I currently work as a Junior Web Developer at a medium-sized company and enjoy my job. However, after taking a Distributed Systems course at university, I developed a growing interest in the infrastructure side of technology.
In my search for infrastructure roles, I’ve noticed that cloud-related positions dominate the listings, especially for someone at my experience level. I’m considering a switch to this field but need some clarity to ensure it’s the right decision.
First, regarding certifications, I’m aware there are many options for different experience levels. However, I find the preparation for these certifications to be a hassle. I prefer learning by building projects at my own pace rather than through lengthy theory texts or video courses. Additionally, exams tend to cause me a lot of anxiety. How essential are certifications in this field? Can I pursue a career without them or with only a few to kick-start my early career?
Second, as I said before, I’m very interested in the infrastructure part and… I don’t know if I want to stay my whole life working on Cloud, I’m afraid that if I enter this field I’ll get stuck with only a few ecosystems (like AWS or Azure), ideally I’d like to work with actual computers rather than with cloud, so would it be possible to make a switch from Cloud to on-prem infrastructure in the future?
It depends what kind of company you want to work for. Most ‘real companies’ barely care about your diplomas or certificates. If you want to work from some consultancy company like SAP or Capgemini these certifications check checkboxes you need to have checked to get promotions
I’m at about 140k with no college education. 10 years experience. Not really required but certs help tremendously.