Kickstarting Your Career in AWS DevOps Engineering – IT Exams Training

As more organizations embrace cloud computing, the need for skilled AWS DevOps engineers continues to rise. These professionals are critical to modern IT operations, combining the agility of DevOps practices with the scalability and reliability of Amazon Web Services.

But what exactly does an AWS DevOps engineer do? How do you start building a career in this field? And what skills will set you apart? In this article, we’ll explore the DevOps philosophy, how it fits into the AWS ecosystem, and the foundational skills you’ll need to launch a successful career.

What is DevOps?

DevOps is a cultural and technical shift that breaks down the barriers between software development and IT operations. The goal is to create a continuous loop of building, testing, and deploying software — quickly, reliably, and at scale.

Traditionally, developers wrote code and handed it off to operations teams to deploy. This siloed approach often caused bottlenecks, miscommunication, and delays. DevOps solves this by encouraging collaboration, automation, and shared responsibility for application performance.

In essence, DevOps is about:

Continuous Integration (CI): Merging code into a shared repository frequently, with automated testing to catch issues early.
Continuous Delivery (CD): Automatically deploying validated code to production or staging environments.
Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Defining infrastructure using code to ensure repeatability and reduce human error.
Monitoring & Feedback: Using tools to monitor applications and infrastructure in real time for proactive improvement.

Where Does AWS Fit In?

AWS (Amazon Web Services) is one of the most popular cloud platforms in the world. It provides a robust set of services that support every phase of the DevOps lifecycle — from code management and automation to infrastructure provisioning and monitoring.

Some of the AWS services commonly used by DevOps engineers include:

AWS CodePipeline for automating CI/CD workflows
AWS CloudFormation for writing Infrastructure as Code
AWS EC2, Lambda, and ECS for deploying applications
Amazon CloudWatch for monitoring performance and logging
IAM (Identity and Access Management) for securing systems

These services help DevOps engineers build automated, scalable, and fault-tolerant systems without the overhead of traditional IT management.

Core Skills and Tools You Need to Become an AWS DevOps Engineer

A successful career as an AWS DevOps engineer begins with building a strong foundation in both technical and soft skills. While the DevOps field evolves rapidly, the fundamentals remain constant: automation, collaboration, scalability, and reliability. To thrive in this role, aspiring professionals must become proficient in key technologies and tools that support modern cloud-native development on AWS.

This series explores the core competencies, essential tools, and best practices you need to master to build and grow in this high-demand career path.

Technical Skills Every AWS DevOps Engineer Should Have

To work effectively in a cloud DevOps environment, you must be able to handle infrastructure, deployment pipelines, and monitoring tools with confidence. Here are the critical technical skills required:

Cloud Infrastructure Expertise

Understanding how AWS services work and interact is foundational. Services like EC2, S3, RDS, and Lambda are commonly used for compute, storage, and serverless computing. DevOps engineers must also be comfortable with configuring virtual networks, managing IAM roles and policies, and deploying applications to multiple environments.

Proficiency in Scripting Languages

Automation is at the heart of DevOps. Knowing scripting languages such as Python, Bash, or Ruby enables engineers to write scripts for automating repetitive tasks, customizing deployment processes, and integrating systems. For instance, Bash is frequently used for shell automation, while Python excels in writing Lambda functions or managing AWS SDK operations.

Automation and Configuration Management

Tools like Ansible, Puppet, and Chef are used to automate infrastructure provisioning and configuration. These tools help ensure that environments are reproducible, consistent, and scalable. Familiarity with Infrastructure as Code principles allows engineers to version and track infrastructure changes the same way they do application code.

CI/CD Pipeline Management

DevOps engineers should be able to design and manage Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment pipelines. AWS offers tools like CodeCommit for source control, CodeBuild for compiling and testing code, and CodeDeploy for releasing applications. Together, these tools form AWS CodePipeline, which provides a fully managed way to automate software release workflows.

Containerization and Orchestration

Docker and Kubernetes are indispensable in the DevOps world. AWS supports these technologies through services like Amazon ECS and Amazon EKS. Learning how to containerize applications and manage them in an orchestrated environment helps improve scalability and deployment flexibility.

