Students
often ask me if getting certified as an AWS Certified Solutions Architect
Associate is enough to get a job. The short answer is that an AWS certification
alone won't get you a job. There are many other attributes that play an
essential role in starting your AWS career.
So
does this mean the certifications aren't worth it? Absolutely not!
Certifications are extremely useful, if not essential to getting a good IT job,
and careers at AWS can be extremely rewarding. The fact is, it takes a lot more
than certification: it also takes experience that is relevant to the position
you are applying for and be very "employable" (more on that shortly).
I
think it's also fair to say that AWS certifications are almost prerequisites
rather than differentiators today. Unless you have several AWS certifications,
this is usually the case. Everyone seems to have their Solutions Architect
Associate certification, so this won't make you stand out when applying for an
AWS Solution Architect job. In fact, from the employer's perspective, you are
expected to have a couple of AWS certificates, and if you don't, you won't be
noticed.