There have been some significant changes in Microsoft Azure certification and training in the last two years, and these certifications are now sought after and paying well in the job market. For a while, it seemed that Microsoft was lagging behind in cloud-based technology, but with the implementation and introduction of Azure and incorporation of Microsoft Office in their cloud, they are back in the game and gaining margin in the business.
Compared to other clouds, Microsoft Azure has proven to be the most stable one with a minimum amount of downtime. This shows that Microsoft did not just jump in the market unprepared, rather they trained their workers to get the work done the first time, which might lead some people to believe that Microsoft trainees are less in demand, but that is not the case at all. Azure training is much more valuable in the job market today because employers want to hire people who they can rely on and who can make sure that the cloud servers do not crash in the middle of the night. Microsoft offers a variety of certifications that you can choose from according to the career path that you want to take.
Top Paying Microsoft Certifications 2019
Following are Microsoft Azure certifications that are deemed most desired by the organizations and are top paying too.
1. Azure Fundamentals
This is an optional exam in every certification path and consists of the fundamental and basic understanding of Azure. This exam can be taken by both non-technical and technical people who are looking for a certification to validate their basic understanding of Microsoft Azure cloud services. It consists of the following topics:
- Basic understating of cloud concepts (15-20%)
- Knowledge of core services provided by Azure (30-35%)
- Understanding Trust, Security, Compliance, and Privacy (25-30%)
- Understanding Azure Support and Pricing (25-30%)
2. Azure Administrator Associate
You need to pass two exams to gain this certification (AZ-101 Microsoft Azure Integration and Security and AZ-100 Microsoft Azure Infrastructure and Deployment). This certification has been introduced in place of 70-533 exam, and in case you have already taken that exam then you can take the transition exam (AZ-102 Microsoft Azure Administrator Certification Transition) but you as to sit in this exam as soon as possible because it is only available till June 2019.
To earn this certification, you should have a comprehensive understanding of Azure services across the entire span of IT life-cycle, and you should be capable of taking requests for infrastructure environments, applications, and services. People are who opt for this certification are usually Azure administrators who already know how to manage cloud services such as storage, networking, security, and know cloud computing. They are knowledgeable enough to recommend Azure services that you can use in your organization for optimal scale and performance, as well as monitor, size, provision, and adjust resources.
For each of the exams, you will have to accomplish the tasks listed below:
AZ-100
- You should be able to manage Azure resources and subscriptions (15-20%)
- You should be able to manage and implement storage (20-25%)
- You should be able to manage and deploy VMs (virtual machines) (20-25%)
- You should be able to manage and configure virtual networks (20-25%)
- You should be able to manage identities (15-20%)
AZ-101
- You should be able to perform and evaluate server migration to Azure (15-20%)
- You should be able to manage and implement application services (20-25%)
- You should be able to secure identities (25-30%)
- You should be able to implement advanced virtual networking (30-35%)
AZ-102
- You should be able to manage Azure resources and subscriptions (5-10%)
- You should be able to manage and implement storage (5-10%)
- You should be able to manage and configure virtual networks (15-20%)
- You should be able to manage identities (15-20%)
3. Azure Developer Associate
Just like AZ-100/101, this certification also consisted of two exams, but after a lot of feedback collected during the beta test phase, Microsoft eliminated a few of the learning objectives and converted it into only one exam (AZ-203 Developing Solutions for Microsoft Azure). This is also a replacement of 70-532 certification but for this, there is no transition exam and anyone to wishes to get the new Associate certificate will have to take the complete exam again.
- To earn this certification, you should have a comprehensive understanding of all the services offered by Azure. You should be able to build and design solutions using Azure technologies and tools such as communications, computing, security, and storage. People looking to get this certification should have at least one year of experience. In AZ-203 exam you will be tested for the following tasks:
- You should be able to develop Azure Infrastructure as a service Compute solutions (10-15%)
- You should be able to develop for Azure storage (15-20%)
- You should be able to implement Azure security (10-15%)
- You should be able to optimize, troubleshoot, and monitor Azure solutions (15-20%)
- You should be able to develop the Azure platform as a service compute solutions (20-25%)
- You should be able to consume and connect third-party services and Azure services (20-25%)
4. Azure Solutions Architect Expert
For this certification, you have to pass two exams (AZ-301 Microsoft Azure Architect Design and AZ-300 Microsoft Azure Architect Technologies). This exam is also a replacement for an old exam 70-535 and in case that you have already cleared that exam then you can take the transition exam that is (AZ-302 Microsoft Azure Solutions Certification Transition). This transition exam will also end in June 2019, so you need to take it before that.
Conclusion
Azure training is ideal for individuals looking for advanced knowledge and experience in various IT fields such as virtualization, networking, security, identity, disaster recovery, data management, business continuity, and governance and budgeting. These are just some of the many Azure training and certifications that you can opt for your career growth. To learn more about your available options, get in touch with us today.