Cloud Computing Advice for Beginners

1. Learn

You can learn from docs, articles, youtube, etc. But you learn by doing and you need to practice. Don't assume that you can spin up that VM because you saw a tutorial. It's when you get your hands dirty that you'd discover that the VMs have changed since the tutorial.

Practicing and doing projects in Cloud Computing is not as cheap as it is in software development where you can install software and IDEs on your computer, and hack away.

For Cloud Computing you'll need an actual cloud subscription and if you don't have the funds for it, you can still make good progress on your journey

Major cloud providers offer a free tier or credits for a limited duration.

AWS 12 months free tier
Azure $200 for 30days
GCP $300 free tier
Digital Ocean $100 for 60 days
Qwiklabs free credits
Azure education credits

2. Document your learning, in public

As simple as a 250-word tweet on VMs can spark up conversations that will lead to critical thinking and opportunities.

I know of a friend who takes screenshots of her hands-on practice and saves them in a blog draft to be published later.

Documenting in public could also mean taking part in online accountability schemes such as #100daysofcodechallenge

Sometimes, it's what you document that comes back to bail you out when you're stuck or it becomes your e-book.

3. Lookout for cloud computing scholarships

These learning opportunities usually provide (limited) cloud subscriptions and projects to work on, and healthy collaboration with peers who have the same goal as you do.

Honorable scholarship mentions:

• @udacity scholarships
• Google Africa Developer Scholarships x Andela
• Google Africa Developer Scholarships x Pluralsight
• hnginternship

4. Apply for a role

Again, you learn by doing! On the job, you'll keep learning and doing. Don't wait until you're done with all the docs and vid tutorials before you start applying, because you'll never be done.

Bonus - Interviewing offers a learning opportunity:

• you learn about what employers are looking for
• you get (unbiased) feedback about your skills and employability level
• you fail and learn the lessons

Like any skill, the more you interview the better you get at it.

TLDR

1. Learn
2. Document your learning, in public
3. Lookout for cloud computing scholarships
4. Apply for a role

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