Certified Kubernetes Application Developer Exam — My experience and some tips
Are you interested in demonstrating your ability to develop, deploy and maintain applications in a Kubernetes environment? If so, you might want to consider obtaining the Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) certification. This certification is becoming increasingly popular in the tech industry, as more and more companies adopt Kubernetes as their standard platform for container orchestration.
To help you prepare for the CKAD exam, I’ve gathered some resources and tips that might be helpful.
The CKAD exam is an online, proctored, performance-based test that consists of a set of performance-based tasks to be solved in a command line. Candidates have two hours to complete the tasks, which can include between 15 and 20 questions. Each question contains one or more tasks to be solved, and questions may be partially scored. The exam costs US$ 395, but use the coupon DCUBE20 and get 20% of discount :).
To get prepared for the exam, I recommend taking the ACloudGuru Course, which offers comprehensive coverage of the CKAD curriculum and includes good hands-on labs with explained solutions. It was my main study resource material and covered everything that I needed for the exam.
Another valuable resource is the killer.sh exam simulator. This simulator is similar to the real exam environment and will allow you to practice with a time limit and using only the allowed resources. Registering for CKAD Exam will grant you access for two free sessions with the exam simulator, each lasting 36 hours. I recommend practicing at least three times per session to ensure that you are fully prepared for the exam. Repeat many times you need to get confident in taking this kind of exam.
It’s important to pay attention to the details during the exam. You will be required to switch between different contexts and namespaces, so it’s crucial to make sure you are in the right context before resolving a question. If you resolve a problem in a different context or namespace the points might not be computed.
Imperative commands are an essential tool for creating resources in a Kubernetes context quickly. During the CKAD exam, you can use imperative commands to resolve questions or at least create the initial YAML for a Kubernetes resource. For instance, you can create a deployment using the following command: kubectl -n my-ns create deploy my-deploy --replicas=3 --image=nginx:latest --dry-run=client -o yaml > my_pod.yaml. This command generates the YAML for the deployment with three replicas and the latest version of the nginx image, which you can then edit and customize to meet the requirements of the question. Although it may seem daunting to create and edit YAML in a time-based exam, using imperative commands can help you save time and complete the exam successfully.
I recommend planning your exam strategy carefully. Start by resolving the complex questions first, as your mind will be fresh and more capable of handling them. Then move on to the easier questions later. Each question presents its value, which is also a measure of its complexity. By listing the questions and their values, you can prioritize which ones to tackle first, ensuring that you have enough time to answer all of them.
In conclusion, the CKAD certification is an excellent way to demonstrate your proficiency in Kubernetes and differentiate yourself from other developers in the job market. With the right resources and preparation, you can pass the exam and achieve a high score. Good luck!