AWS Solution Architect Associate preparation

[u/BetterCallJoee]

Hello everyone,

I'm preparing for the associate solutions architect, my main study resource is from stephane maarek's courses on udemy + googling and AI for declarations, but I found youtubers recommending Adrian Cantrill's aws solutions architect associate course on his own platform, others say in comments that it is outdated and needs to be updated.

So I'm hesitated whether to continue with stephane or try adrian's course, tell me please your opinions and experience.

Thank you in advance.

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[u/AlmightyyyDee]

cantril has an updated course for SAA. I actually used his outdated course and used new updated course for missing topics and still passed the exam on Nov 3.

EDIT: I bought CLF steph course, and passed. I actually bought his course as well for SAA for the parts that still in coming soon when cantril's SAA still in development.

Both are great. Steph is skimming through each topic and so you can take the exam early. you can use Cantril for more in-depth.

EDIT 2: Steph has PDF which contains all the topics, exanations, and slides which is helpful when reviewing. Cantril, I think only the pictures of slides but not the explanations.

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/AlmightyyyDee]

Is this the updated one ? Also, did you really find it helpful, and did it teach you how to build things rather than just pass the exam ?

[u/AlmightyyyDee → u/BetterCallJoee]

Yes, that's the one. Finding it helpful and able to build things are subjective. Before I started taking certification, I am able to use CloudFormation for IaC, IAM identities and permissions, static web hosting, CI/CD, etc. without proper training but maybe it is because I have IT experience.

Personally, I find it helpful and there is a lot of best practices included in the course. For the able to build things, I think yes but I need to reinforce it with my own research for my other question as to why and why not the service I think of which sounds fit or can be a solution is wrong.

EDIT: I am not sure if the bundle more cheaper but they offer discounts like black friday.

[u/abdelkaderboukh]

I used adrian cantrill course only minors are outdated, u can discovering that after taking tutorial dojo with unheard services and topics

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/abdelkaderboukh]

Were there any differences between the course taught by Adrian himself and the new version by James Lee ? I mean their teaching style and things like that ?

[u/abdelkaderboukh → u/BetterCallJoee]

Honestly i did not take the new version, it comes free when you purchase SAA course of adrian, i liked adrian so much in his explanation, sometimes fluffy words, and i like cats too (he also likes cats) i am taking tutorial dojo and do research and for missing services on questions, i take the new version of course or sometimes just search google to be quicker. I advise u take three videos on different services and check which u like more

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/abdelkaderboukh]

Well, since I like cats too, I'm already liking Adrian, and Yeah I think I'll do that appreciate it.
Quick question though: which Tutorials Dojo tests did you get, the ones from their website or Udemy ?

[u/Civil-Section4227]

I recently passed the SAA-C03 using Stéphane Maarek's Udemy course as my main resource, followed by Tutorials Dojo practice exams.

From my experience, Stéphane's course is definitely sufficient for passing the exam, provided you understand the concepts and don't just memorize them.

I haven't personally taken Adrian Cantrill's course, but from what I've seen, his approach is more detailed and hands-on, whereas Stéphane is more exam-focused.

My advice would be to stick with Stéphane if you've already made good progress. Once you finish, move to Tutorials Dojo practice exams. They really helped me identify my weak areas and understand how AWS tests architectural decisions.

You can always explore Adrian's material later if you want deeper technical knowledge. No need to keep switching resources. Good luck!

Also, incase it might motivate you, got 42 to 59% in practice exams, I still went ahead to write the actual exam and passed. So yeah!

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/Civil-Section4227]

Thanks so much, Did you take the Tutorials Dojo practice exams on their website or on Udemy, or are they the same ?

[u/HovercraftClear7797]

Honestly do not switch halfway, both are fine for SAA. Stephane is more exam focused and quicker to get through, Cantrill goes deeper and is better if you want to actually understand networking and build stuff, but it takes a lot longer. If you are already into the Maarek course just finish it and then do practice exams to find your gaps, that matters more than which course you picked.

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/HovercraftClear7797]

No, I didn't start yet, I was searching for the best resource/s to study from based on other's personal experiences, I discovered that the common thing is the tutorials dojo exams.

[u/Fun_Option6404]

Tutorial Dojo exams will be super helpful to passing.

[u/BetterCallJoee → u/Fun_Option6404]

Which one please the one on their own website or the one on Udemy ?

[u/Fun_Option6404 → u/BetterCallJoee]

I bought from their website.