AWS Solutions Architect Professional Exam (SAP-C01/C02) Tips
Key info
75 questions in 180 mins, 2.4 mins per question (additional 30 mins for non native English speaking members, 2.8 mins per question)
No negative marks for wrong answers or unattended questions Passing score 750. Results are reported as scaled score — link
Out of 75, 10 questions are experimental ones. These questions are not part of scoring.
Many questions are verbose, time management is critical
New version (SAP-C02) of the exam is coming from 15th Nov 2022 — link to the exam, guide and overview of changes
Preparation
Understanding or experience of using AWS services is very important. Breadth of services is covered more, with occasional depth
Prominent services — Security & Access, Networking, Storage, Compute, Migration, Database, Containerisation, Server-less models, Data streams, Organisation complexity, DR, Cost control, DevOps, Scalability, Performance, Observability, Auditing, Systems management
Going through the rigour of the questions and test is important. So, doing practice tests and reviewing them is very important.
Going through cheat sheets can be handy.
Preparing your own notes can expedite your journey.
Time management
Request additional 30 mins if you are non native English speaking user — link
Quickly identify what is the question about? e.g. Direct connect, Transit gateway, DR strategy, etc.
Use process of elimination (eliminate wrong answers)
If you see a question about a new service (or out of scope), most likely it is an experimental one. You can “flag it for review” to comeback in the end if you have time.
Don’t spend too much time on any question. Make a close guess and “flag it for review” to comeback in the end if you have time.
Keeping calm and focused is very important throughout the test
Tips
Spend time to learn about the AWS services (spending time is key).
Always wear learning hat while preparing for the exam and taking it. If you attempt it just from a certification point, you can feel it as a daunting task
Attempt each question as a fresh one (don’t carry the recency effect, especially when the previous answer was a guess)
Do more practice tests from Jon Bonso (tutorialsdojo). These are closest to the actual AWS exam — link
AWS cheat sheets from tutorialsdojo can be handy to understand the breadth of services in short time, in a structured way — link
Use AWS skill builder to learn about services and prepare for the exam — link
