5 Tips to Pass the Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer Certification exam

Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer certification was ranked #1 on Global Knowledge's list of 15 top-paying certifications in 2021!

With Google Cloud Data Engineering certification, you can show the world that you are an expert in building data-driven solutions using Google Cloud. As companies collect loads of data, the need for skilled professionals who can make data solutions in the cloud is increasing. And there is no better way to prove that you have the skills than having the certificate in your hands. 

About the Exam

The 2-hour exam consists of 50 questions and can be taken in person in one of the Google test centers, but a remote exam is also an option.

Several locations are available in each city, so pick a place and a date. The registration fee is $200, and you get one chance to take the exam.
Locate a test center near you. 

Once completed, you will see a passed or failed word on your screen. Once you pass, you are certified for two years. You will also receive a redemption code to pick your exclusive Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer merchandise alongside the certificate. There are bags, cups, t-shirts, hoodies, or backpacks. You will have to wait a couple of weeks to arrive; others are available immediately.

Now that you are aware of the exam, here are some tips for completing your exam the first time.

Tip 1: Work with the Official Exam Guide Outline

The outline divides the exam into sections and organizes the skills required of a Professional Data Engineer.

Training is typically conducted in a ramp fashion, with fundamental concepts introduced initially and then more complicated and challenging concepts introduced later. The Exam Guide is not a study guide. As a result, it isn't organized for learning, importance, or procedure. It's laid down in the order that a group of experts thinks about the work.

The official videos do not cover concepts, but the Official Exam Guide lists all requirements. Make it the first step to getting familiar with the list to evaluate the status of your work while in your learning journey.

Tip 2: Take notes

We need to repeat the material to learn because neurons in our brains become linked together. The more abstract something is, the more essential it is to practice making those thoughts a reality. Going one more time through the entire video content is inefficient; therefore, I recommend writing your notes. By preparing your messages, you will attain much knowledge, so there will be less repetition.
Remember: practice makes it permanent.

I favor Diary for Confluence as it is the fastest way to create and maintain notes in confluence. Stay on top of your course and use confluence to manage your notes course logs.

Cost: Free

Tip 3: Choose your resources

Learning Platform

Finish all the tracks on the Official Google Data Engineer course

Sign up here to access the full content - at no cost.
You will learn to identify the purpose and value of Google Cloud's essential Big Data and Machine Learning products; use BigQuery to perform interactive data analysis; use Cloud SQL and Dataproc to migrate existing MySQL and Hadoop/Pig/Spark/Hive workloads to Google Cloud; choose between various data processing products on Google Cloud.

Cost: Free

Official Study Guide Book

Purchase Official Google Cloud Certified Professional Data Engineer Study Guide book by Dan Sullivan. This book is a must-read for you, and the most remarkable thing about it is that it is aligned with the Official Exam Guide Specification.

The exam itself

The Google Cloud Professional Data Engineer exam evaluates your abilities to design data processing systems, operationalize machine learning models, assure solution quality, and create and operate data processing systems. 

Google recommends 3+ years of industry experience, including 1+ years designing and managing solutions using GCP to succeed with the certification. I am sure you can pass with a little less than that. Nevertheless, it is crucial to your success to have at least a few months of hands-on experience with Google Cloud technology. 

Cost: $200

Mock Exam

Google Professional Data Engineer Questions by testpreptraining.com.
The practice examinations are comparable to the actual exam. Thus, I suggest it to everyone, especially if you are short on time.

Cost: 12.99$

Tip 4: Time Management and Planning

Create a timetable to anticipate and track your progress. The schedule should be based on the Official Study Guide from Tip 1, video content, and sample questions from a book or the testpreptraining.com.

A quick tip: If you tend to procrastinate but are determined to complete the certification within one month, for example, just book and lock down the exam date by paying the 200 USD as early as possible. To make sure you can complete it on time, I propose you book the exam date one week ahead of your imaginary deadline. You could do it one month ahead if you want. You will be surprised that you will still manage to complete and pass the exam with the tight deadline you set for yourself.

Tip 5: Read the best practices on GCP

Use the GCP documentation to learn about best practices that are helpful for the test and your everyday work. The exam contains many questions about the type of service to use and how to set it properly. That is why the focus should be on all possible solutions and how they can be combined with other services, not just on Data Engineering.

Get familiar with the concepts of IAM and look for best practices of BigQuery, BigTable, etc. Here are some documentation pages you might find helpful. Of course, feel free to use other documentation as well:

• Dataproc best practices
• BigQuery best practices 
• BigTable and understand how to design a good schema
• IAM to getting familiar with the basic concepts and roles
• Windowing in Apache Beam
  

Summary

All in all, you need to have solid Google Cloud knowledge to start with. If you are not familiar with the technology, the advised courses will not make sense to you. To get well prepared for the exam, I encourage you to complete the Official Data Engineer course videos and read about the best practices of GCP products, followed by the ML Crash Course provided by Google. You should be ready to pass the exam by combining your studies with your knowledge. Good luck!

Are you looking for some other interesting articles to expand your knowledge of CDP? Check out our 10 Benefits of a Customer Data Platform (CDP) article. Or check out our available jobs positions at Crystalloids. 

ABOUT CRYSTALLOIDS

Crystalloids helps companies improve their customer experiences and build marketing technology. Founded in 2006 in the Netherlands, Crystalloids creates crystal-clear solutions that turn customer data into information and knowledge into wisdom. As a leading Google Cloud Partner, Crystalloids combines experience in software development, data science, and marketing, making them one of a kind IT company. Using the Agile approach, Crystalloids ensures that use cases show immediate value to their clients and make their job focus more on decision making and less on programming.