Goal: Go from basic programming knowledge to internationally certified AWS DevOps Engineer Professional in 13 months.
Commitment: 10–20 hours/week
Target Date: March 2027
Build a production-ready skillset in backend development, containerization, orchestration, and AWS cloud infrastructure. Earn 4 industry-recognized certifications. Become an internationally certified DevOps engineer capable of designing, deploying, and maintaining cloud-native systems at scale.
Eyes on the ball. No detours. Just execution.
| Phase | Focus | Timeline | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phase 1 | Go Fundamentals | Months 1–1.5 | Solid Go foundation |
| Phase 2 | DevOps Tools — Docker & Kubernetes | Months 2–3 | Containers + Orchestration |
| Phase 3 | Cert #1 — CKA | Months 3–4 | Kubernetes Certified |
| Phase 4 | Cert #2 — AWS Cloud Practitioner | Months 5–6 | AWS Foundation |
| Phase 5 | Cert #3 — AWS Developer Associate | Months 7–9 | AWS Associate Level |
| Phase 6 | Cert #4 — AWS DevOps Pro | Months 10–13 | GOAL ACHIEVED |
Course: Go Programming – Golang Course with Bonus Projects
Platform: freeCodeCamp (YouTube)
Duration: ~10 hours
Cost: FREE
What I'll Learn:
- Go fundamentals: variables, functions, structs, interfaces, error handling
- Concurrency: goroutines, channels, mutexes
- Modern features: generics, modules
- Capstone Project: Real RSS aggregator with database integration and JWT authentication
Course: Docker & Kubernetes: The Practical Guide
Instructor: Maximilian Schwarzmüller
Platform: Udemy
Rating: 4.7/5
What I'll Learn:
- Docker CLI — build, run, inspect, debug containers
- Docker Compose for multi-container applications
- Kubernetes fundamentals — pods, deployments, services, namespaces
- CI/CD pipelines with GitHub and AWS
- Deploying containerized apps to the cloud
Course: CKA with Practice Tests
Instructor: Mumshad Mannambeth / KodeKloud
Platform: Udemy
Students: 411,000+
Rating: 4.7/5
Endorsement: CNCF-Endorsed
What I'll Learn:
- Administering, designing, and troubleshooting Kubernetes clusters
- Networking, storage, and security configuration
- Hands-on browser labs (no external setup required)
- Real exam-style practice questions
Certification Details:
- Exam: CKA (Certified Kubernetes Administrator)
- Cost: ~$395 (exam fee)
- Target Date: Month 4–5
Course: Ultimate AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner CLF-C02
Instructor: Stephane Maarek (1.5M+ students, 500K+ reviews)
Platform: Udemy
Rating: #1 rated Cloud Practitioner course
Practice Exams: CLF-C02 Practice Exams (Maarek + Abhishek Singh)
What I'll Learn:
- AWS cloud fundamentals (no prior AWS knowledge needed)
- Core services: EC2, S3, RDS, Lambda, VPC, IAM, CloudWatch
- Cloud concepts, pricing, billing, support plans
- Security and compliance fundamentals
Certification Details:
- Exam: AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02)
- Cost: ~$100 (exam fee)
- Target Date: Month 5–6
Course: Ultimate AWS Certified Developer Associate DVA-C02
Instructor: Stephane Maarek
Platform: Udemy
Practice Exams: DVA-C02 Practice Exams (Maarek + Singh) — 390+ questions
What I'll Learn:
- Lambda, DynamoDB, API Gateway, S3, SQS, SNS (deep dives)
- CI/CD: CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy
- Security: KMS, Cognito, IAM policies and roles
- Serverless architecture and event-driven design
Certification Details:
- Exam: AWS Certified Developer Associate (DVA-C02)
- Cost: ~$150 (exam fee)
- Target Date: Month 7–9
Course: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional DOP-C02
Instructor: Stephane Maarek
Platform: Udemy
Students: 144,000+
Rating: 4.7/5
Practice Exams: DOP-C02 Practice Exams (Maarek + Singh)
What I'll Learn:
- SDLC Automation — CI/CD pipelines, CodePipeline, CodeDeploy
- Configuration Management & IaC — CloudFormation, Terraform
- Monitoring & Logging — CloudWatch, X-Ray, CloudTrail
- Policies & Automation — Config, Systems Manager, Service Catalog
- Incident & Event Response — Auto Scaling, EventBridge, Lambda
- High Availability, Fault Tolerance & Disaster Recovery
Certification Details:
- Exam: AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional (DOP-C02)
- Cost: ~$300 (exam fee)
- Target Date: Month 10–13
| # | Certification | Target Date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) | Month 4–5 |
| 2 | AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02) | Month 5–6 |
| 3 | AWS Certified Developer Associate (DVA-C02) | Month 7–9 |
| 4 | AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional (DOP-C02) | Month 10–13 |
- RSS Aggregator (from freeCodeCamp course)
- Database integration
- JWT authentication
- RESTful API design
- Containerized Go application with Docker
- Multi-container app with Docker Compose
- Deploy app to Kubernetes cluster
- CI/CD pipeline with GitHub Actions + AWS
- Infrastructure as Code — CloudFormation/Terraform templates
- Automated monitoring and alerting setup
- Serverless application with Lambda + API Gateway
- Complete end-to-end DevOps pipeline
Languages:
- Go (Golang)
DevOps Tools:
- Docker
- Kubernetes
- Terraform / CloudFormation
- GitHub Actions / AWS CodePipeline
AWS Services:
- EC2, S3, RDS, Lambda, VPC, IAM
- CloudWatch, X-Ray, CloudTrail
- API Gateway, SQS, SNS, DynamoDB
- CodePipeline, CodeBuild, CodeDeploy
- Systems Manager, Config, EventBridge
Other:
- PostgreSQL / SQLite
- Git / GitHub
- Linux / Bash scripting
Target: 10–20 hours/week
Breakdown:
- Course videos: 5–8 hours
- Hands-on labs/projects: 5–10 hours
- Practice exams (during cert phases): 2–5 hours
- Every month, build something. Code follows competence. Certification follows both.
- No tutorial hell. Watch, code, deploy. Don't just watch.
- Stay focused. No detours into unrelated tech. Eyes on the ball.
- Document everything. This repo is the proof of the journey.
Never pay full price. Udemy runs sales constantly — courses drop to ~$13–15 each. Total investment: ~$135 for all paid courses.
By March 2027, I will have:
- Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA)
- AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
- AWS Certified Developer Associate
- AWS Certified DevOps Engineer Professional
- Portfolio of production-ready projects
- Skills to work as an internationally recognized DevOps Engineer
13 months. 4 certifications. Let's go.
Last Updated: February 2026# Dev