5 AWS courses to help take your skills to the next level

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the leading cloud computing platform, beating top competitors like Google Cloud and Microsoft Azure. AWS continues to grow in popularity, as cloud services become increasingly important in the tech landscape. Learning AWS is a smart career choice if you’re looking to grow your skills in cloud computing. The job market for cloud developers is hot, and more and more companies are looking to hire experienced cloud professionals. The best way to prepare for a cloud computing career is to get hands-on experience. Today, we’ll introduce you to five AWS courses to help you take your skills to the next level.

Let’s get started!

AWS services#

Before we explore the AWS courses, let’s take a look at some of the services that you can use as an AWS customer. AWS has a variety of different services that help us streamline our cloud services and infrastructure. AWS offers services in the following areas:

• Artificial intelligence and machine learning: Amazon Bedrock, Amazon Q, Amazon Polly, Amazon SageMaker, etc.

• Big data analytics and management: Amazon Kinesis, Amazon EMR, Amazon Athena, etc.

• Compute: AWS Elastic Beanstalk, AWS Lambda, Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2), Amazon Elastic Container Service (ECS), Amazon Lightsail, etc.

• Database: Amazon DynamoDB, Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS), Amazon Redshift, Amazon Aurora, etc.

• Dev tools and application services: AWS CodeBuild, AWS CLI, AWS API Gateway, AWS CodePipeline, etc.

• Management: AWS CloudWatch, AWS CloudFormation, AWS CloudTrail, AWS Systems Manager, etc.

• Messaging: Amazon Simple Queue Service (SQS), Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS), Amazon MQ, etc.

• Migration: AWS Migration Hub, AWS Database Migration Service (DMS)

• Mobile development: AWS Amplify, AWS AppSync, AWS Device Farm etc.

• Networking: Amazon Virtual Private Cloud (VPC), Amazon CloudFront, Amazon API Gateway, AWS Transit Gateway, etc.

• Security: AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM), AWS Directory Service, Amazon Inspector, AWS Key Management Service (KMS), etc.

• Cloud storage: Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3), Amazon S3 Glacier, Amazon Elastic Block Store (EBS), Amazon FSx, etc.

• Additional services: Amazon Internet of Things (IoT), Amazon WorkDocs, Amazon Chime, Amazon AppStream 2.0, etc.

Top 5 AWS courses#

The AWS courses we discuss will help you become more familiar with some of the services listed above. Now, let’s take a look at the courses!

1. AWS Security Fundamentals#

AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) is a free feature that comes with an AWS account and allows us to securely manage access to AWS services and resources. It allows us to create roles and manage permissions across users. Internet access management is very important because it helps us avoid any data or security breaches, and it gives us a way to organize system interactions.

If you want to learn more about AWS IAM, check out the course AWS Security Fundamentals: A Practical Guide to AWS IAM.

In this course, you’ll learn:

• How IAM works and how to write policies that manage and control access across your AWS account.

• The structure and components of AWS APIs and how they interact within the IAM framework.

• How to configure and manage access in AWS using the five different policy types.

• Practical steps to secure your AWS account as an administrator and a developer.

• Best practices to implement strong security measures and avoid common pitfalls in AWS security.

This course offers a comprehensive guide to mastering IAM. It provides hands-on examples and real-world scenarios to help you implement strong security in your AWS environment.

2. DynamoDB deep dive#

Amazon DynamoDB is a fully managed NoSQL database service that enables users to create scalable database tables capable of handling large amounts of data. It guarantees durability, high availability, and read consistency by replicating data across three availability zones. One of its standout features is fine-grained access control (FGAC), which gives administrators precise control over data access, enhancing security.

DynamoDB’s integration with AWS CloudWatch allows you to monitor its performance by gathering and processing metrics, ensuring that you can maintain the health of your databases in real time.

Note: A popular use case for DynamoDB is in big data analytics because it provides a flexible NoSQL database with the ability to easily and quickly scale storage and throughput.

To know more about Amazon DynamoDB, check out the DynamoDB Deep Dive: NoSQL for Software Engineers course.

In this course, you’ll learn:

• How to efficiently use DynamoDB for your database needs.

• The process of creating tables and configuring security and monitoring.

• How to query and scan data from DynamoDB tables.

• Best practices for managing access control and monitoring usage to ensure optimal performance.

This course trains you with all the tools and knowledge needed to confidently use DynamoDB, whether you’re a beginner getting trained with AWS technologies or an advanced practitioner looking to deepen your expertise.

3. Quick Start Kubernetes#

Kubernetes is an open-source orchestration software for containerization platforms. It has an API that controls container operations. Kubernetes allows us to organize clusters of virtual machines and schedule containers to run on those virtual machines. It abstracts the underlying infrastructure, so it doesn’t matter if we want to deploy our apps to AWS, Google Cloud, or our own on-premises data center. With Kubernetes, it’s easy to efficiently scale our applications and speed up the delivery process.

