In today’s cloud-driven world, Amazon Web Services (AWS) dominates the industry—and so does the conversation around certifications. Whether you’re aiming for a cloud engineering role, breaking into DevOps, or planning a career in architecture, you’ve likely wondered:
Do AWS certifications actually help you get hired and grow in your tech career?
Opinions across the cloud community are sharply divided. Some insist certifications are career-changing. Others claim they’re overrated. To cut through the noise, we analyzed a widely discussed Reddit thread where cloud professionals, hiring managers, and engineers shared their real experiences in the AWS job market.
The reality is clear: AWS certifications are absolutely valuable—but only when used strategically. They accelerate your career, but they don’t replace hands-on experience. Here’s the real breakdown of how AWS certifications impact hiring, promotions, and long-term technical growth.
1. The First Hurdle: Getting Past the Gatekeepers
The most immediate and undeniable benefit of an AWS certification, even the introductory AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CCP), is its role in resume screening.
Think of your resume as competing against hundreds of others, often filtered first by an Applicant Tracking System (ATS)—a software designed to check for relevant keywords. In this process, certifications act as essential, high-value keywords that help your profile land on a human recruiter’s desk. As one commenter noted, certifications are “of moderate usefulness in clearing your resume past the screening stages” and help you “tick a checkbox in the ATS.”
The reality is that HR departments and hiring managers often use certifications as a simple, objective measure of foundational knowledge. Without this credential, your resume might be automatically discarded, regardless of your potential. This is especially true when applying to large, established companies that process thousands of applications. Therefore, the certificate’s primary function in the hiring process is not to get you the job, but to ensure you get the opportunity to interview for it.
Takeaway: Certifications get your resume through the system and into the hands of an actual human. Without one, you may not even get the chance to interview.
2. The Critical Differentiator for New Talent
For students and recent graduates—like the original poster who passed the CCP while still in university—certifications are a game-changer. When you are looking for an entry-level job or an internship, you simply don’t have the years of professional experience that senior applicants boast. In this scenario, AWS certifications become your primary way to stand out.
One professional explained the concept perfectly: “Since you’re still in uni and assuming you have little to no work experience, it’s things like this that set you out from 100 other applicants for an entry level job.” An AWS certification signals that you are proactive, dedicated, and, crucially, that you already possess a knowledge base. If an employer has 10 tasks to teach a new hire, hiring a certified individual suggests they may only have to teach them eight, saving valuable training time.
While the Cloud Practitioner is a great start, the most recommended next steps for maximizing entry-level impact are the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA) or the AWS Certified Developer – Associate. These associate-level certifications carry significantly more weight than the foundational CCP and demonstrate an understanding of real-world architecture.
Takeaway: For new grads, AWS certifications are a cheat code for standing out in crowded applicant pools.
3. The Hidden Value: Knowledge Over the Badge
Perhaps the most universally acknowledged benefit, and the one that persists throughout a career, is the actual technical knowledge gained during the study process. Many seasoned professionals argue that if you “learned about even one AWS service you didn’t know existed or didn’t understand before, then the certification has already been useful.”
Studying for a comprehensive exam like the Solutions Architect Professional or the Security Specialty forces candidates to learn more than just how to click buttons in the AWS Console. It immerses you in:
- AWS Best Practices: You learn the right way to architect applications—focusing on the five pillars of the AWS Well-Architected Framework (Operational Excellence, Security, Reliability, Performance Efficiency, and Cost Optimization).
- Security and Identity: You gain a deep understanding of core concepts like IAM (Identity and Access Management), which is critical for preventing security vulnerabilities in any cloud environment.
- Modern Distributed Systems: Certifications teach you how various services (Lambda, S3, EC2, DynamoDB, VPC, etc.) interact to build resilient, scalable, and modern distributed systems.
This structured learning provides a strong theoretical and practical foundation that helps you perform better on the job, regardless of the job title. As one software engineer who sits on hiring panels stated, you’ll learn a lot about “best practices for identity, security, networking, and how modern distributed systems work regardless.”
Takeaway: The knowledge you gain is often more valuable than the certificate itself.
4. Where Certs Become Non-Negotiable: The Partner Ecosystem
There is one area of the cloud industry where certifications shift from being “helpful” to being mandatory: the AWS Partner Network (APN) and the cloud consulting space.
Thousands of organizations operate as official AWS partners, providing managed services, consulting, and development for their clients. AWS requires these partners to maintain a minimum number of certified professionals—often at the Associate, Professional, or Specialty level—to achieve and keep their partner tier status (Select, Advanced, Premier).
For employees working at or applying to these companies, certifications are essential for the firm’s bottom line. One professional noted that their certificate helped them “get a promotion and more opportunities to work directly with Amazon” because they were employed by an Amazon partner. If you are aiming for a career in cloud consulting, systems integration, or managed services, obtaining and maintaining advanced AWS certifications is not optional; it’s a required part of the business model.
Takeaway: If you’re applying to cloud consultancies or AWS partners, certifications are non-negotiable.
5. The Limits of Certification: Experience Still Rules
Despite all the upsides, it is critical to maintain a balanced perspective. The collective wisdom of the community reinforces a clear distinction: Certifications get you the interview; experience gets you the job.
Once you are past the HR filter and sitting across from an experienced SOC manager or an engineering lead, the credential on your resume will not carry you through. Technical interviews are designed to assess your ability to apply the knowledge, solve problems, and demonstrate real-world experience.
Professionals who found success without a certification often highlight the importance of hands-on projects and building a homelab. As one self-taught cloud professional stated, all they had was “a homelab and grinded out projects and built stuff.” If you have the knowledge but lack the practical application, you will struggle.
Therefore, the best path is a dual-track approach:
- Acquire the Certificate: Master the theory, architecture, and best practices.
- Validate the Knowledge: Immediately follow up by building projects on AWS, applying what you learned, and documenting it publicly (e.g., on a GitHub portfolio).
A certification combined with a robust, demonstrated project portfolio is the winning formula.
Takeaway: Certification + Project Portfolio = Real job readiness.
Final Verdict: AWS Certifications Help—A Lot. But They’re an Accelerator, Not a Golden Ticket
So, do AWS certifications help in your career?
Absolutely—but only when combined with hands-on experience and strategic learning.
They are powerful tools for:
- Passing resume screening
- Standing out early in your career
- Qualifying for roles at AWS partner companies
- Establishing strong foundational cloud knowledge
But they don’t replace the need for real projects, problem-solving ability, and practical cloud engineering skills.
If you’re just starting out:
Prioritize the AWS Solutions Architect – Associate (SAA) after CCP.
If you’re already working in cloud:
Go for Professional or Specialty-level certs to maximize salary and credibility.
The people who say certifications are “useless” are often ignoring the reality of hiring pipelines, partner requirements, and the immense value of structured, exam-driven learning.
Invest in getting the certification—but invest even more in applying it.
That’s how you build a real cloud career!
Further Reading: How to Start Learning Cloud Computing (The Beginner’s Guide)
Discover more from TACETRA
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
