Becoming a Certified Google Cloud Engineer

In February 2020, I successfully passed the Google Associate Cloud Engineer certification exam. This post shares my journey, study resources, and practical advice to help you prepare for this certification.

Why Get Certified?

The Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer certification validates your ability to:

• Deploy applications
• Monitor operations
• Manage enterprise solutions
• Use Google Cloud Console and command-line interface

Whether you're transitioning from another cloud platform or starting fresh with GCP, this certification demonstrates your competency in cloud engineering.

My Background

Before attempting the GCP certification, I had:

• Previous experience with AWS
• General understanding of cloud computing concepts
• Some exposure to containerization and Kubernetes

Having prior cloud experience helped, but it's not strictly necessary. The key is dedication to learning GCP-specific services and best practices.

Study Resources

1. Official Study Guide

Google Associate Cloud Engineer Study Guide by Dan Sullivan

This book is essential. It covers all exam topics in depth and provides:

• Comprehensive explanations of GCP services
• Practice questions at the end of each chapter
• Hands-on scenarios and examples
• Real-world use cases

I recommend reading this cover-to-cover and taking notes on areas you find challenging.

2. Online Courses

Udemy: Google Associate Cloud Engineer Course

Online courses provide:

• Video lectures for visual learners
• Structured learning paths
• Lab exercises
• Practice exams

Look for courses with recent updates (GCP evolves quickly) and good reviews from other learners.

3. Official Google Documentation

Don't underestimate Google's official documentation:

• Comprehensive and up-to-date
• Includes tutorials and quickstarts
• Command-line examples
• Architecture best practices

Make it a habit to read the official docs for any service you're studying. The exam questions often reference specific GCP terminology and features that appear in the documentation.

4. Practice Exams and Flash Cards

Multiple practice exams from different sources

This is crucial. I used:

• Free practice exams from Google
• Third-party practice tests
• Flash cards for quick review

Pro tip: Take practice exams repeatedly until you're consistently scoring in the mid to high 90s. This ensures you're truly ready for the actual exam.

Key Exam Focus Areas

Based on my experience, here are the critical topics to master:

Identity and Access Management (IAM)

• Service accounts: Creation, management, and use cases
• IAM roles: Primitive, predefined, and custom roles
• Best practices: Principle of least privilege
• Authentication and authorization: Understanding the difference

Compute Options

Compute Engine

• VM instances and machine types
• Persistent disks and snapshots
• Instance groups and autoscaling

App Engine

• Standard vs. Flexible environments
• Application deployment and versioning
• Traffic splitting and scaling

Networking

• VPC fundamentals: Subnets, IP addressing, firewall rules
• Load balancing: Different types and use cases
• Cloud DNS and domain configuration
• VPC peering and Shared VPC

Command-Line Tools

You must be comfortable with:

• gcloud: Primary CLI tool for GCP
• gsutil: Cloud Storage management
• kubectl: Basic Kubernetes commands

Example commands to know:

# Create a VM instance
gcloud compute instances create my-instance \
  --zone=us-central1-a \
  --machine-type=e2-medium

# List Cloud Storage buckets
gsutil ls

# Set default project
gcloud config set project PROJECT_ID

# Deploy to App Engine
gcloud app deploy

Kubernetes and GKE

• Basic Kubernetes concepts: Pods, Services, Deployments
• GKE cluster creation and management
• kubectl basics: Creating and managing resources
• Workload Identity and authentication

Storage Options

• Cloud Storage: Buckets, storage classes, lifecycle policies
• Persistent Disks: Types and use cases
• Cloud SQL: Managed database services
• Firestore and other database options

Study Strategy

1. Hands-On Practice

Sign up for Google Cloud's free trial

You get $300 in credits for 90 days. Use this to:

• Create and configure resources
• Practice with gcloud commands
• Break things and fix them (best way to learn!)
• Follow official tutorials

2. Follow Structured Learning Paths

• Work through Google's official training
• Complete Qwiklabs hands-on labs
• Follow along with video courses
• Build sample projects

3. Practice, Practice, Practice

Take multiple practice exams:

• Identify your weak areas
• Review explanations for wrong answers
• Retake exams until scoring 90%+
• Time yourself to simulate exam conditions

4. Focus on Scenarios

The exam isn't just about memorizing facts. You'll face scenario-based questions:

• "A company needs to..."
• "What's the best approach to..."
• "How would you implement..."

