AWS Training and Certification Blog

Updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate: Registration now open

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Registration is now open for the updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate exam. The first day to take the updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate exam is February 28, 2023. The changes to the updated exam are not significant and reflect changes in trends, the industry landscape, and the work practices of cloud professionals. If you need to re-certify, you have the option to retake the current or updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate, or upgrade to the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional, which will automatically recertify the AWS Certified Developer – Associate. The AWS Certified Developer – Associate exam, delivered by Pearson VUE, our test delivery provider, at test centers or through online proctoring, is available in the following languages: English, French (France), German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese (Brazil), Simplified Chinese, and Spanish (Latin America).

Note: If you already hold an AWS Certification, you are eligible to get 50% off any other AWS Certification exams you want to take. This discount voucher can be accessed through your AWS Certification Account.

About AWS Certified Developer – Associate

This certification validates a candidate’s ability to demonstrate proficiency in developing, testing, deploying, and debugging AWS cloud-based applications. Earning this certification highlights your ability to write applications with AWS service APIs, AWS Command Line Interface (CLI), and SDKs, use containers, and deploy with a CI/CD pipeline. Per an Enterprise Strategy Group survey conducted in 2022, after participating in AWS Training and Certification 81% of survey respondents indicated improved ability to troubleshoot and 84% cited improved ability to accelerate cloud migrations. Job listings requiring this certification have increased 5%, October 2021 – September 2022 (Source: Lightcast™ September 2022), making this an in-demand certification.

Who should get the AWS Certified Developer – Associate

  • AWS Certified Developer – Associate is the recommended starting point on the AWS Certification journey for individuals who have IT or cloud experience and are in roles like cloud engineer, developer, cloud architect, systems administrator, and cloud or on-premises software developer.
  • For individuals who already have the AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner certification and are in or aspire to roles like developer, cloud engineer, and cloud or on-premises software developer, the AWS Certified Developer – Associate would be the ideal next certification to prepare for and attain.
  • Individuals who need to recertify for AWS Certified Developer – Associate can do so by retaking the current exam on or before February 27, 2023, the updated exam starting February 28, 2023, or by upgrading to the AWS Certified DevOps Engineer – Professional exam.

What has changed:

The updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate (referred to here as DVA-C02 for optimal clarity) blueprint available February 28, 2023, contains four domains. In the current blueprint (DVA-C01) Domain 4, “Refactoring” was determined to have significant overlap with the other domains. Therefore, the content of this domain was re-distributed into the new four-domain structure in the DVA-C02 blueprint. The domains were also re-ordered to more logically and accurately reflect current work practices. Below is a comparison of the outlines for the current exam (DVA-C01) and the updated exam (DVA-C02) outline:

Additions to tasks:

  • Domain 1: Task 1.3 Utilize data stores in application development
  • Domain 2: Task 2.3 Manage sensitive data in application code
  • Domain 3: Tasks 3.2 Test applications in development environments; and 3.3 Automate deployment testing

Deletions: One task from the DVA-C01 blueprint (Deploy applications using AWS Elastic Beanstalk) was removed as the prevalence of the use of Elastic Beanstalk has decreased in practice.

How to prepare for updated AWS Certified Developer – Associate (DVA-C02)

Access AWS Certified Developer – Associate preparation resources:

  • Dive into free digital training and access the Official Practice Question Sets in all exam languages and accessible on AWS Skill Builder
  • Explore paid classroom training on the exam page
  • Gauge your readiness by taking the full-length Official Practice Exam, available in English starting on Feb 28, 2023, on AWS Skill Builder
  • Utilize self-paced free exam prep course (2 hours of videos) and the exam prep course (with practice materials) featuring 6-8 hours of training, videos, labs, and access to the Official Practice Exam, available in English starting on Feb 28, 2023, on AWS Skill Builder

Want to know how other fellow learners prepared for their certification? Check out the following blogs: