Microsoft Azure Devops Certification: Your Route to Professional Success

All beginners seeking training on the Azure certification path for DevOps assemble! You are here because you want to know what the certification entails and what to expect.

In this article, we create a comprehensive Azure DevOps certification roadmap you can use to learn how to become a DevOps engineer and get on the path to a fulfilling career.

How Do You Become a Microsoft Azure DevOps Engineer?

To be an Azure DevOps engineer, you must gain essential expertise in utilizing several technologies, working with people, and a general understanding of diverse processes.

Committing to responsibilities such as designing and implementing strategies for deriving code, source control, compliance, security, Continuous Integration (CI), delivery, monitoring, reporting, feedback, and other similar solutions is essential.

Aspirants on the Azure DevOps path to take the Microsoft Azure DevOps Expert certification must be proficient in Azure Administration and Development.

Benefits of Azure DevOps Engineer Certification

Earning a cert as a DevOps Engineer offers several benefits: career advancement and personal growth. Here are some of the key benefits of becoming a certified Azure DevOps Engineer:

• Validated Skills: Certification validates your Azure DevOps practices and tools expertise. It demonstrates to employers and colleagues that you have the knowledge and skills to work effectively in this field.
• Increased Employability: Many organizations prefer or require their DevOps professionals to be certified. A recognized cert can make you a more attractive candidate when seeking new job opportunities.
• Career Advancement: You can often qualify for more senior positions and responsibilities through the Azure DevOps career path, leading to career growth and higher earning potential.
• Industry Recognition: Certification is a recognized standard in the industry. It shows that you are committed to your professional development and staying current with the latest best practices.
• Competitive Advantage: In a competitive job market, cert can give you an edge over non-certified candidates. It demonstrates your commitment to excellence and dedication to your career.
• Skill Enhancement: Preparing for certification exams requires in-depth learning and practical application of Microsoft DevOps tools and methodologies. This process enhances your skills and knowledge.
• Access to Exclusive Resources: Certified professionals often gain access to exclusive communities, forums, and resources that provide ongoing support, updates, and networking opportunities.
• Job Security: In the rapidly evolving tech industry, certified professionals are often better equipped to adapt to changes and remain relevant, which can enhance job security.
• Better Problem-Solving Abilities: Certification equips you to solve complex problems related to DevOps practices and tools.
• Client and Employer Confidence: Clients and employers have confidence in the abilities of certified professionals, which can lead to stronger working relationships and trust.
• Global Recognition: DevOps Azure certification is recognized worldwide, making working in different regions and collaborating with international teams easier.
• Personal Satisfaction: Certification can be personally satisfying and boost self-confidence. It's a tangible achievement that reflects your dedication to your field.
• Continuous Learning: Maintaining cert oen requires ongoing learning and professional development, which keeps you updated with industry trends.
• Career Variety: As a DevOps Engineer, your skills are transferable to various industries and roles, providing flexibility in your career choices.

These are not, by any means, all the benefits you could reap from getting your MS DevOps Engineer Certification.

What Do Azure Exams Cover?

Pathway to obtain an MS Azure DevOps certification

There are specific requirements you need to fulfill before taking the certification exam. It would help if you appeared for the AZ-400 examination to be a certified DevOps engineer.

To be an eligible applicant for the AZ-400 expert certification, you need to pursue or possess at least one out of two certificates.

The two optional certs are Microsoft Certified: Azure Developer Associate and Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate.

Azure Administrator Associate Certification (AZ-104)

This certification does not require any prerequisites. Thus, having the essential knowledge about managing and monitoring the cloud computing environment of an organization is enough for you to go ahead and get the Azure DevOps Administrator certification.

It lets you understand how to get an organization's cloud infrastructure under Azure. You will also learn solutions such as computing, identity monitoring, governance resource adjustments, and storage.

As the name suggests, it qualifies you to be an administrator of the Azure environment embedded within an organization. Therefore, obtaining administrator skills is essential if your goal is to be an Azure DevOps engineer.

You can start with our list of useful books for a novice DevOps engineer.

Azure Developer Associate (AZ-204)

Before pursuing the Azure Developer Associate certification, you must have a basic understanding of building, maintaining, designing, and testing different cloud services and apps on Azure.

Holding this cert allows you to participate in all cloud-oriented development aspects within a particular organization, including development, design, maintenance, or deployment.

The developers are expected to look after the feasibility of the solutions by working with cloud architects, Cloud DBAs, cloud administrators, and clients.

Before appearing for the Developer Associate certification, you must have at least one year of experience in professional development. You also need to be proficient in Azure.

The other qualifications include mastering one Azure-supported language for coding programs and expertise in Azure CLI, SDKs, PowerShell, connections, and storage.

The Azure Developer Associate cert covers most of the technical aspects, thus making it a vital prerequisite for acquiring the Azure DevOps Engineer Expert certification.

The Administrator Associate and Developer Associate demand technical knowledge for their certifications. Even though they do not ask for any prerequisites, clearing their credentials with no prior knowledge of Azure Fundamentals can prove challenging.

Therefore, taking up Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) is advisable. It is an additional cert with all the basic foundational knowledge. It will prepare you to acquire all the basic and expert certifications one after the other.

Microsoft Certification Exam (AZ-400): Designing and Implementing Microsoft DevOps Solutions

After taking either Developer Associate certification or Administrator Associate Certification, you can apply for the AZ 400 exam. It clears the Azure DevOps path for you to become a certified DevOps Engineer Expert.

To take this examination, you need to know the usability of diverse technologies found in the Azure environment that add business value to the organization. This Microsoft Certification exam has a high knowledge demand and requires significant preparation.

• Completing it will mean you can undertake the following technical tasks within the DevOps environment:
• Develop Instrumentation strategy
• Prepare a plan for compliance and security
• Develop SRE strategy (Site Reliability Engineering Strategy)
• Implement CD and CI
• Promote collaboration and communication, and others.

These are among the numerous topics that you will master with the completion of this exam. After passing the exam, you will become a Microsoft Certified DevOps Engineer, able to take on your first steps into a career.

Career Opportunities for Certified Azure DevOps Engineers

The Azure DevOps Engineer certification path offers many learning opportunities. All that knowledge is designed to enable you to perform several diverse jobs in different designations.

Azure DevOps engineers have a higher potential to perform crucial and technical job aspects for organizations within the platform’s environment. This, in turn, increases the demand for these engineers across MNCs and public and private sector companies.

Today, many high-paying job designations are available for certified DevOps engineers. Some of them include:

1. Developers

The developers build, develop, and deploy applications or services within the platform’s environment. Taking the certification of Azure Developer Associate together with DevOps Engineer Expert gives you an added advantage in this job.

2. Administrators

The administrator keeps track of the organization’s pulse within the platform’s systems. They are in charge of monitoring, installing, and configuring everyday tasks. Additionally, they also ensure that the whole system is working flawlessly.

3. DevOps Engineers

This is the designation for which you took the cert, which is quite rewarding. DevOps engineers bring people, technologies, processes, and solutions together to create the best products for clients. The engineer also works with a VM environment, storage solutions, and network architecture within the computing cloud platform’s environment.

Conclusion

It would be accurate to conclude that deciding to take the Microsoft Azure DevOps Engineer Expert cert is worth every effort. When you want to monitor, manage, develop, and maintain an application or service within the renowned MS network, you’ll know what to do.

As you work in the industry, you will gain everything from real-world experience working on projects to the understanding of the IT language of DevOps engineers.

In that case, achieving this industry-recognized credential will open an ocean of opportunities for you.