AWS Solution Architect Pro: advice from an AWS Instructor

The AWS Solution Architect Professional certification is probably one of the hardest ones. Unlike some other certifications, working to achieve it provides you with significant and robust knowledge about AWS, as well as the most popular patterns and technologies in the market.

Coupled with practical experience, this certification can help you advance to another level very quickly. At least, that was the case for me.

As an AWS Authorized Instructor since 2019, I have passed many AWS certifications and trained numerous people to achieve the same. I’m writing this article to share my real-life feedback on how to prepare for the exam the right way and the pitfalls to avoid.

The AWS Journey Framework

When I was a consultant, I worked closely with AWS training teams, and we aligned on the observation that even though many people train for the certification and attend classrooms, less than half of them actually register for the exam. Often, this is due to a lack of time because of work, family obligations, etc.

We then built a training framework to support people from start to finish: getting certified.

Here is the framework we developed in 5 steps:

1. Official Training: If you or your company can afford it, take 5 days of official training for the certification with an AWS Authorized Instructor. These sessions are intense and can save you a lot of time, even though you’ll need to complement them with self-training. They allow you to block dedicated time to dive into the most important topics for the certification. By the end of the 5 days, you’ll only need to cover side topics and will already feel comfortable with the core ones.
2. AWS Skill Builder: AWS used to offer free training classrooms with instructors to answer questions and conduct practice exams with other certification candidates. Now, AWS Skill Builder has replaced this. However, in my experience, I don’t find it very useful. While it offers a lot of content, it lacks a clear and complete learning path.
3. Self-Training: A consistent self-training platform is a crucial step.
4. Practice Tests: Practice tests must be done on a good platform. In the past, I wasted time with irrelevant practice tests sold by AWS.
5. Exam Registration: Don’t wait to feel “ready” before registering for the certification. Here’s a rule I never break: I always register after my first practice exam. This first attempt gives me an idea of the time I need to prepare. Then, I pick a date. Having a booked exam date keeps me motivated and focused on the objective.

This approach worked for me and, with small variations, for my students. Over the past 5 years, I’ve trained approximately 300 people, and every single one who followed these steps passed.

My advice for the learning

First of all, you need to acquire a significant amount of knowledge about AWS Cloud infrastructure and the many services it offers. I wanted a solid foundation, so I reviewed many videos—even those I had already seen for the Solution Architect Associate certification—to reinforce my understanding. I also needed instructors with good English skills and effective communication to avoid the “Homer Simpson Monkey” effect after 3 minutes.

Recommended self-training platforms

• QA (former Cloud Academy) offers good training paths with labs to practice, section tests, final exams, etc. It’s a great way to prepare yourself or complement the 5-day training with an AWS Authorized Instructor.
• The Gold Content according to me is the training made by Adrian Cantrill here. This is what I used, and trust me, it’s the best $80 you’ll ever spend. This course not only helped me achieve the certification but also prepared me to manage AWS services with deep and consistent knowledge.

Practice exams platform

The AWS SA Pro exam is notoriously difficult to prepare for because every practice test takes around 3 hours, and you need to complete multiple tests to feel ready. I won’t sugarcoat it—this part is challenging. Even during re-certification, it’s the part I dislike the most. Here’s my routine:

• Every day during lunch, I complete 20 questions.
• After a few weeks, I take 2–3 full-length exams under real conditions on weekends. This is crucial because practice tests often cover concepts absent from training courses. They also help you familiarize yourself with the question types and answer formats. My favorite platform is Whizlabs, as many of its training questions appear in the actual certification exam.

My advice for the exam

Here is a list of advice that can be very useful the D-Day :

• If you’re unsure of the correct answer, try to eliminate the wrong ones.
• Look for keywords in the question. For example, questions about IAM (roles) or Kinesis (real-time) are easy to recognize.
• Try not to spend more than 2 minutes per question.
• Don’t overthink—there are no trick questions.
• Don’t stress if you don’t know the answer to the first few questions. The later ones might be simpler..
• Don’t anticipate failure. I’ve passed 7 AWS exams, and 6 times I was convinced I’d fail halfway through. I didn’t.

Useful information

Here is a recap of useful information about this certification :

• Duration : 180min
• Cost : 300$
• Number of questions : 75
• Average passing score : 75%

If you have questions, feel free to comment this article.