The AWS Solution Architect Professional certification is probably one of the hardest ones. Unlike some other certifications, working to achieve it provides you with significant and robust knowledge about AWS, as well as the most popular patterns and technologies in the market.
Coupled with practical experience, this certification can help you advance to another level very quickly. At least, that was the case for me.
As an AWS Authorized Instructor since 2019, I have passed many AWS certifications and trained numerous people to achieve the same. I’m writing this article to share my real-life feedback on how to prepare for the exam the right way and the pitfalls to avoid.
The AWS Journey Framework
When I was a consultant, I worked closely with AWS training teams, and we aligned on the observation that even though many people train for the certification and attend classrooms, less than half of them actually register for the exam. Often, this is due to a lack of time because of work, family obligations, etc.
We then built a training framework to support people from start to finish: getting certified.
Here is the framework we developed in 5 steps:
Recommended self-training platforms
. This is what I used, and trust me, it’s the best $80 you’ll ever spend. This course not only helped me achieve the certification but also prepared me to manage AWS services with deep and consistent knowledge.
Practice exams platform
The AWS SA Pro exam is notoriously difficult to prepare for because every practice test takes around 3 hours, and you need to complete multiple tests to feel ready. I won’t sugarcoat it—this part is challenging. Even during re-certification, it’s the part I dislike the most. Here’s my routine:
- Every day during lunch, I complete 20 questions.
- After a few weeks, I take 2–3 full-length exams under real conditions on weekends.
This is crucial because practice tests often cover concepts absent from training courses. They also help you familiarize yourself with the question types and answer formats. My favorite platform is Whizlabs, as many of its training questions appear in the actual certification exam.
My advice for the exam
Here is a list of advice that can be very useful the D-Day :
- If you’re unsure of the correct answer, try to eliminate the wrong ones.
- Look for keywords in the question. For example, questions about IAM (roles) or Kinesis (real-time) are easy to recognize.
- Try not to spend more than 2 minutes per question.
- Don’t overthink—there are no trick questions.
- Don’t stress if you don’t know the answer to the first few questions. The later ones might be simpler..
- Don’t anticipate failure. I’ve passed 7 AWS exams, and 6 times I was convinced I’d fail halfway through. I didn’t.
Useful information
Here is a recap of useful information about this certification :
Duration : 180min
Cost : 300$
Number of questions : 75
Average passing score : 75%
If you have questions, feel free to comment this article.
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