Monitoring and Logging

Monitoring system health and performance in real time is vital. Tools like Amazon CloudWatch and AWS CloudTrail provide detailed metrics, logs, and alerts. These tools help detect anomalies, ensure uptime, and respond to incidents promptly.

Soft Skills That Complement Technical Expertise

While technical skills are essential, soft skills often make the difference between a good and a great DevOps engineer.

Collaboration

DevOps is built on cross-functional collaboration. Engineers must work closely with developers, testers, system administrators, and product managers. The ability to communicate clearly and work well in teams is critical to driving successful deployments and resolving incidents effectively.

Problem-Solving

DevOps engineers are frequently tasked with troubleshooting complex systems. Whether it’s diagnosing a failed deployment or investigating a sudden performance drop, a logical, analytical mindset helps identify and fix issues faster.

Adaptability

Technologies and tools in the DevOps ecosystem evolve constantly. A strong DevOps engineer must be willing to adapt to new tools, frameworks, and practices. This also means staying current with AWS service updates and learning how they can be integrated into existing pipelines.

Continuous Learning

Because DevOps spans so many disciplines, learning is never really finished. Engineers must continuously explore new techniques for automation, security, scalability, and performance optimization.

Getting Hands-On With Tools and Platforms

Mastery comes from experience. Here are some practical tools and platforms you should spend time with as you build your AWS DevOps skill set:

Git & GitHub/GitLab: For version control and collaborative development.
Jenkins: A widely used CI/CD server that integrates well with AWS.
Terraform: Though AWS has its own IaC tool (CloudFormation), Terraform is also popular due to its flexibility and provider support.
Docker & Kubernetes: Learn to containerize applications and orchestrate them in clusters.
AWS CLI & SDKs: Get comfortable with command-line operations and using AWS SDKs in your preferred programming language.
Monitoring Dashboards: Practice creating dashboards in CloudWatch or third-party platforms to track application health and performance.

Learning theory is useful, but nothing builds confidence and real understanding like rolling up your sleeves and working with the tools directly. DevOps is a hands-on field, and employers care less about where you learned something and more about whether you can use it in real-world environments. This section shows you how to go beyond passive learning and truly get your hands dirty with the tools and platforms you’ll be expected to know as an AWS DevOps Engineer.

1. AWS: Learn by Building, Not Just Reading

Instead of passively studying AWS documentation, build small, real projects that use core services:

EC2: Launch a virtual server, install a web server like Nginx or Apache, and host a static website. Learn about SSH access, key pairs, and security groups.
S3: Create a bucket to store assets, set public and private access, and learn about lifecycle rules and versioning.
IAM: Build IAM users, groups, and policies. Practice writing least-privilege policies using JSON.
VPC: Set up a simple VPC with public and private subnets, NAT gateways, and routing tables.
RDS or DynamoDB: Set up a simple managed database for your app and practice connecting securely.

Create a free-tier AWS account and explore the AWS Management Console, CLI, and even CloudShell (a browser-based terminal). Use them to automate tasks and get comfortable with how AWS services interact.

Tip: Document every small experiment. For example, “How I deployed a secure static website on AWS S3 + CloudFront” can become both a portfolio project and a blog post.

2. Git and GitHub: The Core of Collaboration

Git is essential for any DevOps work, and GitHub is where your work lives. If you’re new:

Start by learning basic commands: git init, add, commit, push, pull, branch, and merge.
Create repositories for your projects and commit your code regularly.
Learn how to write meaningful commit messages and use .gitignore.
Explore branching strategies: feature branches, Git Flow, and pull request workflows.

Practice working with others:

Fork a public repository and contribute a simple pull request (like updating a README or fixing a typo).
Try using GitHub Projects or Issues to track your tasks.

Pro Tip: Build at least one complete project using a collaborative GitHub workflow, even if you’re working solo. Create branches, use pull requests, and merge code like you’re in a team.

3. Linux and Bash: Your Daily Tools

DevOps engineers often spend most of their time in the terminal. Learn the Linux basics:

File system navigation, permissions, and user management
Installing and updating packages (apt, yum, dnf)
Managing processes with ps, top, and kill
Writing simple Bash scripts to automate tasks like backups, file cleanup, or log rotation

Use a free Linux VM on EC2 or set one up locally using VirtualBox + Ubuntu. Better yet, use WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) if you’re on Windows—it gives you a native Bash terminal.

