Microsoft Azure Certifications
With technology constantly advancing and the post-pandemic world embracing digital solutions, the IT sector is booming. Demand for skilled professionals is higher than ever as businesses shift to online environments. Cloud computing giants like Google Cloud Platform (GCP), Microsoft Azure, and Amazon Web Services (AWS) are leading this transformation. Microsoft Azure, in particular, offers a faster, safer, and more cost-effective way to use cloud services compared to traditional on-premise servers.
As an IT professional, this is your chance to shine. Getting certified in Microsoft Azure (or GCP/AWS) shows recruiters that you're skilled and dedicated. Certifications can open doors to new career opportunities in this exciting, fast-growing market.
In this article, we'll explore the different Microsoft Azure certification paths available to help you boost your skills and advance your career. We'll also provide tips on choosing the right Azure certification to match your professional goals. Let's get started on unlocking new possibilities!
Importance of Microsoft Azure certification?
With a Microsoft Azure certification, you are well-positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for qualified individuals and have access to improved employment opportunities, since recruiters prefer platform-certified professionals. It goes without saying that cloud computing is expanding rapidly. However, the current supply of trained workers is insufficient to match the expanding demand. As a result, participating in an Azure certification course allows you to experience professional benefits such as:
- Salaries are higher.
- Increased benefits.
- Working at high-profile companies.
- You have the choice to choose your place.
- Increased bargaining power to choose between companies.
- And these are just a few of the advantages of earning a Microsoft Azure certification. There is more to being a certified professional.
And these are just a few of the advantages of earning a Microsoft Azure certification. There is more to being a certified professional. There is little doubt that the market's main sectors require cloud computing workers, whether they are aspiring IT professionals or present specialists aiming to develop their abilities or careers. The good news is that they pay well.
Health, banking, and e-commerce are among the sectors with a significant need for Azure certification holders. Businesses in these industries recognize that engaging Microsoft Azure-certified specialists to handle their cloud settings will result in more effective storage, networking, and computing. This saves them money and improves overall speed.
What are the benefits of Microsoft Azure certifications?
Credibility
Having an Azure certification can increase your chances of being hired by recruiters. Microsoft conducts fairly complex tests to anyone attempting to obtain Azure certifications. The tests give excellent challenges for students to test them in all areas covered.
Essentially, Azure certification exams assess your:
- Knowledge.
- Level of readiness.
- Capability to adapt on the go.
- Speed of recovery from catastrophic errors.
Some tests, particularly those in the Specialty and Expert categories, require applicants to have substantial Azure experience, as knowledge alone is often insufficient.
Microsoft is well-known for its high standards in terms of security, cost management, and implementation.
Industry Awards
Obtaining Azure certifications requires substantial effort, preparation, and financial expenditure. Getting certified is a significant commitment, costing anything from $99 for Fundamentals level certifications to $165 for Associate, Expert, and Specialty certificates. This is even before you include preparation fees, such as Azure certification classes, practice examinations, and third-party study materials. The best aspect is that organizations and recruiters understand that the best-prepared and most committed workers would pursue a Microsoft Azure certification.
Career Advancement
IT professionals with Azure credentials earn over $149,000 per year, including entry-level professions like DevOps. Certification can significantly increase your average compensation. However, obtaining a Microsoft Azure certification does not guarantee you a dream job at the ideal business. When you combine qualifications with professional experience, employers see you differently. This is especially obvious among individuals who hold numerous credentials. They are frequently asked difficult questions during recruiting interviews, but they may negotiate overall greater compensation and perks, and they may even be hired for top positions inside the organization.
Personal Development
Azure-certified experts earn more than software engineers without the certification. This also applies to entry-level positions. If you want to advance your profession and earn better annual wages, studying Azure is a terrific option.
Are Microsoft Azure certifications worth it?
Market research indicates that the Cloud business would experience significant expansion between 2021 and 2025. Cloud revenue is predicted to nearly double to $287.03 billion as the market attempts to accommodate all of the new enterprises moving to online platforms.
While Amazon remains the dominant player in the cloud computing space, and GCP struggles to catch up, Microsoft Azure saw a 50% revenue increase in both 2020 and the second quarter of 2021. Azure's gross margins have also increased, rising from 67% in 2020 to 71% by 2021.
