AWS online assessment: Skills test to screen and hire the best developers

This AWS test evaluates candidates’ skills in designing solutions and implementing best practices in AWS based on the Well-Architected Framework. This test helps you identify candidates who are experienced in AWS and manage your cloud resources well.

Covered skills

Security
Operational excellence & reliability
Performance efficiency
Cost optimization

Use the AWS test to hire

DevOps engineers, senior reliability engineers (SREs), software engineers, cloud developers, cloud architects, and any other roles that require hands-on knowledge and experience with best practices in AWS.

Type

Role specific skills

Time

10 min

Languages

English

Level

Advanced

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About the AWS test

With the rapid growth and adoption of cloud computing, AWS has established itself as the leader in the marketplace. For any company adopting a cloud-based solution to replace and/or enhance existing data centers, it is critical to find engineers with skills and knowledge of the cloud and AWS.

The AWS test assesses candidates’ knowledge and skills in the areas of security in AWS, operational excellence and reliability, performance efficiency, and cost optimization.

Candidates who score well on this test demonstrate strong skills in designing and implementing best practices in AWS in adherence to the Well-Architected Framework. These candidates can help you secure your assets in the cloud, increase the operational reliability of your resources, increase your performance capabilities, and decrease your costs strategically.

This AWS test is geared toward an advanced level and requires not only theoretical but also practical experience to solve real-life scenarios that one can encounter when working with AWS.

The test is made by a subject-matter expert

Alfred W.

Alfred is an experienced software engineer with deep expertise in Python development, data engineering, and cloud solutions architecture. He has built out a cloud native data platform for a $16B hedge fund that systematically ingested TBs/PBs of data to drive quantitative trading strategies.

Alfred is also a certified AWS Solutions Architect and DevOps Engineer at the Professional. In his free time, he enjoys reading about personal psychology and new trends in technology.

Crafted with expert knowledge

TestGorilla’s tests are created by subject matter experts. We assess potential subject-matter experts based on their knowledge, ability, and reputation. Before being published, each test is peer-reviewed by another expert, then calibrated using hundreds of test takers with relevant experience in the subject. Our feedback mechanisms and unique algorithms allow our subject-matter experts to constantly improve their tests.

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How an AWS test can help you hire

Amazon Web Services is one of the world’s biggest cloud platforms, with more than 200 features, services, and data centers globally. Millions of companies use the platform, from enterprise-level organizations and small startups to government agencies – AWS helps them reduce costs, become agile, and innovate faster.

TestGorilla’s AWS test evaluates candidates' skills based on the Well-Architected Framework (we’ll talk about the Well-Architected Framework a little bit later).

The test helps you verify whether your candidates have the crucial skills in AWS to do the job well. It’s a must if you’re hiring candidates for one of the following roles:

• DevOps engineer
• Senior reliability engineer (SRE)
• Software engineer
• Cloud developer
• Cloud architect

Why AWS is important

The cloud computing industry has grown rapidly in recent years, and AWS has established itself as one of the sector’s market leaders. Most companies operate at least part of their daily tasks in the cloud, and AWS has become the go-to cloud-based solution for many.

So finding an engineer with the necessary AWS skills is essential if you want your company to migrate to the cloud or make the most of its capabilities.

The AWS test evaluates candidates' abilities to work in AWS according to the Well-Architected Framework. The Framework helps you understand how systems work with each other on AWS, providing you with the option to see their pros and cons and helping you learn AWS best practices.

The fundamentals of AWS Well-Architected Framework

There are six fundamental pillars of AWS Well-Architected Framework:

Operational excellence: The operational excellence pillar refers to the ability to support development, run workloads, analyze operations, and improve procedures and processes, all of which deliver business value.

Security: This pillar is all about using cloud tech to secure data, create bulletproof systems, and protect your digital assets.
Reliability. Reliability helps an AWS engineer plan processes and procedures without fear of malfunctioning. The point of this pillar is to ensure that workloads perform consistently throughout their lifecycle.

Performance efficiency: The performance efficiency pillar refers to the effective use of resources to match and maintain system requirements, even as new technologies evolve.

Cost optimization: Cost optimization is about avoiding unnecessary costs for the company. The key aspects of this pillar are understanding spending over time and scaling resources to match growing business needs.

Sustainability: The sustainability pillar focuses on consuming less energy and increasing the efficiency of all the workloads in the company. It’s about getting the most from your resources.

The AWS test is optimized for advanced-level practitioners – candidates who have theoretical knowledge of the cloud service and practical experience working with it.