Exercise: Write a script that zips log files older than 7 days, moves them to an archive directory, and deletes logs older than 30 days. Run it with a cron job to simulate automation.

4. CI/CD Tools: Automate Your Builds and Deployments

Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD) is a critical DevOps skill. The easiest way to learn is by building a CI/CD pipeline for your application.

Start simple:

Host a static HTML or React app on GitHub.
Set up GitHub Actions to automatically build and deploy the app to AWS S3 or EC2 whenever you push to the main branch.
Use workflows to add steps like testing, linting, or notifying you on Slack.

Then go further:

Learn how to use AWS CodePipeline to integrate CodeCommit, CodeBuild, and CodeDeploy for a full AWS-native CI/CD pipeline.
Try Jenkins, the industry workhorse, and configure it on an EC2 server. Build a basic pipeline using a Jenkinsfile.

Tip: Don’t just follow tutorials—modify things. Add your twist. That’s how real understanding happens.

5. Docker: Learn to Containerize Everything

Containers are everywhere in DevOps. Start with the basics:

Learn how to write a Dockerfile to containerize a simple Node.js or Python app.
Use docker build, docker run, and docker ps to manage your containers.
Explore Docker Compose to manage multi-container applications (e.g., a web app + database).

Practice best practices like:

Using .dockerignore
Creating small, layered images
Keeping containers stateless

Try deploying your Dockerized app to:

Amazon ECS (Fargate) for a serverless container service
AWS App Runner for a managed experience
EKS later, once you’ve grasped Kubernetes basics

Project Idea: Create a “DevOps starter kit” Docker container that has all your tools and scripts bundled.

6. Infrastructure as Code (IaC): Automate Your Cloud

IaC is where you write code to describe your infrastructure, and Terraform is the most in-demand tool.

Start with:

A basic Terraform script that creates an S3 bucket or an EC2 instance
Learn about providers, resources, variables, and state files..
Use terraform plan, apply, and destroy to manage changes

Then move into:

Creating reusable modules (e.g., a “vpc” module you can plug into other projects)
Managing secrets safely with AWS SSM or Terraform Vault
Setting up remote backends (like S3) for team-based usage

Challenge: Write Terraform code that provisions a full 3-tier architecture: VPC, subnets, EC2, and an RDS database.

You can also experiment with AWS CloudFormation, especially if you’re planning to work for an AWS-focused company.

7. Monitoring and Logging: Keep an Eye on Everything

DevOps isn’t just about automation—it’s also about visibility. Start with:

AWS CloudWatch: Create custom metrics, set alarms, and visualize logs.
Log aggregation: Try ELK (Elasticsearch, Logstash, Kibana) locally or use managed services.
Prometheus + Grafana: For container and Kubernetes monitoring.

Real-World Practice: Run a service on EC2, simulate errors, and configure CloudWatch to alert you when CPU spikes or disk usage go beyond 80%.

As you work with these tools, pretend you’re already a DevOps engineer at a small startup:

Keep track of issues and improvements
Write READMEs as if someone else will use your project.
Refactor and improve automation scripts over time

The more you build, break, fix, and repeat, the more confident and job-ready you’ll become. If you’re consistent and intentional with your hands-on learning, your transition from beginner to hireable DevOps Engineer will be faster and smoother than you think.

Best Practices for Skill Development

If you’re starting your journey, use these best practices to accelerate your learning:

Build Small Projects: Create and deploy simple applications using AWS services. Automate builds and deployments with CodePipeline and practice using CloudFormation or Terraform.
Use Free Tier Resources: AWS offers a free tier that lets you use many of its services at no cost. Use this to explore services and test out configurations.
Follow Documentation and Whitepapers: AWS provides in-depth documentation and architectural whitepapers that explain how to design scalable, secure, and cost-effective systems.
Join Developer Communities: Forums like Stack Overflow, Reddit’s r/devops, and AWS re: Post are great for troubleshooting and advice.
Take Online Courses and Labs: Hands-on labs from learning platforms give a guided experience in real-world tasks.

