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How do you break into a cloud computing career?

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Cloud computing is cost-effective, agile and resource optimized – few of the many reasons why an increasing number of companies are opting for it. The widespread appeal of cloud computing creates a huge demand for cloud architects, cloud administrators, cyber-security professionals, data scientists and more such profiles in the market. Picking up relevant skills can launch your career as a cloud specialist and help you climb the corporate ladder faster. There are a number of courses and certifications available in the market to help you upskill in cloud computing. Read through for an introduction to a cloud computing career.
Cloud Computing Skills
Before considering a career in cloud computing, it is essential to understand the requirements of this path. A cloud computing professional needs to keep learning and be adept in the latest cloud technologies. If you already have commendable coding skills and an interest in database management, upskilling will be easier and land you a high paying job in cloud computing. 
Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning: AI ML helps cloud systems to automatically learn from past experiences and improve on it. This reduces the need for explicit programming to direct your systems.
Cloud Migration and Deployment: Moving data to, from and across cloud computing networks is the migration part which is handled by migration architects. Cloud deployment involves running and checking all the cloud-based applications. 
Database Skills: Excellent analytical skills paired with knowledge of programming languages will help you organise and maintain the databases for organisations. 
DevOps: DevOps skills are required for the two business units of development and operations to work together seamlessly. Knowledge of this enterprise software ensures a smooth coordination between these two teams and facilitates innovation. 
Serverless Architecture: This skill set helps you develop, manage and run applications in a cloud environment where you are not directly responsible for maintaining the infrastructure. 
System/Platform Certifications: There are many cloud service providers in the market now. Platform certifications from AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure will help you understand and use these systems optimally.
Programming Language: XML, Python, R, SQL etc are popular cloud programming languages. Thorough knowledge of these languages will allow you to develop and deploy cloud functionalities like networking, maintaining and analysing database, connecting servers and more. 
Roles You can Expect As a Cloud Specialist
The cloud computing industry is undergoing constant upgradation and the learning never ends. However, don’t let that intimidate you. Once you have mastered the key functionalities of cloud computation, you can expect to be employed in high profile roles across companies that involve developing, maintaining and securing cloud activities. 

Cloud Solutions Architect:  Solutions Architects lay down the plans for designing cloud infrastructure and applications. Strong technical skills along with prior experience in designing cloud based applications are must-haves for this role. Migrating complicated, multi-level applications on cloud, designing and deploying scalable operations, implementing resource and cost effective strategies and selecting appropriate cloud platforms for migrating and deploying applications – these are typically areas a cloud solutions architect looks into.  
Cloud Developer: Cloud developers work on designs laid out by the Solutions Architect. Their role involves using programming languages to actually build applications. They are also responsible for deploying and analysing the applications to ensure it runs smoothly. Apart from excellent programming language skills, it is essential for developers to have a thorough knowledge of cloud platforms. Developers are quite in demand in the cloud computing industry as SaaS and IaaS companies depend on them to build their products for the cloud environment.   
Cloud Security Engineer: One of the cons of using cloud platforms is that it can expose organisations to different kinds of cyber threats. Cyber-security engineers are employed by both organisations which provide and also which use cloud services to ensure that data is protected and all probable security breaches are avoided. Researching possible threats and designing vulnerability tests to assess the risks forms the crux of a security expert’s profile. 
Cloud Network Engineer: Cloud network engineers oversee and control internal data distribution in any organisation. Depending on the type of cloud network (public, private or hybrid), networking engineers design formats which make the network responsive while receiving data to ensure enhanced user experience. Cloud network engineers are directly responsible for making the servers agile and optimised. 
While cloud computing might not be the easiest job out there, it is definitely one of the most rewarding and in-demand profiles. Cloud experts draw high salaries and are quite indispensable to organisations which work in the cloud environment. If programming languages excite you and you already have coding experience then you might want to consider a career in cloud computing. cloud computing certification will definitely push your career towards new heights. 

Marina Chatterjee
Marina is a content marketer who takes keen interest in the scopes of innovation in today's digital economy. She has formerly worked with Amazon and a Facebook marketing partner to help them find their brand language. In a past life, she was an academic who taught wide-eyed undergrad Eng-lit students and made Barthes roll in his grave.

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