How Difficult is the Google Associate Cloud Engineer Exam?

Google was one of the first companies to offer nanodegrees, which are essentially highly focused associate degrees. Google’s certifications have evolved from that nano degree program. Because of the depth of knowledge required to pass exams, Google certifications are now more involved and widely recognized. 

The Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam is two hours long and costs $125. It is offered in English, Japanese, Spanish, and Portuguese. The Google ACE certification test is an entry-level certification, so it is easier to obtain than other industry certifications. However, test candidates will still need to study to pass it. The Google ACE exam includes five sections covering different aspects of Google’s cloud services. 

Google recently updated the ACE exam to reflect changes in Google Cloud’s services. This update introduces a stronger focus on security, automation, and AI/ML concepts, making it more relevant to today’s cloud industry—and it might make the exam a little harder for some IT professionals. 

What is on the Google Associate Cloud Engineer Exam?

If there is one thing that Google is good at, it is documentation. Google provides some of the best, most concise documentation compared to any other tech company. Their documentation for their certification programs is no exception. 

All this is to say that Google has a complete list of everything you need to study to pass the Google Cloud Associate Engineer (ACE) exam. 

Time is tight, though. Here is a TL;DR version of everything you need to study for the Google ACE exam:

Google ACE Exam Section 1: Setting Up a Cloud Environment

• Creating cloud projects and accounts

• Apply organizational policies 

• Managing billing configurations

Google ACE Exam Section 2: Planning and Configuring a Cloud Environment

• Understanding the pricing calculator and product costs

• Planning and configuring compute resources

• Planning and configuring data storage options

• Planning and configuring network resources

Google ACE Exam Section 3: Deploying and Implementing a Cloud Solution

• Deploying and implementing compute resources

• Deploying and implementing Kubernetes Engine resources

• Deploying and implementing Cloud Run and Cloud Functions

• Deploying and Implementing data solutions, including Cloud SQL, Firestore, etc. 

• AI and machine learning 

• Deploying and implementing networking resources

• Using Cloud Marketplace solutions

• Deploying and utilizing IaaC services, including Cloud Foundation Toolkit, Config Connector, Terraform, and Helm

Google Cloud ACE Exam Section 4: Ensuring Successful Operation of a Cloud Environment

• Managing compute resources, including working with images and viewing currently running VM inventories. 

• Managing and configuring Kubernetes resources including pods, services, etc.

• Deploying and managing Cloud Run resources, including setting parameters. 

• Managing storage and databases, including Cloud SQL, BigQuery, Spanner, and Firestore. 

• Managing network resources, including Cloud DNS and Cloud NAT

• Monitoring and logging, including creating custom alerts, viewing and filtering logs, and using cloud diagnostics.  

Google Cloud ACE Exam Section 5: Configuring Access and Security 

• Creating and managing IAM profiles, tasks, and policies

• Managing and defining custom IAM roles

• Creating and managing service accounts

• Assigning services accounts to resources 

• Creating and managing short-lived service account credentials

Note that some outdated roles and topics have been removed, so make sure you're studying the updated materials. 

Who Should Take the ACE Exam? 

If you're considering a career in cloud computing or want to level up your IT skills, the Google Associate Cloud Engineer (ACE) certification could be a great fit. It has no prereqs and is a good way to learn cloud skills or validate your current skills. 

Pretty much anyone in IT should consider this exam, especially: 

• Someone who has experience in IT systems and a basic understanding of cloud computing, and wants to transition into a more specialized cloud-focused role.  

• Systems Administrators with on-prem experience who want to update their skills to include cloud technologies, improve their professional qualifications, and stay relevant in the evolving IT landscape.

• Recent comp-sci grads looking to enter the cloud computing job market with a strong credential.

How to Prepare for the Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer Exam

Preparing for the Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam can be easy—with the right resources. There are more resources than ever to help you understand every bit of material in the ACE exam, including the updated skills required, like security, AI/ML, and automation. 

Getting hands-on experience with services and tools is one of the best ways to learn how to use them. It’s one thing for Google ACE exam training videos to show how to create a new VM in GCP or create a new IAM profile. Experience comes with using a tool, and the free tier that Google offers is an accessible way to get that experience. 

Luckily, there are plenty of resources to help you learn the skills you need. 

For instance, Google offers a free tier for their Google Compute cloud products. If you're looking to learn more about automation, consider downloading Terraform and accessing their tutorials and community. 

Google also offers a short machine learning course for developers that can help you grasp the basics. From there, consider moving on to CBT Nuggets' Introduction to Machine Learning Online Training course. 

You could then combine accessible experience with CBT Nuggets Google ACE training videos for a well-rounded learning path.

Is the Google Associate Cloud Engineer Exam Easy?

The Google Cloud Engineer exam is pretty easy compared to other (much more comprehensive) exams. But of course, we need to clarify that statement. 

The Google ACE exam is an entry-level certification. Therefore, it is equivalent to taking the Microsoft Cloud Engineer certification or the CompTIA A+ exam. However, unlike the Microsoft or CompTIA exams, the Google ACE exam focuses on the Google Cloud platform. The exam has also been updated to cover newer topics, like automation and ML/AI, which could increase the difficulty for some candidates. 

Entry-level certifications are easy to earn for IT pros with a few years of experience under their belts. These exams are designed to be achieved before starting a career in IT (to prove IT knowledge) or help advance careers. 

Anyone who doesn’t have prior IT experience will want to study the Google ACE exam material thoroughly. Make sure to utilize the free tier offered by Google to learn with and obtain real-world experience—and make sure to focus on topics you might be less familiar with, like automation, AI, and machine learning.  

Experienced IT pros should not have any issues passing the Google ACE exam. The material covered in the Google ACE exam covers primary material for deploying and managing resources, billing, and IAM user roles in GCP. Systems administrators and IT pros with automation/security experience will likely find the exam pretty straightforward, while those new to AI/ML might need extra study time.

How Difficult is the Google Cloud Associate Cloud Engineer Exam?

Because the Google Associate Cloud Engineer exam is designed for those with little IT experience, it is not challenging to earn compared to more advanced certifications. That said, anyone who doesn't have a lot of experience working with cloud platforms (like Azure or AWS) or with the IT field in general should study the material covered in the ACE exam. 

The Google ACE exam covers materials such as:

• Planning, integrating, and deploying Google Compute, Kubernetes, and other cloud resources

• Using Google Marketplace to deploy products

• Understanding and managing billing

• Understanding, creating, configuring, and managing IAM and security roles in GCP

• Planning, choosing, and managing storage resources

• Understanding AI/ML and automation in the cloud

• Creating and managing projects within Google

There are a variety of resources to help you learn the material in the Google ACE exam, too. For instance, Google offers a free tier for GCP that allows learners to experiment with Google Cloud services. 

Final Thoughts

GCP is the third largest cloud platform provider in the world. Everyone is familiar with the name Google. Just don't assume because this is an entry-level certification, you can call in your studying. Make sure to take the time to review the objectives and focus on automation, security, and AI/ML concepts to align with the latest exam version.

Having a Google ACE certification on your resume will open doors for you in the future. Ready to take the first step toward certification? Sign up for a free 7-day trial of CBT Nuggets to get started.