job role.  

Learn more about AWS training with QA, or find out about AWS Apprenticeships. 

With businesses increasingly relying on cloud computing in day-to-day operations, having individuals who are skilled and certified in software such as AWS has never been so important.  

As one of the most used and recognised platforms in the world of cloud computing, there are many benefits for both individuals and businesses in becoming AWS certified.  

Benefits of AWS certification for individuals: 

Certification is a matter of demonstrating your skills and establishing your credibility. Achieving credentials could open doors to get heavily involved in AWS-related projects, or present to clients as a credible subject-matter expert. 

Of course, if you are job-hunting, just having 'AWS Certified' on your CV will probably not get you hired, but it could help you get you past various gatekeepers and into an interview room. Businesses do not always have an easy way of testing the competencies of a job applicant. Also, they may be sifting through tonnes of CVs, so having the certification certainly gets you the wanted attention. 

Whether having an AWS certification guarantees you a higher salary is a question you may be asking. Now this is very difficult to comment on, but this 2023 PC Magazine article, which lists the ten highest-paying IT certifications, includes three AWS certifications, including the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional at number one! 

Benefits of AWS certification for employers:

Having AWS-certified employees helps to identify skilled team members and reduces the risks when implementing projects on AWS. Having AWS-certified employees can also help you to build your business, as it is one of the criteria for the higher tiers of membership in the AWS Partner Network (APN). 

Being a member of the APN gives access to a wide variety of benefits, including training subsidies, AWS usage credits, marketing support and much more. View the APN website for more details. 

At QA, we see many learners on our AWS courses who are going on to take the AWS certification exams as part of their employer's APN accreditation. 

It doesn't stop when you get the badge! 

The rate of change at AWS is astonishing, so AWS certifications expire every three years. 

That may seem like a short lifespan, but consider this: in the month of July 2023, AWS made over one hundred and fifty announcements about new features, services and enhancements.  

AWS have a recertification policy for the AWS Architect Associate certification, stating it can be renewed by either passing the Associate exam again, or by upgrading to the higher-level Professional certification at a discount. Either way seems appealing when it comes to the end result of being accredited in the constantly changing IT landscape.