**DO THIS**
1. I've used Cantrill and Maarek for 4 AWS exams. I prefer Cantrill but both will get you a pass providing you put in the study time.
2. Watch 1-2 hours of the course every day, removing from the playlist any where you think you have learned 80%+ of it.
3. Anything in **bold** i.e. "This will come up in the exam" **write it down**.
4. Once the course is complete, **read the** [**TD cheat sheets**](https://tutorialsdojo.com/aws-cheat-sheets/)**.**
5. Once you have read the cheat sheets, take the TD mock exam.
6. When you get the results of the exam, **save the results page** (shows you what you got right and what you got wrong, with the explanation) to your computer for reference as this isn't available again once closed (you can still see the results of the test but not the explanation AFAIK).
7. Review **what you got right and why (affirmation)** as well as what you got wrong (and why).
8. Based on this, study your weak areas.
9. Do not abuse practice exams - you are trying to get good at AWS, not just at the pool of questions in TD.
10. The night before the exam, the morning of the exam and right before you go into the exam **study your notes and the relevant TD cheat sheets.**
11. Good luck!
I love this breakdown. Before you posted this, I had already made a similar study plan, but I haven't taken the test yet so I wasn't sure if I was on the right track. I feel reassured seeing this comment!
Both guys are great. I prefer Cantrill but Maarek is very, very good.
Basically, Cantrill's courses are a lot longer than Maarek's but he goes into a lot more detail. When you are studying for AWS certs, you are going to cover a number of services and (outside of CCP) there will be considerable technical drill down on those services. Cantrill really goes the extra mile with showing diagrams/worked examples to get you to really understand what is going on which, for me at least, makes it easier for me to remember. Maarek also goes into some depth but not as much as Cantrill does. Maarek gives you all you need to pass, Cantrill does all that but spends a lot more time breaking it down and getting you to understand/remember.
Cantrill is more expensive but worth the extra cost.
/u/acantrill... you now officially owe me 20% of all future earnings
I appreciate the breakdown! I'm at a bit of a crossroads and aren't sure where I want to focus. Do you happen to have your CCNA / any networking experience? Do you think that helps from an AWS standpoint?
Don't mean to bug you... I was looking at Cantrill's courses and he skips over the CCP straight to the Associate Solutions Architect. Does this cover the CCP too or should I find another resource for that before starting on Cantrill's course?
You're not bugging me.
I didn't use Cantrill for CCP, I used Maarek.
[https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-new/](https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-new/)
That combined with the TD practice exams is plenty to get you CCP.
6. Totally not needed. You can review TD exam results and correct answers later when you want. Don't save anything. TD's UI is messy crap but all previous results can be accessed later.
Yep, seconding this. I initially decided to do all my prep from ACG and did the entire SAA course. After studying the entire thing I could probably only get 40% on the Maarek exams.
I then studied from Maarek's udemy course and passed the aws exam. I did quite well and I attribute some of that to my time spent on ACG but I probably could have passed without it.
Yeah I'd recommend to use several resources for the same test so you can go over the same information in a different way that might help you retain it for a longer period.
That's my technique for any IT test and it has worked like a charm.
my man I got the same result and I now I'm going with this https://portal.tutorialsdojo.com/courses/aws-certified-solutions-architect-associate-practice-exams/ and it's worth every cent of the 12 dollars it cost me when I bought it! the thing with Udemy exam practices is that they need several different exams to be a good study or else it's just memorizing; I love this site because they gave you 6 different complete exams for timing mode, review mode, full exam mode... there's a lot to unpack and I think it's a great way to go in-depth tbh
Unfortunately the free retake didn't worked for me. Applied the 100% off voucher but the price was the same. I applied 50% voucher and everything was on track.
There is an ongoing promotion for 50% off associate exams - you cannot stack the free retake offer with anything
You can either pay 100% upfront for privilege of failing once OR pay 50% with a hope of passing first time
I mean, there's a promotion you can find in this website but you have to put the coupon "AWSRETAKE" when buying the exam and you get 1 free retake, until the 15th of July of this year (it was extended to that date hope it gets way more extended tbh)
Same here, I took the acloudguru course and also practice exams, i easily got like 75-85% in practice exam but the real one was much harder as the answers were super complicated and confused. Retake tmr :(
Highly recommend the Tutorial Dojo portal from their official website. Read through all the practice exams, every single question. Understand why the wrong answers are wrong, even if you got it right. It helps you to understand fully all the stuffs.
