Should You Get an AWS Certification?

The short answer, if you’re an IT worker who comes into contact with cloud computing at least, is simple.

Yes.

Don’t want to take my word for it? Thankfully, you needn’t – it’s all there in the numbers. Amazon commands a 33% share of the cloud computing market – 3x more than the next biggest competitor, Microsoft (11%). On top of that, AWS is currently achieving year-on-year growth of 43%, meaning that they’re likely to not just maintain, but enlarge this market share into the future.

Numbers tell one side of the story, but what’s the state of play in the real world? To find out exactly why achieving AWS (Amazon Web Services) certification is a wise move, and to learn how to get the most out of your certification experience, we spoke to three experts with their fingers very much in the cloud computing pie – Malcolm Duncanson, the CEO and Cofounder of Cloudten, Matt Flannery, DevOps Lead at Deloitte and Ashley Hull, DevOps Engineer at Versent.

The Benefits of AWS Certification

So why should you be aiming to achieve some form of AWS certification? There are many reasons, but three stand out.

1. It’s a badge of quality

“AWS certifications are valuable for demonstrating AWS expertise to our customers” says Duncanson, whose company, Cloudten, was recently awarded Public Sector Partner status by Amazon. “It serves as a gold standard, and helps to maintain credibility with clients while staying on top of AWS developments. Personally, when I passed the Professional Certified Solutions Architect exam it became a ‘badge’ of my understanding of AWS cloud architecture, and opened the doors to deeper cloud conversations with AWS and clients.”

While currently uncertified himself, Flannery agrees – “I know that DevOps is not all about certificates, but AWS certification programs do provide an excellent path for self-improvement which is recognised, so as an individual it will always be important.”

2. You’ll earn more

This year a Global Knowledge survey revealed some truly astonishing numbers regarding the impact of an AWS certification on salary. Polling a variety of IT workers and managers throughout the US and Canada, an AWS cloud technology certificate was found to boost the salaries of such professionals by an incredible 25.9%. Certified respondents had an average income of US$113,932 per year, while their uncertified counterparts earnt US$90,512.

3. AWS is the past, present and future

As this article from TechCrunch so eloquently outlines, AWS – and Amazon as a whole – isn’t exactly going backwards. In fact, it’s careering towards total dominance. As far as anyone can tell the influence of AWS in the cloud computing sphere will only get greater into the future, and gaining access to the work that this monopolisation will generate is made far easier if you have proof of your credentials.

In short, an AWS certification will allow you to get more work with better pay for years to come.