Microsoft is constructing its Intelligent Cloud platform to be the dominant player over the next ten years. Azure produced $6.4 billion in sales in the second quarter of 2021, representing 36% of Microsoft's total consolidated income.
Even though Azure may be the most intuitive and user-friendly platform to use, some prior knowledge is required before jumping in. Otherwise, you may become overwhelmed by the amount of study required to obtain a qualification.
What types of Azure certifications does Microsoft offer?
Microsoft Azure presently provides a total of 21 certificates. These Azure certifications are categorized into four tiers based on difficulty and scope. They are:
Categories: Fundamental, Associate, Expert, and Specialty.
Microsoft Azure Fundamental Certificates
Certificates for the Azure Fundamentals level are designed for those who are new to Azure and want to learn the basics. At this level, you will have a fundamental understanding of Azure-related knowledge, such as:
- Azure Resource Management
- Disaster recovery
- Scalability
- Fault Tolerance
Azure Fundamentals level certification does not require prior cloud computing expertise or experience, and you will be able to pass the exam if you study the appropriate content.
The Azure Fundamentals level certification exam costs $99 including taxes.
1. Azure Fundamentals Certification
Azure Fundamentals - Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Fundamentals certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
Azure DDoS Protection, Network Security Group, and Firewall.
Fundamental concepts include disaster recovery, scalability, and high availability (HA).
Exploration and use of Azure's key products.
Differences between Private, Public, and Hybrid Clouds.
2. Azure Data Fundamentals Certification
Azure Data Fundamentals - Microsoft Certified Badge - The Azure Data Fundamentals certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Dealing with analytics, administration, and current data warehouse components.
- Data ingestion and processing on Azure, as well as data visualization and analysis in Microsoft Power BI.
- Management activities include procuring and deploying data services, as well as using SQL query techniques.
3. Azure AI Fundamentals Certification
Azure AI Fundamentals - Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure AI Fundamentals certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- AI workloads and considerations.
- Features of Azure-based conversational AI workloads.
- Features of Azure-based Natural Language Processing (NLP) workloads.
- The fundamentals of machine learning using Azure.
4. Microsoft certification for Azure Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals
The Azure Security, Compliance, and Identity Fundamentals certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Microsoft security solution capabilities and usage.
- Azure-based security, compliance, and identity concepts.
- Microsoft Compliance Solutions.
Microsoft Azure Associate Certificates
Microsoft Azure Associate Certificates are for professionals with at least 1-2 years of hands-on experience in cloud computing. Associate-level tests are straightforward and will considerably expand your knowledge of the areas covered. They are intended to be taken immediately after you have completed the Fundamentals level qualifications.
This level will assist current professionals advance their careers. The Associate level certification exam costs $165, plus taxes. It is suggested that you have previously passed the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Certification Exam, since it provides valuable knowledge that will be required in Associate tests.
Microsoft Azure Associate Certificates are designed for professionals with at least 1-2 years of expertise in cloud computing. Associate-level tests are simple and will considerably increase your knowledge of the areas covered. They are intended to be taken immediately after completing the Fundamentals level certifications.
This level will enable people who are already working in the sector advance their careers. The Associate level certification exam costs $165 + VAT. It is advised that you have previously passed the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Certification Exam because it provides valuable knowledge that will be tested in Associate tests.
5. Azure Data Scientist Associate Certification.
Azure Data Scientist Associate Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Data Scientist Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Performing extraction, feature selection, and scaling.
- Splitting data sets, evaluating model performance, and detecting and correcting data imbalances.
- Converting data into useful data sets, monitoring visual data analytics to detect patterns, and recognizing and correcting abnormalities.
6. Azure Security Engineer Associate Certification.
Azure Security Engineer Associate - Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Security Engineer Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Management and configuration of data infrastructures, TLS/SSL configuration for application security, key vault management and configuration, and data encryption at rest.
- Configuring Azure Log Analytics and Azure Monitor, setting security policies, and handling security alerts.
- Implementing security measures for network and container hosts, as well as Azure resource management.
7. Azure Database Administrator Associate Certification.
Azure Database Administrator Associate - Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Database Administrator Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Monitoring activities, setting resources to maximize performance, and carrying out performance-based maintenance actions.
