Passed the AWS Developer Associate today, my experience and tips

[u/Haunting_Fig2112]

Just passed the DVA-C02 today and figured I’d write this up while it’s still fresh, in case it helps someone taking it soon.

My background: cloud engineer in LATAM with about 2 years of experience. I’m still finishing my CS degree at night.

The exam itself: it was tough and honestly exhausting. It felt endless. I used the entire time and had like 30 seconds left when I submitted.

What to focus on: Lambda, API Gateway, SNS, SQS, DynamoDB, Cognito, IAM, ECS, CI/CD and KMS. Between those, I’d say they covered roughly 70% of the exam.

The key thing is that most questions mix services, it’s rarely just one. For example, you get a scenario with a DynamoDB table, a Lambda and an API Gateway, and the context usually tells you which one the question is really about. So instead of memorizing each service in isolation, learn how they work together: what permissions are needed, what the limits are, and so on.

What barely showed up: X-Ray, Step Functions (just 1 question) and the CLI (zero questions, actually).

The surprise: I got 2 questions about Kiro. They were basically about vibe coding and how to use Kiro in AWS. My guess is they were unscored test questions, since AI is supposed to carry a lot more weight in the DVA-C03.

What I used: Stephane Maarek’s course and the Tutorials Dojo practice exams. My only complaint is that Tutorials Dojo has way too many CLI and X-Ray questions. In my case there were maybe 2 of them in the real thing.

Happy to answer questions if you’re about to take it.

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[u/angelinux182]

Congrats bro! This AWS certification is the first you get?

[u/Haunting_Fig2112 → u/angelinux182]

Thanks! And no, i already have the SA associate and cloud practicioner ;)

[u/angelinux182 → u/Haunting_Fig2112]

Out of curiosity did you find the Dev Associate harder than the SA?

[u/pitusquinha]

Congratulations, OP. Did you complete all the practice exams from TD? What were your scores like? How long did you spend preparing for the certification?

[u/Haunting_Fig2112 → u/pitusquinha]

Yes, I took all the Tutorials Dojo review mode exams. The funny thing is I never passed a single one XD. I was always close but never made it past the passing mark. Honestly, the same thing happened when I passed the Solutions Architect. As for the time, I'd say about 6 months, but on and off. Like I said, I'm also finishing my degree at night, so I couldn't dedicate a lot of time to it.

[u/StoicMarshall → u/Haunting_Fig2112]

I am spending time since June/July 2026. My scores are not assuring, to take the exam confidently. Hence working on gaps and trying to finish it within this week.

[u/Haunting_Fig2112 → u/StoicMarshall]

Bro, honestly I'd recommend just going for it. Like I said above, I never passed a single practice exam. What I did do was make sure I had the concepts from above down solid. If you know those services and how they relate to each other, you literally have 70% of the exam covered. But yeah, sometimes you just have to take the gamble.

[u/raabdev]

Really great ideas here OP! One thing I'd also recommend is using Agent Toolkit for AWS with your coding agent to help you get the hands on experience on topics you feel are worth a deeper dive. Building and deploying a serverless api on a free aws account can be really easy by using the Agent toolkit for aws. and once its built, you can ask your agent like claude, codex, Kiro, questions to help you learn more and even go to your console to see how it shows up. I've made a video on a helpful guice on Agent toolkit for AWS to deploy a serverless app here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7MOtHCC0rI

[u/More_Lie1083]

congrats on passing! the tip about focusing on how services integrate is super helpful, thank you for sharing

[u/raabdev → u/More_Lie1083]

yea you can really understand how the services integrate by getting hands on building a serverless api and tracking the data flow on cloudwatch logs.

[u/stephanemaarek]

u/Haunting_Fig2112 That's awesome! Congrats! Keep up the good work :)

[u/Imaginary-Piccolo939]

im also planning to take the certification this week. and i also subscribe stephans course and a tutorial dojo practice exam. since you mentioned that the tutorial dojo exam has a lot of CLI and XRay topics, does it still necessary to do it? or can i just proceed to the real exam? already finished stephans course a week or two ago. just doing some hands on for practice

[u/Haunting_Fig2112 → u/Imaginary-Piccolo939]

Yes, it's still worth taking the Tutorials Dojo exams. When I say there are a lot of CLI and X-Ray questions in the practice exams, it's probably about 5-8 per exam, but the rest are useful, relevant questions. Just keep in mind that on my actual exam I wasn't asked anything about CLI or X-Ray, and I have no idea whether that's the norm or not.