In this digital age, the business landscape is constantly evolving, and so is the cloud computing world. As companies across industries become more cloud-dependent, cloud computing jobs are gaining more demand and paving the way for innumerable opportunities for cloud professionals.
But if you are new to the domain, how can you boost your career in cloud computing?
Cloud certifications are the gateways to supercharging your cloud career in 2024. All major cloud platforms today, AWS, Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, or vendor-neutral providers like CompTIA, provide certifications and learning paths for various cloud domains.
Based on your level of expertise, area of interest, and skills, you can choose any platform and any cloud role to kickstart your cloud journey.
This blog will discuss the benefits of taking top cloud certifications in 2024, the scope of cloud certifications, some relevant ones to check out, and tips to remember before you pick one.
Let’s dive in!
Benefits of Cloud Certifications in 2024
Cloud computing is breaking barriers every day with continuous innovation and advancements. Getting yourself certified is the only way to stay abreast with these changes. The training programs under these cloud certifications are altered and updated so that you can stay current with all the developments and add new and necessary skills to your portfolio.
Here are a few benefits of cloud certifications.
1. Soaring demand
The demand for cloud professionals has soared past the roof, thus making certifications a must-add-on to your credentials. Cloud platforms are known for their robust and scalable infrastructure, on-demand services, and pay-as-you-go models. With cloud certifications, you will learn how to optimize these cloud resources and build solutions that best fit your business goals.
2. Booming Landscape
The dynamic landscape of cloud computing is booming across industries, and for good reason. The infrastructure offers many benefits, such as supercharging performance and improving the bottom line. Organizations can offer their employees access to critical data and apps from anywhere worldwide.
3. Variety of Job Roles
Cloud computing opens doors to innumerable professional opportunities, and certifications validate your skills and abilities for different job profiles and responsibilities. You will know how to work with cutting-edge technologies and evolving tools and solutions. You will also become a strategic thinker and builder, providing solutions to your organizations with the best outcomes.
4. High Earning Potential
With the ever-rising demand comes the abundant supply of cloud professionals clocking every best opportunity. Cloud certifications are the only solution if you want to break through the noise and make your credentials outshine. Businesses are increasingly looking for talent possessing deep expertise and hands-on experience with cloud technologies.
Certifications help you gain in-depth knowledge of cloud domains, practical skills, and techniques to handle real-world scenarios in a cloud infrastructure. The average salary for a cloud engineer is $120,719 annually, which eventually increases exponentially.
5. Limitless Growth
Cloud computing is the primary growth driver of industries. With businesses enjoying the flexibility and scalability of the cloud platform, employees can thrive in the dynamic tech world, add new skills to their credentials, and build solutions that best fit business needs, like growing data storage, cloud services processing, and rising IoT devices.
Also Read: Top Highest Paying Cloud Certifications in 2024
Scope of Cloud Certifications
With higher career and business growth, the popularity of top cloud certifications will see limitless potential. More interesting roles and career paths will emerge as more business models and domains become cloud-dependent.
Here’s a quick snapshot of the scope of cloud certifications.
Virtualization
Virtualization is becoming more popular daily with businesses going on-premises and public cloud needs. Virtualization provides exceptional operational productivity while reducing IT expenses and increasing flexibility and responsiveness in the premises, thereby leading to long-term cost savings.
Network Architecture
Network virtualization is the next thriving domain in the cloud landscape. Framing network virtualization will test your ability to design, manage, and implement network and security management and help your organization boost agility, security, and speed. Suppose you want to grow in network management and architecture. In that case, getting a certification in this domain will be a good choice, as organizations seek professionals who can build cost-effective network resources from the ground up.
Automation and cloud management
Administering infrastructure, networks, apps, users, and resources in hybrid and multi-cloud environments is no cakewalk. Organizations need professionals to improve consistency and scalability and make systems agile by automating manual processes and delivery infrastructure. Certifications will help you validate your abilities to configure, install, and optimize automation resources.
Top Cloud Certifications to Pursue in 2024
There are innumerable cloud computing certifications to suit your expertise and knowledge best. But if you find it overwhelming to choose one from the ocean of courses, here are a few highly favored cloud certifications.
AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner certification or the CLF-C02 exam imparts a comprehensive knowledge of the AWS infrastructure and covers concepts fundamental to any cloud platform-related job role. The certification tests your ability to perform technical tasks like:
- Demonstrating the AWS Cloud value
- Working with AWS shared responsibility models
- Working with security best practices.
- Improving economics, AWS Cloud costs, and billing practices
- Describe and position AWS services, computing, networking, database management, and storage services
- Identifying AWS services for business use cases
To be eligible for the certification, you must have at least six months of experience working with AWS Cloud design, deployment, or operations. This certification is ideal even if you come from non-IT backgrounds, are in the early stages of an AWS cloud career, or work in an AWS cloud role.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals certification or the AZ-900 exam helps you demonstrate foundational skills and basic concepts of working in a cloud environment and Microsoft Azure in specific. This cert is a starter pack for professionals new to cloud infrastructure. The cert course includes cloud architecture concepts like computing, storage, networking, etc. You will describe tools and features to secure, govern, and administer Azure.