Kubernetes vs. Docker: It’s common to confuse Docker with Kubernetes, but while they are often used together, they serve different purposes. Docker is a platform for building and running containers, while Kubernetes is an orchestration tool that efficiently manages and automates the deployment, scaling, and operation of Docker containers and other containerized applications.

Ready to dive into the world of Kubernetes? Check out the Quick Start Kubernetes course.

In this course, you’ll learn:

• How to break a deployment and see how Kubernetes automatically resolves it.

• How to build a cluster, containerize an application, and deploy it.

• The techniques for scaling an application up and down.

• How to perform rolling updates to an application without downtime.

This course provides the foundational knowledge and hands-on experience to start working with Kubernetes and confidently manage containerized applications.

4. Scalable AWS API Gateway#

AWS API Gateway is an important service in the serverless architecture, designed to create scalable, low-latency, and secure APIs. It bridges your users and AWS services, allowing you to manage API calls efficiently while maintaining low costs. API Gateway abstracts complexity, enabling rapid integration with other AWS services like DynamoDB, S3, Step Functions, and AWS Comprehend.

One of the standout features of AWS API Gateway is its ability to support both REST and WebSocket APIs, making it versatile for a range of use cases, from traditional API management to real-time applications such as chat systems. The service also provides detailed data mapping and monitoring capabilities, allowing you to track usage and ensure the performance of your applications.

WebSocket API vs. REST API: REST APIs are great for standard API calls and handling traditional request/response interactions. WebSocket APIs are designed for real-time, two-way communication. In this course, you’ll explore both approaches, focusing on WebSocket APIs. This will help you understand when to use each and how to implement them effectively.

Ready to explore the full potential of AWS API Gateway? Check out the AWS API Gateway: The Unsung Warrior course.

In this course, you’ll learn:

• How to use AWS API Gateway to create scalable and secure APIs.

• Integrating API Gateway with other AWS services like DynamoDB, S3, and Step Functions.

• How to build and deploy a multi-user chat application using WebSocket APIs.

• Best practices for data mapping and monitoring API usage.

• How to implement a Jokes Bot that interacts with users in real time.

This course offers you a complete hands-on experience with AWS API Gateway, training you with the skills to build robust, serverless APIs for modern applications.

5. Serverless AWS Lambda#

Serverless computing has revolutionized modern development, allowing developers to focus on building applications without worrying about infrastructure management. AWS Lambda, a key player in serverless technology, has seen tremendous growth due to its ability to offer low-cost, scalable, and efficient solutions. By offloading infrastructure responsibilities to AWS Lambda, developers can concentrate on delivering better applications faster and more efficiently.

AWS Lambda allows you to run code without provisioning or managing servers. It automatically scales your applications based on the number of requests, making it an ideal solution for many use cases, from simple web services to complex backend processes. With its pay-per-use pricing model, Lambda ensures you’re only charged for the compute time used, making it both a cost-effective and scalable option.

Note: AWS Lambda abstracts infrastructure management, handling tasks like scaling automatically. It has a 15-minute execution limit and supports prebuilt runtimes such as Node.js, Python, and Java, with the option for custom runtimes.

Ready to learn the serverless AWS Lambda? Check out the Running Serverless Applications with AWS Lambda course.

In this course, you’ll learn:

• How to create and deploy serverless applications using AWS Lambda.

• The steps to deploy AWS Serverless Application Model (SAM) and build serverless web services.

• How to handle HTTP requests, external storage, and manage sessions.

• How to optimize and monitor AWS Lambda functions for professional use.

• Techniques for integrating AWS Lambda with services like S3, DynamoDB, and API Gateway.

This course will train you with the hands-on experience and deep knowledge needed to confidently use AWS Lambda in real-world projects, whether you’re new to serverless or looking to advance your skills.

Wrapping up and next steps#

AWS is the leading cloud provider and its popularity continues to grow. With more and more businesses and industries moving to the cloud, the demand for skilled cloud developers will also continue to grow. Getting comfortable with AWS fundamentals will help prepare you for new roles and responsibilities, and it will make you a desirable candidate to potential employers. Today, we introduced you to five AWS-related courses to help you take your skills to the next level. Other popular courses and cloudlabs include:

• A Programmer’s Guide to AWS S3

• Learn the A to Z of Amazon Web Services (AWS)

• Master AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner CLF-C02 Exam 

• Master AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate SAA-C03 Exam

• Deploy Elastic Container Registry Image with Elastic Beanstalk

• Deploying Web Applications Using Elastic Beanstalk

Happy learning!

Continue learning cloud fundamentals#

• What is AWS Lambda? Serverless computing for software developers

• What is a relational database? A deep dive

• Operating systems crash course: From kernels to virtualization