Course Spotlight: Microsoft Cloud Support Associate Professional Certificate connected Coursera
Our assessment: Best for going from beginner to acceptable for a career
This certification teaches skills from the precise basics of cognition astir computing to invaluable nonrecreational techniques successful Microsoft Azure, 1 of the astir fashionable unreality platforms. This certification includes 12 courses intended to get learners up to velocity connected IT and cybersecurity, Microsoft 365, unreality absorption and nonrecreational unreality administration. The courses included are:
- Introduction to Computers.
- Introduction to Secure Networking
- Essential Aspects of Software, Hardware and Data Backup.
- Cybersecurity and Privacy.
- The Microsoft 365 Ecosystem.
- Technical Diagnostics and Troubleshooting Techniques.
- Cloud Computing Essentials With Azure Management.
- Azure Cloud Services.
- Azure Identity and Networking Essentials.
- Azure Network Configuration.
- Azure Monitoring and Analytics Fundamentals.
- Azure Backup, Security and Compliance Administration.
Cloud computing certifications tin grow your skills and thatch you however to navigate large unreality providers similar Google Cloud oregon AWS. Specializations successful definite unreality providers tin service arsenic beardown foundations for niche careers, portion astir each businesses usage immoderate signifier of cloud service.
- Best for going from beginner to acceptable for a career: Microsoft Cloud Support Professional Certificate
- Best for getting started with AWS cloud: AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate
- Best for AWS unreality professionals: AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional
- Best for Microsoft Azure: Microsoft Certified - Azure Fundamentals
- Best for seasoned IT workers: CompTIA Cloud+
- Best for unreality security: ISC2 Certified Cloud Security Professional
Disclaimer: This nonfiction is sponsored by Coursera.
Top unreality certifications comparison
| Microsoft Cloud Support Professional Certificate (Coursera) | $49 per month | 4 months astatine 10 hours per week | Beginner |
| AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate (AWS) | $150 (for exam) | Self-paced courses and exam guidance, positive 130-minute exam | Intermediate |
| AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional (AWS) | $300 | Self-paced courses and exam guidance, positive 180-minute exam | Advanced |
| Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (Microsoft Azure) | $99 | Self-paced courses and exam guidance (at slightest 6 hours, 30 minutes) positive 45-minute exam | Beginner |
| CompTIA Cloud+ (CompTIA) | $369 | Self-paced courses and exam guidance, positive 90-minute exam | Advanced |
| ISC2 Certified Cloud Security Professional (ISC2) | $1,519 | Self-paced oregon guided grooming and 3-hour exam | Advanced |
Microsoft Cloud Support Professional Certificate: Best for going from beginner to acceptable for a career
This authoritative certification from Microsoft teaches the fundamentals of managing unreality support. Image: Coursera
This bid of courses is taught by Microsoft unit and results successful a vocation credential proving your expertise. These courses thatch however to execute unreality enactment successful Microsoft Azure solutions and services, and however to accommodate exertion diagnostic skills specifically to IT and unreality problems. You volition larn however to grip information backup and mobile instrumentality absorption arsenic related to Microsoft’s unreality solutions and services.
Pricing
This certification is disposable with a Coursera subscription, which costs $49 per period aft a 7-day escaped trial.
Duration
These courses instrumentality astir 4 months to implicit astatine 10 hours per week.
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Prerequisites
There are nary prerequisites for this certification.
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Associate: Best for getting started with AWS cloud
The AWS Certified Solutions Architect certification requires signing up for an in-person oregon proctored exam. Image: AWS
If you privation a vocation successful administering oregon managing AWS unreality solutions, employers whitethorn inquire for this oregon a akin authoritative certification from AWS. AWS is 1 of the largest unreality providers successful the world. Specializing successful it could beryllium utile for a vocation successful unreality computing. This certification proves you person immoderate acquisition utilizing AWS Cloud successful situations that could originate during on-premise IT work.
Pricing
The exam, which is required for the certification, costs $150. See AWS for pricing successful different currencies.
Duration
The duration depends connected the clip it takes for an idiosyncratic to get acceptable to instrumentality the exam. AWS provides a usher connected however the questions volition beryllium acceptable up connected the exam, arsenic good arsenic integer courses connected AWS products (AWS Builder Labs, AWS Cloud Quest and AWS Jam are suggested) and prep courses. The exam itself lasts 130 minutes.
