AWS Academy Cloud Architecting

Looking to elevate your cloud skills? Learn to design and optimize IT infrastructure using AWS in this comprehensive, hands-on course.

Course Description

This online, self-guided course teaches students to optimize their use of the AWS Cloud by understanding how AWS services fit into cloud-based solutions. Explore best practices for the AWS Cloud and learn various design patterns to architect optimal IT solutions on AWS.

Through pre-recorded videos, student guides, instructional labs, and knowledge checks, you’ll gain exposure to key questions and decisions an architect must consider. You'll apply what you've learned through a fictional business case that connects technical concepts to real-world business needs. The concepts in this course align to the knowledge and skills described in the AWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate exam. Preparation centers on substantive AWS knowledge, not test-taking techniques.

Want a bigger picture of your potential AWS Academy Certification journey? Check out other AWS Academy courses and certification pathways. Stay tuned for these course launches!

The University of Denver is proud to be a member institution of the AWS Academy, giving students access to official Amazon Web Services (AWS) curriculum and learning resources that prepare them for industry-recognized certifications.

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Who should take this course?

  • Students seeking to build expertise in cloud architecture and IT infrastructure design

  • IT professionals pursuing cloud architect, Systems Operations (SysOps), solutions architect, or Development Operations (DevOps) roles

  • Learners with foundational IT experience ready to advance their skills in designing scalable, reliable, and cost-effective cloud solutions

Course Details

Requirements

To help ensure your success in this intermediate level, online, self-guided course, you should have:

  • Working knowledge of distributed systems

  • Working knowledge of multi-tier architectures

  • Familiarity with general networking concepts

This course seeks to build cloud computing architecture knowledge on top of your general web-based architecture knowledge. There are no modules or sections focused on general web-based architecture concepts, like building distributed systems, multi-tier architectures, and internet-based networks. If you need a refresher or want to spend more time on these topics, the course contains some resources for self-paced learning options. This includes courses from AWS Educate, which is separate from this course.

Format

Designed with your busy schedule in mind, this course is:  

  • 100% online: Learn from anywhere 

  • Self-guided: Built for self-starters who want to drive their own learning experience and work at their own pace

  • 55-60 hours of content: Advance your skills and accelerate your career 

  • Skills-Based: Earn a digital badge by scoring 70%+ on graded activities

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Ready to Enroll?

Sessions start monthly! Enroll and begin your course anytime within that month. You’ll have 5 months of access to course materials.

AWS Academy Cloud Architecting - November

Professional and Workforce Development (PWD)
$600.00 Starts 11/03/2025

AWS Academy Cloud Architecting - December

Professional and Workforce Development (PWD)
$600.00 Starts 12/01/2025

AWS Academy Cloud Architecting - January

Professional and Workforce Development (PWD)
$600.00 Starts 01/01/2026

What You'll Learn

  • Outcomes

    When you’ve completed this course, you will be prepared to:

    • Apply AWS architectural principles and best practices to make architectural decisions.

    • Use appropriate AWS services and features to make infrastructure scalable, reliable, and highly available.

    • Choose AWS managed services to enable greater flexibility and resiliency in an infrastructure.

    • Increase performance and reduce cost of a cloud infrastructure built on AWS.

    • Use AWS services to secure user, application, and data access.

    • Apply best practices from the AWS Well-Architected Framework to improve architectures that use AWS solutions.

  • Course Outline

    • Module 1: Welcome to AWS Academy Cloud Architecting

    • Module 2: Introducing Cloud Architecting

    • Module 3: Securing Access

    • Module 4: Adding a Storage Layer with Amazon S3

    • Module 5: Adding a Compute Layer Using Amazon EC2

    • Module 6: Adding a Database Layer

    • Module 7: Creating a Networking Environment

    • Module 8: Connecting Networks

    • Module 9: Securing User, Application, and Data Access

    • Module 10: Implementing Monitoring, Elasticity, and High Availability

    • Module 11: Automating Your Architecture

    • Module 12: Caching Content

    • Module 13: Building Decoupled Architectures

    • Module 14: Building Serverless Architectures and Microservices

    • Module 15: Data Engineering Patterns

    • Module 16: Planning for Disaster

    • Module 17: Bridging to Certification

    • Capstone Project

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AWS Skill Builder Access

Enroll today and receive a complimentary 12-month subscription to AWS Skill Builder. This platform of over 600 self-paced courses, labs, and certification prep resources is designed to reinforce what you've learned and help you prepare for your AWS certification exam.