A few months ago when I Googled “top IT certifications”, almost every list mentioned AWS Solutions Architect Associate as one of the exams worth taking. It was only a few weeks ago that I decided to actually go ahead with it. To start preparing, I took the 4-Saturday workshop organized the Computer Science department at The University of Texas at Dallas. At first, the idea was just to add the certification to my Resume in order to make myself more employable. But as the course progressed, I was thoroughly impressed by the wide range of services available to users on the AWS cloud. It looked more and more like an area worth pursuing as a career. The hands-on approach of the workshop conducted by UTD alum Shri Patnaik, also added to my confidence and helped me prepare better. For exam practice, I enrolled in the Udemy practice tests designed by Tutorials Dojo . A few weeks later, I was ready to give the exam.
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Amidst the corona virus pandemic, I was fortunate enough to enroll at the Richardson PSI center for a date which was just 2 days before everything started closing down. The test itself was a bit challenging for me as some questions ended up taking more time than I would have expected. However, the practice tests came in handy as I had some experience with the type of questions asked and how to pace myself towards the end. the questions, as expected, covered everything from AWS cloud services to networking concepts to practical considerations and best practices for solution architects. The fact that I had read the AWS whitepapers related to these topics also helped.
When I hit the submit button, my heart was in my mouth (despite numerous exams over the years, I still get very nervous during tests). Everything felt totally worth it when I saw the “Congratulations! You passed..” message on the screen. And that is the gist of how I got my first technical certification 🙂
I am now preparing for a couple of other certification exams. Up next is the AWS Data Analytics certification exam, which I plan to take on April 15. Wish me luck!
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