Building a Foundation for Certification

As you grow in confidence and skill, you’ll be in a better position to pursue professional certification. The AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional certification is the most relevant credential and demonstrates that you have advanced technical skills in operating distributed applications and systems on AWS.

Before attempting the certification, ensure you’re confident with topics such as continuous delivery, infrastructure automation, monitoring, security controls, and governance processes.

Once you’ve established your core skills and gained some hands-on experience, the next step is to start building your professional profile, gaining real-world project exposure, and preparing for AWS certification exams.

We’ll dive into how to gain practical experience, prepare for the AWS DevOps Engineer Professional certification, and set up effective study plans to pass with confidence.

Gaining Practical Experience and Preparing for AWS DevOps Certification

You’ve learned about the DevOps mindset and the essential tools and skills needed to become an AWS DevOps Engineer. Now it’s time to put that knowledge into action. In this part, we’ll focus on gaining hands-on experience, preparing for the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional certification, and building a learning path that gets you ready for real-world roles.

Why Hands-On Experience Is Critical

Reading documentation and watching tutorials can only take you so far. DevOps is highly practical—it’s about building, automating, deploying, and troubleshooting live systems.

Here’s what hands-on experience gives you:

Problem-solving in context: Understanding how components fail and how to recover from them.
Confidence under pressure: Comfort handling production-like issues.
Depth of knowledge: The kind that only comes from deploying and monitoring systems repeatedly.

Even if you’re not working in a DevOps job yet, you can still simulate real scenarios through personal projects or labs.

How to Gain Practical AWS DevOps Experience

Here are some powerful strategies to get real-world practice without needing a job:

1. Build End-to-End Projects

Create full lifecycle applications and infrastructure on AWS. For example:

A serverless web app using API Gateway, Lambda, and DynamoDB.
A containerized app using Docker, deployed on ECS or EKS with CI/CD automation.
Infrastructure managed via Terraform or CloudFormation templates.

Use GitHub to store your code and document each project. This becomes part of your professional portfolio.

2. Use AWS Free Tier for Labs

AWS Free Tier provides enough resources to run meaningful projects, including:

750 hours/month of EC2 t2.micro instances
5GB of standard S3 storage
1 million AWS Lambda requests per month
Combine these services to test ideas and practice different AWS workflows.

3. Follow Guided Learning Paths

Platforms like AWS Skill Builder, A Cloud Guru, Linux Academy, and FreeCodeCamp offer lab-based training tailored to DevOps roles. Prioritize courses that include:

Realistic CI/CD pipelines
Infrastructure automation
Monitoring and logging
Security and IAM best practices

4. Contribute to Open Source

Join GitHub projects that need DevOps help. Look for tasks like:

Automating tests and builds using GitHub Actions
Improving deployment workflows
Creating Dockerfiles or Kubernetes manifests

Preparing for the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional Exam

The AWS DevOps Pro certification is one of the most advanced and valuable credentials for DevOps professionals. It validates deep experience in:

Continuous delivery
Infrastructure as code
Monitoring and logging
Incident response
Compliance and security

Recommended Prerequisites:

2+ years of experience deploying and managing AWS environments
Strong familiarity with scripting, automation, and CI/CD tools
Prior completion of AWS Solutions Architect Associate or SysOps Admin Associate is helpful but not mandatory

Study Plan for Certification Success

Here’s a suggested 8–12 week study roadmap:

Weeks 1–2: Foundations Review

Review core AWS services (EC2, Lambda, VPC, IAM, S3)
Study high-availability and fault-tolerant architectures
Practice basic automation with CloudFormation or Terraform

Weeks 3–4: CI/CD and CodePipeline Mastery

Build pipelines with CodePipeline, Jenkins, or GitHub Actions
Automate builds with CodeBuild.ld
Deploy apps using CodeDeploy.

