How do I become a cloud specialist?

Transferring to a new job role can be overwhelming. Where do you start learning? To help you out, Global Knowledge has started publishing a monthly how to become article. In this article, you will find a learning track for a job role you might be interested in. This month: cloud specialist.

Let's start this article of with the why: because why would you specialize in cloud?

First of all, there is plenty of work as a cloud specialist. LinkedIn even shows an increase in job openings for cloud specialists. I've done a small search on the social media platform and found that there are 222 openings for network specialists and 342 openings for network administrators, against 1411 openings for cloud specialists and 1144 openings for cloud architects. The 2021 IT Skills and Salary Report lists several cloud certifications as best-paying and most widely held. Cloud Specialists are in demand.

Reasons enough to educate yourself on cloud. In this article you will find Virtual Classroom courses you can attend to do so, and on-demand courses or challenges you can take in your own time. I will guide you through the learning track in this article.

Keep developing yourself

For cloud specialists, as well as developers, applies the saying: you can never stop learning. The cloud is developing continuously and so should you.

All training courses mentioned in this article can be found in the GK Polaris Discovery course portfolio. With GK Polaris Discovery you get unlimited access to Virtual Classroom courses for one year, for a price that's similar to the price of one training course (€2995). Learn more about GK Polaris on this page.

Step 1: Start with the basics

Your GK Polaris Discovery subscription grants you access to our on-demand and Virtual Classroom training courses. We are starting this learning track off with our Virtual Classroom courses

In the Virtual Classroom

Are you brand new in the world of IT or looking to re-educate yourself for a different job role? Start with the CompTIA IT Fundamentals (G001) for a solid foundation of the IT landscape. In addition, you can follow the CompTIA Cloud+ Certification (CV0-002) for more basic knowledge about the cloud.

All training courses listed below take place in the Global Knowledge Virtual Classroom. In the Virtual Classroom, you get educated by an experienced instructor on the basics in Microsoft Azure or Amazon Web Services. You share this experience with other participants. If you just need basic cloud knowledge, it doesn't matter which service provider you decide to do the basic course from. Obviously, it's self-explanatory that if your organization works with Microsoft Azure, you attend the Microsoft Azure Fundamentals course.

Pick from these training courses:

• Microsoft Azure
  Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900T01)
  Duration: 2 days
• Amazon Web Services
  AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (GK4534)
  Duration: 1 days

Train at your own pace

Prefer to learn at your own pace? Check out the on-demand courses we have listed below. You decide when you make time to study - because these courses are on-demand, they are accessible at all times.

The on-demand courses on Skillsoft Percipio Tech & Dev (accessible with every GK Polaris subscription):

• Cloud Basics
• Cloud Platforms
• Cloud Development
• Cloud Security

There are many courses available on Percipio. You can access these by logging into your GK Polaris Experience platform.

Step 2: Beyond the basics

Have you got a good grasp of the basic principles of cloud service providers? Hands-on knowledge of one of the cloud providers is a must. This is your first step towards a specialization. Will you start working with Microsoft Azure or Amazon Web Services?

In this step, you also decide the direction of your specialization. Would you like to enter development? Or are you more interested in operations? You can also decide to become an architect (if this is the case, please read this article).

In the Virtual Classroom

It's time to choose a direction. To do so, I've created this specialization table.

Because of the increase in Agile in the cloud, administration and development (DevOps) are moving closer together. For this article we divide between Architecture and DevOps.

Train at your own pace with challenges

If you would rather train at your own pace with challenges in real Microsoft Azure and AWS environments, I recommend investing in our GK Polaris Accelerate subscription. With the challenges and preps included in this subscription, you can get your certification as cloud specialist or architect (AWS, Microsoft Azure & Google Cloud Platform) in the future.

What you learn sticks because of the challenges you perform in the environments by Microsoft Azure and AWS. Learn more about Accelerate on this page.

Step 3: distinguish yourself

IT-professionals with a specialization have a bigger impact on their organization. As a specialized professional, you might be able to implement the correct security controls for compliance or find a fitting automation or scaling strategy to meet the budget and needs of your organization.

In the Virtual Classroom

There are all kinds of topics you can get specialized in. For example: Security, Advanced Networking, Internet of Things, Machine Learning and Database Design. Check out the selection below (or read this article to find out how to become an even better cloud specialist).

What's next?

Finished this learning track? Obviously, you are never done developing yourself. Have a look at the last edition of this series of articles about development if you need more inspiration.