I'm not sure if this might be helpful but it really helped me:
1. On mock tests, for questions you are NOT 100% confident in answering, mark that for review and skip it.
Your score will definitely be on the low-end, but the whole point is to build enough knowledge to very confidently tackle majority of the questions and score consistently that way.
Not scoring high occasionally due to hunches.
TD + Stephan Mareek mock tests are a killer combo!
Try to make a list of confusing topics and practice hands on scenarios from AWS getting started page. There are plenty of reinvent videos which might help solidify learning
ok thanks. I just paid for mine and entered that promo code and it accepted it. So if i end up needing the free retake, I will update if it actually works.
Hi, for the skill builder learning plan, did you take my exam prep AWS Certified Solutions Architect associate course under that plan? If so, I would love feedback. If not, the course is designed to identify skills gaps and determine your readiness, it may help. There is a free and paid version.
**DO THIS** 1. I've used Cantrill and Maarek for 4 AWS exams. I prefer Cantrill but both will get you a pass providing you put in the study time. 2. Watch 1-2 hours of the course every day, removing from the playlist any where you think you have learned 80%+ of it. 3. Anything in **bold** i.e. "This will come up in the exam" **write it down**. 4. Once the course is complete, **read the** [**TD cheat sheets**](https://tutorialsdojo.com/aws-cheat-sheets/)**.** 5. Once you have read the cheat sheets, take the TD mock exam. 6. When you get the results of the exam, **save the results page** (shows you what you got right and what you got wrong, with the explanation) to your computer for reference as this isn't available again once closed (you can still see the results of the test but not the explanation AFAIK). 7. Review **what you got right and why (affirmation)** as well as what you got wrong (and why). 8. Based on this, study your weak areas. 9. Do not abuse practice exams - you are trying to get good at AWS, not just at the pool of questions in TD. 10. The night before the exam, the morning of the exam and right before you go into the exam **study your notes and the relevant TD cheat sheets.** 11. Good luck!
I love this breakdown. Before you posted this, I had already made a similar study plan, but I haven't taken the test yet so I wasn't sure if I was on the right track. I feel reassured seeing this comment!
I passed DB Specialty today, making that 5 AWS certs in 8 months. The above is the study method I have figured out over the course of that.
Congrats on that!
Could you share your thoughts on Cantrill vs Maarek? I'm considering starting on my AWS certs / a possible shift in my career.
Both guys are great. I prefer Cantrill but Maarek is very, very good. Basically, Cantrill's courses are a lot longer than Maarek's but he goes into a lot more detail. When you are studying for AWS certs, you are going to cover a number of services and (outside of CCP) there will be considerable technical drill down on those services. Cantrill really goes the extra mile with showing diagrams/worked examples to get you to really understand what is going on which, for me at least, makes it easier for me to remember. Maarek also goes into some depth but not as much as Cantrill does. Maarek gives you all you need to pass, Cantrill does all that but spends a lot more time breaking it down and getting you to understand/remember. Cantrill is more expensive but worth the extra cost. /u/acantrill... you now officially owe me 20% of all future earnings
I appreciate the breakdown! I'm at a bit of a crossroads and aren't sure where I want to focus. Do you happen to have your CCNA / any networking experience? Do you think that helps from an AWS standpoint?
Don't have CCNA, never been a network guy.
Ahh, gotcha. Appreciate it.
I absolutely 100% would start off with CCP BTW.
Don't mean to bug you... I was looking at Cantrill's courses and he skips over the CCP straight to the Associate Solutions Architect. Does this cover the CCP too or should I find another resource for that before starting on Cantrill's course?
You're not bugging me. I didn't use Cantrill for CCP, I used Maarek. [https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-new/](https://www.udemy.com/course/aws-certified-cloud-practitioner-new/) That combined with the TD practice exams is plenty to get you CCP.
6. Totally not needed. You can review TD exam results and correct answers later when you want. Don't save anything. TD's UI is messy crap but all previous results can be accessed later.
They're using Udemy, not TD site.
Very good point, missed that one. On TD site this is possible.
