Cloud computing is one of the most talked-about technologies when we consider the driving factors for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. This technology basically allows people to concentrate on their projects and customers without worrying about technology issues. Microsoft Azure is one of the leading cloud platforms which offers services like web hosting, virtual reality, the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, analytics, and over 170 other ones. It is an emerging cloud service provider as many organizations are migrating their cloud databases to it. In fact, Microsoft reports that 95% of Fortune 500 companies have adopted Azure services.
If you are willing to gain expertise in Azure, there are many exams you would need to crack, based on the job role. In today’s IT landscape, Azure certifications are highly sought-after credentials. The Azure certification in Chennai, Mumbai, Pune, Bangalore, Hyderabad, or any other city adds options to raise your earning potential. We suggest you to be prepared to achieve such certifications and pick an appropriate training program from Microsoft as well as other platforms. These certifications examine your Azure knowledge and skills, make you more marketable, manifest professional contribution, and open the door to new jobs.
Which certification to choose depends on your profession, your current job role, and prior experience in the field. To help you make the right choice, we have mentioned some of the top Azure certifications that you can add to your resume and take your career to new heights.
Top Azure Certifications
When you head on to the Microsoft website, you will come across a number of Azure certifications. The amount of information given may confuse you. So, first off you should know that Azure certifications are divided into the following categories:
- Fundamental certifications
- Associate certifications
- Expert certifications
- Specialty certifications
As you can infer, these certifications move on from a basic level of Azure understanding to the advanced level. Evidently, a beginner would start with a fundamentals certification and then head towards associate and expert levels based on their career interests.
Discussed below are some of the certifications you must be interested in pursuing.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals
Exam AZ-900
This certification is designed for those professionals who want to validate their knowledge of cloud concepts, Azure workloads, Azure services, security and privacy, and Azure pricing and support. The basic knowledge of cloud services and those services are offered with Microsoft Azure is recommended for candidates taking this exam. This certification can be used to prepare for other role-based or specialty certifications. However, it is not a prerequisite for any of them.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate
Exam AZ-104
If you are well-versed in implementing, managing, and monitoring a company’s Microsoft Azure environment, then this certification is for you. An Azure administrator is often a part of a larger team dedicated to implementing the cloud infrastructure of a company. Additionally, they know about identity, governance, compute, storage, and virtual environment along with size, provision, monitor, and adjust resources when required. Prior experience in using Azure CLI, PowerShell, Azure portal, and Azure Resource Manager templates is required.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate
Exam AZ-204
This certification is suitable for you if you know how to design, build, test, and maintain cloud applications and services on Microsoft Azure. Such professionals participate in all phases of cloud development, right from requirements, definition, and design; to development, deployment, and maintenance; and performance tuning and monitoring. One or two years of experience in professional development and the Azure platform is needed to appear for this exam. Implementing solutions require Azure developers to partner with cloud DBAs, cloud solutions architects, cloud administrators, and clients to implement solutions.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Solutions Architect Expert
Exam AZ-303, AZ-304
As it is an expert-level certification, professionals appearing for this exam are expected to have advanced knowledge of IT operations, networking, identity, virtualization, security, disaster recovery, business continuity, budgeting, data platform, and governance. Azure Solutions Architects advise stakeholders and translate business requirements into scalable, secure, and reliable cloud solutions. They have expert-level skills in Azure administration and experience with Azure development and DevOps processes. As mentioned above, there are two exams associated with this certification:
- AZ-303 Microsoft Azure Architect Technologies
- AZ-304 Microsoft Azure Architect Design
Microsoft Certified: DevOps Engineer Expert
Exam AZ-400
Professionals willing to become a DevOps Engineer expert should be aware of how to work with people, processes, and technologies to deliver business value continuously. These individuals design and implement strategies for code, collaboration, infrastructure, security, source control, compliance, testing, continuous integration, delivery, monitoring, and feedback. One can achieve this certification by completing the following prerequisites:
- Achieve the Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate OR Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate credential
- Take one certification exam – Designing and Implementing Microsoft DevOps Solutions (AZ-400)
These are not the only options you have when you are seeking an Azure certification. There are dedicated certifications for these job roles as well – Security Engineer, AI Engineer, IoT Developer, Database Administrator, Data Engineer, and Data Scientist. So, if you are looking for a promising career in cloud computing, achieve an Azure certification and climb up your career ladder.