- Analyzing queries, database tables, and index design.
- Implementing and preparing a High Availability and Disaster Recovery (HADR) strategy to ensure continuous services, as well as performing backups.
8. Azure Administrator Associate Certification
Azure Administrator Associate Microst Certified Badge.
The Azure Administrator Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Implementing and managing storage.
- Deploying and managing Azure compute resources.
- Monitoring and backup Azure resources.
- Manage and configure virtual networking.
- Manage Azure governance and identities.
9. Azure Developer Associate Certification.
Azure Developer Associate Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Developer Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Developing for Azure storage.
- Developing Azure compute solutions.
- Connecting and consuming Azure and third-party services.
- Implementing Azure security.
10. Azure AI Engineering Associate Certification
Azure AI Engineer Associate Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure AI Engineer Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Implementing natural language processing solutions.
- Implementing knowledge-mining solutions.
- Implementing conversational artificial intelligence solutions.
- Implementing computer vision solutions.
- Designing and administering an Azure Cognitive Services system.
11. Azure Identity and Access Administrator Associate Certification
Azure Identity and Access Administrator Associate, Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Identity and Access Administrator Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
-
Designing and implementing identity management solutions. - Implementing application access management.
- Implementing identity management solutions.
- Implementing authentication and access management systems.
12. Azure Data Engineer Associate Certification
Azure Data Engineer Associate - Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Data Engineer Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Optimizing and monitoring data storage and processing.
- Designing and implementing data storage.
- Designing and implementing data processing.
- Designing and implementing data security.
13. Azure Security Operations Analyst Associate Certification.
Azure Security Operations Analyst Associate Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Security Operations Analyst Associate certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Using Azure Sentinel to identify and mitigate threats.
- Threats are identified and mitigated using Microsoft 365 Defender.
- Threats are identified and mitigated using Azure Defender.
Microsoft Azure Expert Certificates
Microsoft Azure Expert Certificates are designed for professionals with three to five years of expertise utilizing Azure technology, apps, and products. The Expert level certification exam costs $165 + VAT. Expert-level credentials cover a wide range of Azure technologies and processes. This exam level is difficult since it covers a wide range of topics and delves into each one thoroughly. Some certificates require that you first achieve a corresponding Azure Associate certification. For example, to obtain the Azure DevOps Engineer Expert certificate, you must first hold the Azure Developer Associate or Azure Administrator Associate certifications.
14. Azure DevOps Engineer Expert Certification
Azure DevOps Engineer Expert Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure DevOps Engineer Expert certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Source control management.
- Developing security and compliance plans.
- Managing the cloud hosting infrastructure.
- Developing instrumentation and SRE methods.
- Define and implement continuous integration.
15. Azure Solution Architect Expert Certification
Azure Solutions Architect Expert Microsoft Certified Badge
The Azure Solutions Architect Expert certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Cloud migration to Azure approach.
- Configure Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).
- Configuring serverless computing with Azure.
- Designing infrastructure.
Microsoft Azure Specialty Certificates
Microsoft Azure Specialty Certificates are intended for people with extensive knowledge in a certain field. The Specialty level certification exam costs $165 + taxes. The difficulty level is comparable to the Expert level certificates. However, rather than addressing a wide range of topics, the scope here is extremely small. The exam aims for maximal depth, guaranteeing that the professional understands everything in the category and can handle even the most complex problems.
16. Azure IoT Developer Specialty Certification.
Azure IoT Developer Specialty Microsoft Certified Bage
The Azure IoT Developer Specialty certification exam evaluates your abilities in:
- Processing and managing data.
- Provisioning and managing devices.
- Monitoring, debugging, and improving Internet of Things solutions.
- Provisioning and managing devices.
- Configuring, deploying, and monitoring IoT edge modules.
Summary
Cloud computing is a rapidly expanding business with a high demand for specialists, and this alone is reason enough to obtain an Azure certification. Being certified provides too many benefits to pass up, including better employment opportunities, higher salaries, professional freedom, and the ability to work in more locations.
In this post, we look at the actual Azure certification exams preparation questions answers and recommend which ones you should take to be best prepared for your Azure certification exam. To assist you on this learning journey, we recommend current, high-quality material taught by highly communicative experts.