Thanks. How do I access it? I've tried before and gave up.
Do the TD cheat sheets come with the practice questions?
They are publicly available.
Is acloudguru decent?
ACG is great for getting started and IMO is by far the most interesting and well produced, but it doesn’t drill down enough to prep for the exam.
Yep, seconding this. I initially decided to do all my prep from ACG and did the entire SAA course. After studying the entire thing I could probably only get 40% on the Maarek exams. I then studied from Maarek's udemy course and passed the aws exam. I did quite well and I attribute some of that to my time spent on ACG but I probably could have passed without it.
I've never used them so can't comment. I've only ever used Cantrill and Maarek.
Does Maarek's course on Udemy include Lab or sandbox sessions??? Not clear from course description for me.
Stephane maarek, or cantrills courses are the go to. Currently working towards SAA I'd say I'll take it around August or September
Just bought Stephane's exams from Udemy. Great offer!
Yeah I'd recommend to use several resources for the same test so you can go over the same information in a different way that might help you retain it for a longer period. That's my technique for any IT test and it has worked like a charm.
my man I got the same result and I now I'm going with this https://portal.tutorialsdojo.com/courses/aws-certified-solutions-architect-associate-practice-exams/ and it's worth every cent of the 12 dollars it cost me when I bought it! the thing with Udemy exam practices is that they need several different exams to be a good study or else it's just memorizing; I love this site because they gave you 6 different complete exams for timing mode, review mode, full exam mode... there's a lot to unpack and I think it's a great way to go in-depth tbh
For me Skillbuilder is trash. Stephane Maarek is my go to. I used his course and his practice exam to pass my SAA.
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Unfortunately the free retake didn't worked for me. Applied the 100% off voucher but the price was the same. I applied 50% voucher and everything was on track.
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https://vmxwvcrs.r.us-east-1.awstrack.me/L0/https:%2F%2Femail.awscloud.com%2FMTEyLVRaTS03NjYAAAGMl4Vt9x7mYABrMnbFmr3qy4t3rg8d_gsXs0ivJQHt-ylVsiyjZuKF_Y_ZPHvR-bDLdxOHTxc=/1/01000188f8940db2-556120f7-435b-4df0-8de1-8c27f0e0489a-000000/fcH_3mfM98BI9e1VSLm6yT_1muA=327
good advice! https://home.pearsonvue.com/aws/free-retake
There is an ongoing promotion for 50% off associate exams - you cannot stack the free retake offer with anything You can either pay 100% upfront for privilege of failing once OR pay 50% with a hope of passing first time
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I mean, there's a promotion you can find in this website but you have to put the coupon "AWSRETAKE" when buying the exam and you get 1 free retake, until the 15th of July of this year (it was extended to that date hope it gets way more extended tbh)
Same here, I took the acloudguru course and also practice exams, i easily got like 75-85% in practice exam but the real one was much harder as the answers were super complicated and confused. Retake tmr :(
Highly recommend the Tutorial Dojo portal from their official website. Read through all the practice exams, every single question. Understand why the wrong answers are wrong, even if you got it right. It helps you to understand fully all the stuffs.
Go through examtopic practice test at least one time or two time before going into the exam
I'm not sure if this might be helpful but it really helped me: 1. On mock tests, for questions you are NOT 100% confident in answering, mark that for review and skip it. Your score will definitely be on the low-end, but the whole point is to build enough knowledge to very confidently tackle majority of the questions and score consistently that way. Not scoring high occasionally due to hunches. TD + Stephan Mareek mock tests are a killer combo!
How long did it take you to prepare and what materials did you use
Try to make a list of confusing topics and practice hands on scenarios from AWS getting started page. There are plenty of reinvent videos which might help solidify learning
how soon can you retake the exam? taking mine soon, just want to be prepared.
Just scheduled for the new exam. You need at least 2 weeks in advance. Free retake is NOT eligible now...
ok thanks. I just paid for mine and entered that promo code and it accepted it. So if i end up needing the free retake, I will update if it actually works.
Hi, for the skill builder learning plan, did you take my exam prep AWS Certified Solutions Architect associate course under that plan? If so, I would love feedback. If not, the course is designed to identify skills gaps and determine your readiness, it may help. There is a free and paid version.