The course will test your abilities to perform tasks like:
- Describing cloud concepts
- Demonstrating Azure architecture and services
- Describing Azure management and governance
To be eligible for this certification, you must have hands-on experience with infrastructure management, software development, database management, etc.
Google Professional Cloud Architect Certification
Google Professional Cloud Architect certification aims to enable you to leverage GCP services and technologies. It imparts an in-depth knowledge of cloud architecture and teaches how to design, build, and handle robust, secure, highly available, scalable, and high-performing solutions to drive business goals. The course will test your abilities to perform technical tasks like:
- Designing and planning cloud solution architectures
- Managing and provisioning the cloud solution ecosystem
- Designing security and compliance measures
- Analyzing and optimizing business and technical processes
- Managing implementations of a cloud architecture
- Ensuring the reliability of solutions and operations
Before applying for this certification course, you must have over three years of industry experience, including more than a year’s experience designing and managing solutions and applications using GCP.
AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate
AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate certification, or the SAA-C03 exam, is among the most popular AWS courses. The certification will help you build all the skills necessary to perform the roles and responsibilities of an AWS solutions architect. You will learn how to design solutions that align with AWS’s well-architected framework. The course will test your abilities to perform technical tasks like:
- Designing solutions to incorporate AWS services and meet current business needs and future requirements
- Designing architectures that are secure, resilient, high-performing, and cost-optimized
- Reviewing solutions already deployed in the system and suggesting improvements
To be eligible for the certification, you must have at least a year’s experience in designing cloud solutions using core AWS services. In addition, you must hold strong premises in IT experience and know how to map on-premises clouds.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate Certification
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate Certification or AZ-104 exam helps you gain deep expertise in deploying, managing, and scrutinizing the Azure infrastructure of your organization. It includes monitoring virtual networks, computing, storage, identity, governance, and security. You will work as a part of the larger team dedicated to implementing the cloud infrastructure and help them deliver Azure database, security, app development, networking, and DevOps solutions.
The certification will test your abilities to perform technical tasks like:
- Managing Azure identity and governance
- Implementing and managing storage
- Deploying and managing compute resources of Azure
- Implementing and managing network virtualization
To be eligible for this course, ensure you are hands-on with:
- Operating systems
- Servers
- PowerShell
- The Azure portal
- Microsoft Entra ID
- Networking
- Virtualization
- Azure CLI
- Azure Resource Manager templates
Certified Cloud Security Professional (CCSP)
The CCSP certification, a leading course by ISC2, features hands-on learning and helps you deal with cloud management nuances in a real-world scenario. It enables you to work with apps for advanced information security, frame data protection strategies, and manage cloud storage solutions. The course prepares you for popular roles in cybersecurity and offers an in-depth understanding of the tools required to protect your infrastructure against critical security threats.
The course tests your ability to perform tasks like:
- Cloud Concepts Architecture
- Infrastructure SecurityCloud Security Operations
- Identity and Access Management
- Business Continuity
- Cloud Application
- EncryptionThreat
- DesignCloud Platform
- Cloud Data Lifecycle
- Vulnerabilities Risk Management and Analysis
- Cloud Data Security
- Security, Legal Risk, and Compliance
- Modeling Disaster Recovery
To appear for the CCSP exam, you must have the following:
- Basic knowledge of security concepts
- Understanding of cloud computing
- Skills for networking and cryptography
- Hands-on with security tools and technologies
CompTIA Cloud+
CompTIA Cloud+ certification is a performance-based cloud certification that validates the technical skills needed to protect your cloud infrastructure and cloud services for a robust IT system in your organization. The certification covers concepts applicable to every cloud environment and is a vendor-neutral course. The cert will cover skills like:
- Cloud architecture and design
- Cloud Security
- Operations and support
- Cloud deployment
- Troubleshooting
To be eligible for this exam, you must be CompTIA Network+ and Server+ certified and have 2-3 years of hands-on with system administration or networking.
Factors to consider before choosing a cloud certification
When selecting the ideal cloud certification, consider key factors:
- Vendor-specific vs. vendor-neutral: Decide between platforms like AWS, Azure, or GCP and broader certifications like CompTIA Cloud+.
- Career alignment: Tailor your choice to match career goals and prevalent cloud services in your industry.
- Cost considerations: Explore varying costs associated with certifications to align with your budget.
- Time and workload: Assess the commitment required for each certification and how it fits into your schedule and commitments.
Summary
I hope this blog helps you understand the benefits of taking top cloud certifications in 2024 and how it will help boost your career. Various vendor-neutral and platform-specific certifications give you a comprehensive overview of cloud domains and help you sharpen skills for industry-centric roles, helping you stand out.
However, to make the best of these certifications, you must dive deep into the cloud domain nuances, which again starts with going through authentic and updated resources.
Whizlabs provides you with current and detailed training programs to help you quickly qualify for these cloud certifications.
Check out our practice papers with exhaustive answers, video lectures designed by industry experts, and Whizlab’s hands-on labs and sandboxes to gain practical exposure and experiment with a genuine cloud platform.
Want to know which certification is best for your career? Or how can you start preparing for these cloud certifications? Reach out to us today.
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