The right candidate

On top of the technical aspects that a candidate needs for AWS-based roles, you should also look for the soft skills that would make them the perfect candidate:

• Communication: Communication skills are essential for any cloud engineer. Since they will be working with other IT people, managers, colleagues, peers, and different stakeholders, they will need to listen attentively and coherently communicate their ideas and thoughts.

• Problem-solving skills: Cloud engineers will encounter problems on a daily basis, which makes problem-solving a crucial skill for the right candidate. The successful candidate should know how to identify the problem, look at it from different angles, ask the right questions to find the solution, and then execute that solution.

• Decision-making skills: Your cloud engineers will encounter many situations in which they have different options when faced with a problem, and they will have to make the right choice, weighing the pros and cons of their decision. So you should seek out a candidate with good decision-making skills.

• Adaptability: Cloud computing (and AWS with it) is changing fast, so the right candidate needs to be able to learn new things and stay up to date with their skills. That’s why adaptability is one of the crucial skills of an AWS engineer.

• Curiosity: There are many areas in which cloud engineers need to be well-versed to do their jobs properly. From network architecture to DevOps to security, they need to know a lot and experience different fields to succeed in their role. So the perfect candidate will display curiosity toward things outside the scope of their job responsibility – they will go far and beyond to learn new things.

How an AWS test helps recruiters hire people

When you’re hiring for a role that requires experience in AWS, you should give them a pre-employment test. There are multiple benefits to using a pre-employment test in your hiring process:

• Bias-free hiring process: CV screening always runs the risk of unconscious biases or ATS mistakes affecting hiring decisions. But with our AWS pre-employment test your candidates can prove their skills – everyone gets an equal chance.

• Objective scoring: TestGorilla’s test results are numerical, and since all your candidates are doing the same test with the same questions, you can compare candidates' results easily.

• Scalable solution: Whether you receive 15 or 150 applications for the vacancy makes no difference since you send the test with a single click. The AWS test is therefore far more efficient when compared with CV screening.

In summary

AWS skills are essential for modern business, and it's essential to find the right employees to work with your cloud-based solutions. So when you’re hiring a candidate who needs to know how to work in AWS, try out our AWS pre-employment test to streamline your recruitment process and ensure that you get a professional with the abilities you need.

The AWS test will help you evaluate applicants and their skills for roles designing solutions in Amazon Web Services, helping you find an engineer who can create solutions and implement best practices in AWS.

FAQs

What is the difference between an assessment and a test?

An assessment is the total package of tests and custom questions that you put together to evaluate your candidates. Each individual test within an assessment is designed to test something specific, such as a job skill or language. An assessment can consist of up to 5 tests and 20 custom questions. You can have candidates respond to your custom questions in several ways, such as with a personalized video.

Can I add my own questions to an assessment?

Yes! Custom questions are great for testing candidates in your own unique way. We support the following question types: video, multiple-choice, coding, file upload, and essay. Besides adding your own custom questions, you can also create your own tests.

How do video questions work?

A video question is a specific type of custom question you can add to your assessment. Video questions let you create a question and have your candidates use their webcam to record a video response. This is an excellent way to see how a candidate would conduct themselves in a live interview, and is especially useful for sales and hospitality roles. Some good examples of things to ask for video questions would be "Why do you want to work for our company?" or "Try to sell me an item you have on your desk right now." You can learn more about video questions here.

Can you explain how the other custom question types work?

Besides video questions, you can also add the following types of custom questions: multiple-choice, coding, file upload, and essay. Multiple-choice lets your candidates choose from a list of answers that you provide, coding lets you create a coding problem for them to solve, file upload allows your candidates to upload a file that you request (such as a resume or portfolio), and essay allows an open-ended text response to your question. You can learn more about different custom question types here.

Can I customize an assessment with my company logo and color theme?

Yes! You can add your own logo and company color theme to your assessments. This is a great way to leave a positive and lasting brand impression on your candidates.

What type of support do you offer?

Our team is always here to help. After you sign up, we’ll reach out to guide you through the first steps of setting up your TestGorilla account. If you have any further questions, you can contact our support team via email, chat or call. We also offer detailed guides in our extensive Help & Inspiration Center.

What is the cost for using the AWS test?

You can find our pricing packages here. Sign up here to try TestGorilla today.

Can I combine the AWS test with other tests?

Yes. You can add up to five tests to each assessment.

Where in my recruitment process should I use the AWS test?

We recommend using our assessment software as a pre-screening tool at the beginning of your recruitment process. You can add a link to the assessment in your job post or directly invite candidates by email. TestGorilla replaces traditional CV screening with a much more reliable and efficient process, designed to find the most skilled candidates earlier and faster.

AWS