Weeks 5–6: Monitoring, Security, and Compliance

Set up CloudWatch dashboards, alarms, and logs.
Use AWS Config and CloudTrail for auditing.g
Learn KMS, IAM roles, and secrets management

Weeks 7–8: Full Practice Exams and Deep Dives

Take 2–3 full-length practice exams (Whizlabs, Tutorials Dojo, etc.)
Identify weak areas and revisit those topics.
WatchR: Invent videos or AWS whitepapers for architecture strategies

Free and Paid Study Resources

Tutorials Dojo Cheat Sheets & Practice Tests
AWS Whitepapers: Especially “Well-Architected Framework” and “CI/CD on AWS”
A Cloud Guru / Pluralsight DevOps Pro Courses
GitHub AWS DevOps Projects: Search for real-world repos to clone and analyze

Building a Portfolio and Resume

As you complete projects and certifications, document everything in a portfolio. Include:

A link to your GitHub or personal blog
Clear README files with architecture diagrams and service descriptions
Screenshots of working pipelines, dashboards, or deployments

Also, highlight DevOps certifications and projects on your LinkedIn and resume to attract recruiters.

Landing Your First Job as an AWS DevOps Engineer

You’ve built a solid foundation—learned the tools, practiced with AWS services, and developed your skills. Now it’s time to enter the job market. Getting your first job as an AWS DevOps Engineer can be daunting, especially when every listing seems to want “3+ years of experience.” The good news is: many companies are open to hiring enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and project-proven junior DevOps engineers—even those coming from different career paths.

This guide walks you through what companies are looking for, how to build a standout resume and portfolio, where to find jobs, how to interview well, and how to make the leap—even without prior industry experience.

1. What Employers Expect from Entry-Level DevOps Engineers

To stand out, you need to understand what hiring managers care about in junior candidates. They’re not looking for experts—they want dependable, curious problem-solvers with hands-on exposure to modern DevOps tools.

Core Expectations:

Working knowledge of Git and GitHub
Familiarity with CI/CD tools like GitHub Actions, Jenkins, or AWS CodePipeline
Comfortable with Linux, bash commands, and permissions
Basic scripting using Python, Bash, or YAML
Understanding of core AWS services such as EC2, S3, IAM, and VPCs
Logical thinking and troubleshooting ability

Bonus Skills That Help You Stand Out:

Docker (containerization basics)
Terraform or CloudFormation (infrastructure as code)
Monitoring with CloudWatch or similar tools
Exposure to ECS, EKS, or Lambda
Security basics: IAM roles, encryption, security groups

You don’t need to be an expert in all of the above. Most hiring teams understand that junior engineers are still learning. What matters is that you’ve worked with these tools and can talk about them intelligently.

2. Build a Strong Portfolio

Your portfolio is the most important tool for proving your skills. If you don’t have previous job experience, this is how you show that you’re capable of working in a DevOps role.

What to Include:

3–5 Practical Projects
Choose projects that demonstrate a range of skills:
- CI/CD pipeline for a web app (GitHub Actions or Jenkins)
- AWS infrastructure setup using Terraform
- A Dockerized application with multi-stage builds
- Monitoring and logging setup with CloudWatch or ELK stack
- Automation scripts for routine admin tasks
Project Documentation
- Each project should have a well-organized GitHub repo.
- Include a detailed README file that explains what the project does, how to set it up, what technologies are used, and what problems it solves.
- Consider adding a markdown diagram of the architecture or workflow using tools like draw.io or Mermaid syntax (optional).
Blog Posts or Case Studies
If you like writing, explain your projects or share tutorials on platforms like Medium, Hashnode, or Dev to. This shows communication skills and reflects a deeper understanding.

A well-documented GitHub portfolio often carries more weight than a degree or certification.

3. Write a Resume That Gets Attention

A strong resume doesn’t just list tools—it shows how you used them to solve real problems, even in personal or volunteer projects.

Key Resume Tips:

Keep it one page, unless you have years of experience.
Start with a summary focused on DevOps, AWS, and your key strengths.
Add a Skills section with your most relevant tools.
List your projects with descriptions that explain what you built, how you built it, and what the outcome was.
If you have certifications, include them prominently.
Tailor your resume to each job by using keywords from the job description.

Example Summary:

Aspiring AWS DevOps Engineer with hands-on experience in cloud infrastructure, CI/CD automation, and containerized deployments. Proficient in AWS, Terraform, GitHub Actions, and Docker. Built multiple personal projects to demonstrate real-world problem-solving in cloud-native environments.