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Prerequisites
Along with the courses listed supra that tin beryllium utile for studying for the exam, radical pursuing this certification should person “AWS Cloud oregon beardown on-premises IT experience,” according to the material. Coding expertise is not required, though “familiarity with basal programming concepts” would beryllium helpful, AWS wrote. People who bash not person IT acquisition are encouraged to survey for and walk the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner exam if they privation to prosecute the AWS Certified Solutions Architect certification.
SEE: Cloud and Hybrid Cloud: Differences and Use Cases (TechRepublic Premium)
AWS Certified Solutions Architect - Professional: Best for AWS unreality professionals
The AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional certification is intended for radical who person astatine slightest 2 years of nonrecreational acquisition with AWS Cloud. Image: AWS
Earning the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Professional certification shows thorough nonrecreational acquisition with AWS products. This certification proves competency successful “providing analyzable solutions to analyzable problems, optimizing security, cost, and performance, and automating manual processes” with unreality architecture connected AWS. The exam evaluates real-world skills for situations specified arsenic designing AWS deployment strategies to conscionable concern requirements.
Pricing
The exam costs $300.
Duration
The exam takes 180 minutes. Free signifier questions and courses are disposable with an AWS Skill Builder subscription. Length volition vary: The exam prep for this people takes 10 hours, 30 minutes.
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Prerequisites
Professionals pursuing this certification should already beryllium capable to measure unreality exertion requirements and marque recommendations to their organizations astir due deployment connected AWS. They should beryllium well-versed successful architectural plan crossed aggregate applications and projects successful analyzable organizations.
Microsoft Certified - Azure Fundamentals: Best for Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure is 1 of the astir fashionable unreality computing services. Image: Microsoft
Azure rivals AWS arsenic the astir commonly utilized unreality computing provider. Receiving this certification volition show nonrecreational aptitude with Azure, including endorsement from Microsoft. The certification is the archetypal level of Microsoft’s authoritative trainings for Azure. Passing the exam and receiving the certification requires you to picture and govern Azure compute, networking and storage.
Pricing
The exam costs $99.
Duration
The exam lasts 45 minutes.
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Prerequisites
Professionals wishing to instrumentality this people should beryllium exertion professionals with acquisition successful infrastructure management, database absorption and/or bundle development.
CompTIA Cloud+: Best for seasoned IT workers
Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is simply a well-respected manufacture advocator for accusation technology. Image: CompTIA
CompTIA certifications are wide accepted credentials for IT and accusation information roles. While not strictly indispensable to ascend the ranks successful those fields, a CompTIA certification shows a seriousness successful pursuing excellence successful this benignant of career. The applicable certification volition thatch you however to maintain, optimize and troubleshoot unreality infrastructure successful the existent world.
Pricing
The CompTIA Cloud+ exam costs $369.
Duration
The exam lasts 90 minutes.
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Prerequisites
Learners should beryllium experienced IT workers with astir 5 years of experience, including 2–3 years arsenic a systems head oregon unreality engineer.
ISC2 Certified Cloud Security Professional: Best for unreality security
The ISC2 Certified Cloud Security Professional certification marks nonrecreational accomplishment successful unreality security. Image: ISC2
Like CompTIA, ISC2 is known for being a well-established manufacture relation with a absorption connected cybersecurity. The unreality information skills tested successful this exam and proven with this certification see designing, managing and securing data, applications and infrastructure successful the cloud.
Pricing
The exam and grooming unneurotic outgo $1,519. The exam cannot beryllium purchased separately.
Duration
The exam lasts 3 hours.
There are 2 options for training: self-paced oregon instructor-led. The instructor-led grooming sessions past betwixt 1 week and 3 months, depending connected the schedule.
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Prerequisites
Learners pursuing the CCSP certification should person 5 years of acquisition successful IT. Working connected a bachelor’s oregon master’s grade successful machine science, accusation exertion oregon related fields whitethorn number arsenic 1 twelvemonth of acquisition for the purposes of the CCSP certification. Three years indispensable beryllium successful accusation security, and 1 twelvemonth indispensable beryllium successful 1 of the pursuing domains:
- Cloud concepts, architecture and design.
- Cloud information security.
- Cloud level and infrastructure security.
- Cloud exertion security.
- Cloud information operations.
- Legal, hazard and compliance.
Methodology
In choosing these certifications, I looked astatine existent occupation listings for titles similar unreality administrator, systems head and unreality information administrator. Many occupation listings that utilized AWS oregon Azure arsenic their unreality providers looked for certifications successful those services specifically. I chose different certifications based connected the nonrecreational reputations and wide adoption of the standards from those organizations.
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