Leveraging my KodeKloud subscription, I embarked on the KodeKloud course. There is some overlap between the CKAD and CKA courses, so I focused my efforts on understanding etcd, the control planes, and administration tasks such as cluster installation, backup, and restore. The lectures and labs were highly engaging and informative.
Upon completing the lectures, I enrolled in the Ultimate Certified Kubernetes Administrator Mock Exam Series. I completed three out of the five mock exams with relative ease. Although I found the CKAD mock exams to be slightly better, possibly due to the older material in the CKA series, the content was still very useful.
Next, I tackled the Killer.sh CKA Simulator exam, which was significantly more challenging than the previous mock exams. Despite not finishing all the tasks within the allotted time, I enjoyed the test immensely and learned a great deal during the process. I spent an additional three hours completing the test, reviewing extra questions, and revisiting all the material. Following this intensive review, I scheduled my CKA exam for three days later.
In the days leading up to the exam, I completed the last two remaining mock exams from KodeKloud, ensuring I was as prepared as possible.
The check-in process this time was very pleasant and took only 10 minutes to complete. The real exam was well-designed and professional. It was not as hard as the Killer.sh exam since it had fewer tasks. I was able to finish it with a good score and still had a good amount of time left.
The exam results came 24 hours later. Here is the link to my certificate.
I highly recommend the CKA exam; I had great fun learning and taking it. The structured preparation, coupled with the hands-on experience, made the entire process enjoyable and rewarding.
Now, I will begin repeating the same process for the Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS) exam, which focuses on the security aspects of Kubernetes. Stay tuned for updates on my journey through the CKS certification.