Practice thinking through:

• Cost optimization
• Security best practices
• Scalability considerations
• Service selection criteria

Exam Tips

Before the Exam

1. Review key concepts the night before
2. Get good sleep - you need mental clarity
3. Arrive early (or log in early for online exams)
4. Have water and take breaks if needed

During the Exam

1. Read questions carefully - watch for keywords like "MOST cost-effective" or "LEAST privilege"
2. Eliminate obviously wrong answers first
3. Flag questions you're unsure about and return to them
4. Manage your time - don't spend too long on any single question
5. Trust your preparation - your first instinct is often correct

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

• Overthinking questions - usually the straightforward answer is correct
• Ignoring the scenario - the context matters (cost vs. performance vs. security)
• Confusing AWS/Azure terms with GCP equivalents
• Not reading all options before selecting an answer

Key Concepts to Remember

Service Account Best Practices

• Use service accounts for application authentication
• Apply least privilege principle
• Rotate keys regularly
• Never commit keys to version control

Choosing Compute Options

• Compute Engine: Full control, custom configurations
• App Engine: Managed, focus on code
• Cloud Functions: Event-driven, serverless
• GKE: Container orchestration, microservices

Networking Fundamentals

• Regions and Zones: Understand availability and latency
• Firewall rules: Default deny, explicit allow
• Load balancers: Global vs. Regional
• Cloud Armor: DDoS protection and WAF

Resources Checklist

Before taking the exam, make sure you've covered:

• Official study guide (Dan Sullivan book)
• Online video course completion
• Hands-on labs and practice (free trial)
• Official Google documentation for key services
• Multiple practice exams (scoring 90%+)
• Command-line practice (gcloud, gsutil)
• IAM roles and service accounts
• Networking concepts and VPC setup
• Storage options and use cases
• Kubernetes/GKE basics

My Results and Reflections

I passed the exam on my first attempt in February 2020. The key factors in my success:

1. Thorough preparation using multiple resources
2. Hands-on practice with actual GCP services
3. Consistent practice exams until scoring 95%+
4. Understanding concepts, not just memorizing facts

The exam was challenging but fair. If you've prepared adequately, you'll recognize the concepts being tested.

After Certification

Passing the exam is just the beginning:

• Keep practicing with GCP services
• Stay updated on new GCP features
• Apply your knowledge to real projects
• Consider advanced certifications (Professional Cloud Architect, etc.)
• Share your knowledge with others

Final Advice

For beginners:

• Don't be intimidated - start with fundamentals
• Use the free trial extensively
• Join GCP communities for support
• Build projects to reinforce learning

For experienced cloud engineers:

• Focus on GCP-specific terminology and services
• Note differences from AWS/Azure
• Review IAM model thoroughly
• Practice with gcloud CLI

For everyone:

• Practice exams are your best friend
• Aim for 90%+ scores before scheduling the exam
• Hands-on experience is irreplaceable
• Read questions carefully during the exam

Conclusion

The Google Associate Cloud Engineer certification is a valuable credential for anyone working with cloud technologies. With the right preparation strategy, dedication, and hands-on practice, you can successfully pass this exam.

The journey of studying for the certification teaches you far more than just passing an exam - you gain practical skills that directly apply to real-world cloud engineering challenges.

Good luck with your certification journey! If you're dedicated to learning and putting in the effort, you'll succeed.

Key Takeaways:

• Use multiple study resources
• Practice with real GCP services
• Take many practice exams (score 90%+)
• Focus on hands-on experience
• Understand concepts, not just facts
• Read official documentation
• Master gcloud command-line tools

Remember: The certification validates your knowledge, but continuous learning and practical application make you a great cloud engineer.