Passing the Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) certification exam

If you’re looking to get into cloud development, infrastructure, etc… certifications are a good way to get started. Not only will they provide you with a clear learning path, but having the proper certificates can open doors. Having an AWS, Azure,… certificate proves a certain basic level of knowledge.

AZ 900 Azure Fundamentals

The AZ 900 certification is the base-level certificate for Azure. It’s meant for people who are just getting started on their cloud journey. The certificate is not only aimed at technical people but also salespeople, managers, etc…

The exam consists mostly of questions about the general workings of the cloud. What you’ll study is also applicable to other public cloud providers like AWS and Google Cloud. The services or resources have different names and features in each of the different cloud offerings, but the basic concepts are the same.

Fun fact: usually certificates need to be renewed yearly. But because the AZ 900 is mostly about general knowledge, the certificate remains valid forever. It’s also a completely optional certificate, meaning it’s not a prerequisite for any of the more advanced certificates.

My approach to studying

The hardest part about learning things is knowing what to learn and in what order. Thankfully Microsoft has done that work for us by providing a great learning path in Microsoft Learn: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/certifications/exams/az-900

The first thing I did was go through this path to get the basics down. Most of the information is text, but there are also some videos and even a few labs where you create a VM, create an app service, etc…

Once I wrestled my way through the Microsoft Learn path, I moved on to the excellent AZ-900 Certification Course by John Savill. This video course is a lot more in-depth and also provides a bunch of practical examples. There’s also a 3-hour cram video provided at the end to help you review everything one last time before starting your exam.

Finally, while going through the video course, I regularly ran through a practice exam. I highly recommend a practice exam to get used to the way the questions are structured in the actual exam. The way the questions are structured can be confusing at times. Also, you’ll be amazed at how quickly you can find gaps in your knowledge by doing practice exams.

I bought the official practice exam, but it was pretty expensive. I would recommend checking into other cheaper options from sites like Udemy, Whizlabs, etc… just be sure to check the reviews before buying.

Time spent

Because I have experience working with Azure, I have a bit of a head start. In total, I studied for about 20 hours before taking the exam. Looking back, I could have done it sooner, but I wanted to make sure I passed the first time, and simply didn’t want to rush.

In conclusion

Getting the AZ 900 certification is a very achievable goal for both technical and non-technical profiles. It gives you a broad base of knowledge about Azure and the cloud in general. If you use the same resources as I linked above and take your time, earning the certification is very achievable.