4. Where to Find Entry-Level DevOps Jobs

Job titles vary, so don’t limit yourself to listings that say “DevOps Engineer.” Look for:

Cloud Engineer (Associate)
Junior SRE (Site Reliability Engineer)
Infrastructure Engineer (Entry-Level)
DevOps Intern or Apprentice
Platform Engineer (Junior)

Best Platforms to Search:

LinkedIn Jobs (set alerts for keywords like “AWS DevOps” and “cloud engineer”)
Indeed and Glassdoor
Dice (good for tech-specific roles)
AngelList (now Wellfound) – especially useful for startup jobs
Remote job boards like WeWorkRemotely or RemoteOK
Company career pages directly (AWS Partners often hire junior roles)

Application Tips:

Don’t ignore jobs asking for “1–2 years of experience.” If your projects are solid and you can demonstrate your knowledge, you still have a chance.
Customize your resume to match the job description.
Write a brief but specific cover letter fothe r jobs you want.
Reach out to hiring managers or engineers on LinkedIn after you apply, but avoid generic messages.

5. Prepare for Interviews

Once you land an interview, the focus will often be split between technical skills, project walkthroughs, and behavioral questions.

Common Technical Topics:

Explaining how a CI/CD pipeline works
Creating or troubleshooting a Dockerfile
IAM policies and AWS security best practices
Launching an EC2 instance or setting up S3 permissions
Using Terraform to provision infrastructure
Debugging a failing deployment

Tips for Technical Interviews:

Be ready to talk through your projects in detail.
If you’re asked to whiteboard or complete a take-home task, approach it as a learning opportunity.
Don’t be afraid to admit if you don’t know something. Instead, explain how you’d find the answer.

6. Behavioral Interviews: Use the STAR Method

Behavioral questions are about how you handle tasks, problems, and teamwork. Use the STAR format:

Situation: What was the context?
Task: What was your responsibility?
Action: What steps did you take?
Result: What happened?

Example:

“In a portfolio project, I had to deploy a Node.js app to ECS. The challenge was containerizing the app and automating deployment with GitHub Actions. I wrote a Dockerfile, created an ECS cluster, and built a CI/CD workflow. The result was that I could deploy changes with one Git push, improving speed and consistency.”

7. What If You’re Switching Careers?

If you’re coming from a non-tech background (like teaching, retail, or hospitality), focus on transferable skills:

Problem-solving
Documentation
Project management
Communication

Be open about your transition story. Show what you’ve done to reskill, and use your portfolio as proof.

Sample Career Change Introduction:

“After several years in retail management, I became interested in cloud technology and automation. I started self-studying AWS, earned certifications, and built several DevOps projects using Terraform, Docker, and GitHub Actions. I’m now actively looking for an opportunity to bring my problem-solving and organizational skills into a technical environment.”

8. Expand Your Visibility

Make it easy for recruiters and hiring managers to discover you.

LinkedIn:

Use a headline like: “Aspiring AWS DevOps Engineer | Terraform | Docker | CI/CD”
Add certifications and link to your GitHub.
Regularly share what you’re building or learning.g
Join the LinkedIn DevOps and cloud community.

Open Source and Communities:

Contribute to open-source DevOps tools or documentation
Join DevOps-related Slack or Discord groups.
Attend AWS meetups or webinars.
Follow and engage with industry leaders on X (Twitter) or Reddit

9. Keep Building While You Apply

It may take time to land your first job—don’t get discouraged. Use the waiting period to:

Build a new project
Write about what you’re learning.
Prepare for interviews
Learn an advanced topic like EKS, Lambda, or multi-account setups.
Practice mock interviews

Every day you spend improving your skills makes you a stronger candidate.

Final Thoughts

Breaking into the AWS DevOps world isn’t easy—but it’s very possible, even without prior experience. Focus on learning by doing, creating value through your projects, and showing a real understanding of cloud and DevOps principles.

You don’t need a perfect resume or the perfect role title. What you need is:

Practical, relevant projects
A sharp, tailored resume
Confidence in interviews
Persistence through rejections

Your first role might be titled “Cloud Support Engineer” or “Junior Infrastructure Analyst,” and that’s okay. What matters is getting your foot in the door, continuing to learn, and growing into a DevOps Engineer over time.