My Background
Hi, I'm Chinedu Oji and I'm a 400lvl Computer engineering student of Nnamdi Azikiwe University. As of writing this post, I'm an AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner, meaning I know the fundamentals of Cloud Computing and Amazon Web Services. I am currently learning Linux and Bash scripting as it's fundamental for anyone looking to go into Cloud Computing or DevOps. I got to know about Cloud Computing and AWS from my days of hacking, back in 2020(I'm not into that again for some reasons😅). During that time I learned about virtual machines and virtualization and came across the AWS Command Line Interface(CLI). Fast Forward to December 2021, I wanted to fully get into tech; but I needed to pick a path to follow. All I had to do was google "top in-demand tech skills," and Cloud Computing kept popping up on almost all the posts. I read up on it and found out I have a little knowledge of what it's about, so I decided to delve in.
What is Cloud Computing?
It's the delivery of computing services like servers, databases, storage, etc, over the internet with pay-as-you-go pricing. Now, to get into Cloud Computing, you have to pick a Cloud Service Provider or CSP, and there are multiple CSPs to choose from.
The Big Three CSPs;
There are other CSPs out there like Alibaba Cloud, Oracle, and some others. I'm not going to go over the differences between these platforms because there are like a million articles on the internet for that. I chose AWS primarily because I like Amazon as a company.
Resources and Exam Preparation
I went on to Udemy to look for AWS courses and found this really good Introductory course to AWS by Neal Davis. The course covers the major services AWS provides and offers hands-on experience for those services. During the course, Neal talks about the certifications AWS offers, and among them is the foundational certification; AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner which costs $100(for my fellow Nigerians that's about N60,000). I decided on getting that certification, for starters.
For the exam preparation, I made use of 2 video courses;
- Andrew Brown's course for the exam; A 13-hour course that covers almost everything you need to know to ace the exam, and
- AWS Cloud Practitioner Essentials; A straightforward course by the AWS team that gives you introductory knowledge on the various AWS services and modes of operation.
After finishing both courses, I took a LOT of practice tests. Practice tests help cement your knowledge of what you've learned and introduce you to some new things too. There are a ton of both free and paid practice tests and exams online and I'll include the platforms I came across;
- Exampro: Offers a suite of resources for the exam, ranging from courses to practice exams to study notes and more. Signing up gives you free access to one practice exam and some flashcards.
- DigitalCloud: They offer premium quality certification Training for Amazon Web Services.
- AWSBoy offers multiple free practice exams and tests.
- Testprep Training has free practice questions and also has a pro plan.
- I also have a set of offline practice questions I used. If you're interested, you can reach out to me for them.
Scheduling
After preparing for about 2 months(you'll probably need less time, I just wasn't in a rush), I finally decided to schedule my exam. I picked a date and selected the online proctored exam option. When it was time to pay for the exam, I had a problem because some months ago, most Nigerian banks placed a $20 monthly limit on debit cards for international transactions, so finding a card to pay for the exam was a problem. After a lot of research, I came across Bitmama Exchange. They offer virtual crypto cards that you can use to make online payments, and so much more. I created an account, requested a card, and it worked like a charm. I took the exam and I passed with a score of 883/1000 and got my badge.
Conclusion
If you're interested in kickstarting a career in Cloud Computing, I recommend you start with the AWS CCP Certification. Even though certifications are not everything and shouldn't be your only focus, they're always a good way to get started. There are a lot more resources out there to learn from and guide you on your path so I recommend you Stay Curious, keep learning, and get closer to your dreams every day😉.
If you enjoyed this article kindly drop a comment. You can always connect with me on Twitter😃.