Why an AWS certification alone is not enough to land you a job in AWS!
A question I hear constantly from students: "Is getting an AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate certification enough to land me a job?"
I hate to break it to you, but the answer is NO.
Just getting certified alone won't bring you anywhere close to an actual job. Employers are looking for something beyond that certificate. They're searching for individuals who can actually put their hands on the keyboard and solve real problems—not just differentiate between SQS FIFO queues and standard queues.
So does that mean getting an AWS certification is pointless? Absolutely not! In fact, getting certified can be crucial in landing you a job. It's how employers verify that you're qualified for working in the cloud. Certifications have helped countless professionals get to where they are today, including myself.
The thing is, the certification alone is not enough. Beyond your certifications, you need relevant hands-on experience for the position you're applying for. This combination is what makes you truly employable.
Does AWS Certification Help Me in Getting a Job? How?
It would be foolish to say AWS certifications don't help you in getting a job. Consider certification a prerequisite rather than a differentiator. Unless you have several AWS certifications, this is usually the case.
Most candidates applying for cloud roles already have an AWS certification of some sort. Having the basic certification won't make you stand out when applying for an AWS Solutions Architect job. Instead, from the employer's perspective, it's expected that you have a certification before applying for the role. Without it, your resume might not even make it past the initial screening.
My Recommendation: Complete at least all of the AWS Associate certifications (Solutions Architect, Developer, and SysOps Administrator) and at least one Professional or Specialty certification. Align your certifications with your experience and choose certifications relevant to your target job roles. The AWS Cloud Practitioner is an easy starting point and a valuable addition to your CV—definitely worth checking out as well.
What Are Employers Really Looking For?
Put yourself in an employer's shoes for a minute and think about what they're seeking in a candidate. This perspective will help you understand what you need to stand out from every other generic applicant.
Employers appreciate certifications as proof of foundational knowledge, but they prioritize candidates who can apply that knowledge in real-world scenarios. Here are the critical qualities employers look for when hiring for AWS cloud roles:
Relevant skills for the position (not just theoretical knowledge)
Proven experience that shows you can deliver quickly
Strong communication skills (both technical and non-technical)
Team collaboration abilities (cloud work is rarely solo)
Self-motivation and ability to work with limited guidance
Dependability and a positive attitude
While all these qualities are important, I'm going to focus on the most crucial one: having relevant experience for the position.
Relevant Skills and How to Show That You Have Them!
If you think having just the certification will prove to employers that you can effectively use AWS services and technologies, you'd be mistaken. I've emphasized this repeatedly in my writings: you need to get your hands dirty with these technologies. That's what separates a real cloud engineer from someone who just passed a test.
Building Your Experience Portfolio
I recommend starting with fundamental projects:
Beginner Level:
Setting up a VPC in AWS with public and private subnets
Configuring a custom AMI and building different EC2 instances from that AMI
Creating subnets and securing them with NACLs and Security Groups
Deploying an RDS database and connecting it to an application
Intermediate Level:
Hosting a static website using S3 and CloudFront
Creating a personal blog with WordPress deployed on AWS using EC2 and RDS
Building a serverless web application with Lambda, API Gateway, and DynamoDB
Implementing auto-scaling for an application with varying workloads
Advanced Level:
Setting up a multi-region, highly available architecture
Building a CI/CD pipeline using AWS CodePipeline, CodeBuild, and CodeDeploy
Implementing a microservices architecture using ECS or EKS
Creating a data lake solution with S3, Athena, and Glue
Document Everything! For each project, create a detailed GitHub repository with:
Architecture diagrams
Step-by-step implementation guides
Code samples and infrastructure-as-code templates
Challenges you faced and how you solved them
I highly recommend platforms like nextwork.org for gaining hands-on experience. They offer thousands of AWS, AI, ML, and other cloud projects with step-by-step guides and an extensive library of resources. Their community of experts regularly hosts live sessions to build projects together and provide guidance when you're stuck.
In the coming weeks, I'll be creating and uploading videos on my YouTube channel, walking through some of these projects in detail. Stay tuned for those practical demonstrations!
Beyond Technical Skills: The Soft Skills That Matter
While technical skills get your foot in the door, soft skills help you thrive in the role. These include:
Problem-solving abilities: Employers want to see how you approach challenges
Documentation skills: Can you clearly explain complex technical concepts?
Continuous learning mindset: Cloud technologies evolve rapidly; show you can keep up
Business acumen: Understanding how cloud solutions deliver business value
Highlight these skills in your resume, portfolio, and interviews by sharing specific examples of how you've applied them in your projects or previous roles.
Certification Strategy: Quality Over Quantity
While I recommend obtaining multiple certifications, focus on depth rather than breadth. It's better to deeply understand one AWS certification area than to superficially know many. Consider this approach:
Start with AWS Cloud Practitioner for fundamentals
Move to the Solutions Architect Associate for core services
Choose your specialization path based on your interests:
For development: Developer Associate → DevOps Professional
For infrastructure: SysOps Administrator → Solutions Architect Professional
For security: Security Specialty
For data: Database or Data Analytics Specialty
This strategic progression demonstrates both breadth and depth to potential employers.
I firmly believe certifications play a vital role in getting a job in the cloud field—they're often the top requirement even to be considered for most roles. The key takeaway from this article is that there's much more to landing your dream job than just a certification, whether in cloud computing or most other industries.
Success requires commitment, continuous learning, and practical experience. It's my mission to support you in this journey and help you achieve your career goals.
In my next post, I'll share proven strategies on how to effectively prepare for and pass AWS certification exams, saving you from the disappointment of failure. I'll provide actionable tips on the right way to study, practice, and confidently take the exams to kickstart your career as a cloud engineer.
I wish you the best in your endeavors, and as always, I'm rooting for you!
This brings me to something I've been working on that I'm incredibly excited to share with you. CloudDojo is revolutionizing how professionals prepare for cloud certifications, particularly AWS.
Unlike traditional study programs that focus on rote memorization, CloudDojo uses AI to:
Gives you helpful resources to particularly work on, based on your practice metrics.
Identify knowledge gaps before they become problems
Simulate real-world scenarios you'll face on the job, not just on the exam
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Track performance metrics that correlate with certification success
Adapt to your learning style and pace
A community of over 1000+ IT professionals to have meaningful conversations and help each other grow.
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CloudDojo doesn't just prepare you for an exam—it prepares you for a career. And in a world where certifications are becoming table stakes, that distinction matters more than ever.
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If you found this article helpful, please share it with others who might benefit. Have questions or want to discuss further? Connect with me on LinkedIn or leave a comment below!