Passing the Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) Exam

My experience with studying and taking the CKAD exam

Changing a yaml file for a Kubernetes deployment using Visual Studio Code, image by the author

Last Friday, I took the Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) and passed. The CKAD exam certifies that you can design, build and deploy cloud-native applications for Kubernetes. The Linux Foundation offers the exam.

I took the new version as the Linux Foundation refreshed the exam on 28 September 2021. Currently, the exam uses Kubernetes v1.22.

This article describes my experience and the strategies I used to prepare and study for the exam.

The CKAD 2021 Domain & Competencies

To pass the exam, you have to show that you understand the following topics. Behind the subject, there is a percentage that indicates the weight in the exam.

• Application Design and Build (20%)
• Application Deployment (20%)
• Application Observability and Maintenance (15%)
• Application Environment, Configuration, and Security (25%)
• Services and Networking (20%)

In September, the Linux Foundation added some additional topics to the Application Deployment category. It includes using Kubernetes…