How I Passed the AZ-900 Microsoft Azure Fundamentals Exam in The First Attempt
By: Kangkan J Talukdar
Tags: Microsoft, Az 900 Study Material, Certification, Exam Preparation, Azure

Passing the AZ-900 at the first attempt with planned preparation.

The Microsoft AZ-900 Certification is an entry level certification. It tests a candidate’s knowledge on the basic cloud concepts and how these get fulfilled by the Azure cloud offerings. It can be used as a steppingstone for other specialized Azure certifications, e.g., Solutions Architect, Azure Developer, Azure AI etc. but is not a compulsory requirement.

Check out a graphical representation of Azure certifications intersecting with required Core skills in this official Microsoft poster: https://query.prod.cms.rt.microsoft.com/cms/api/am/binary/RE4wyqh .

What is the Exam Structure?

Syllabus and weightage

Weightage for AZ-900 topics

A more detailed document on the topics covered can be downloaded from this Microsoft link: https://query.prod.cms.rt.microsoft.com/cms/api/am/binary/RE3VwUY .

In case this link is not working, please go to the official AZ-900 site (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/az-900 ) and click on Download exam skills outline.

No. of questions and exam duration

The exam has a total of around 40–60 questions. (I got around 32 questions if I remember correctly). The exam duration is 85 mins.

Question structure

The exam has multiple choice questions comprising of single and multiple correct answers. It also has a couple of match the followings, where we need to drag and drop correct words in relevant sections.

Passing marks

The passing marks for AZ-900 is 700. Each correct answer receives marks. So, if in a multi-choice exam, candidate has 1 correct and 1 incorrect choice for the same question, he/she will get the marks for the correct choice. There is no negative marking (which is a relief TBH!).

What concepts are tested in this Exam?

Below are the topics in general from where you can expect to be tested:

Basic cloud concepts (Private, Public, Hybrid) Basic cloud characteristics (Scalability, Elasticity etc.) Core Azure concepts like Region, Geography, types of Storages etc. Resource management tools in Azure Subscriptions types in Azure (study this link properly as 1–2 question will come from here definitely https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/support/plans/ ) Azure security and network features (DDoS etc.) Identity management, privacy, governance features IOT, AI, database etc., related Azure services (which to use when) Cost management and SLA agreements (Cost calculators, which to use when)

What to Study and Where? (and my studying strategy)

This was my first major certification experience. So, I guess I did not have much historical data to place my study approach on. My aim was to pass it at one shot and revise as much as needed till I gain confidence. I read a few random articles I came across in the net, and decided to:

Study and understand each module of the AZ-900 Learning Path provided by Microsoft:

I went through the official AZ-900 Learning Path (https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/az-900 ):

Official Microsoft AZ-900 Learning path

There are also some instructor-led programs, but I don’t think it is required for AZ-900.

I also created a free subscription in Azure to gain some hands-on experience (https://azure.microsoft.com/en-in/ ). I highly recommend this, as it will give an idea of the actual apps and services being offered by Azure.

Apart from the Learning Path, it is good to have a look at the documentation as well. There are links in the learning paths to lead the reader to further information.

Take enough mock tests to gain confidence in the format and level of questions:

Once I was done with the Learning Path, I took a practice test set from Udemy (https://www.udemy.com/course/microsoft-azure-fundamentals-az-900-practice-tests/ ).

I highly recommend this, as the creator maintains an updated set of questions. They provide explanations for each of the choices along with links to read further in the official documentation.

This was the game changer in my preparation, as now I got some direction on the type of questions being asked. (I went through the comments section as well, where fellow students updated on latest pattern changes).

MS AZ-900 Practice Tests in Udemy

How to register for AZ-900 Exam?

Candidates can directly schedule the exam from the official Microsoft certifications site: https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/learn/certifications/exams/az-900 .

The exam is conducted by third parties, like Pearson (for non-students) and Certiport. I scheduled via Pearson for Online Proctored exam.

Scheduling AZ-900 Exam

The exam costs 99 USD or the relevant amount in your country’s currency (for India it is 3696 INR which is subsidized, and nice of MS).

Microsoft has also started highly discounted rates for candidates whose career were impacted by COVID. If you fall under this category, you can take this exam for almost a tenth of the cost.

To tell about a personal experience, I had opted for the Online Proctored exam from Pearson VUE. I used my office laptop on the D-Day, and my webcam access was blocked by the firewall. Hence, I could not appear for the exam on the first attempt. Whenever such a situation occurs (system glitch, no network, firewall issues etc.), there is always a way out. The proctor is more than helpful, and you can inform him/her of your situation over chat/call (I did the same). They will create a Case ticket for you and issue another exam voucher without charge. You can then reschedule the exam at a later convenient time.

I hope this article was able to provide you some useful information to go ahead with the AZ-900 certification. This is a relatively easy exam, and if planned properly, can be passed at one go.

Here’s wishing you all the best in your Azure journey!!

Also, this is my first Medium article, or very first blog in general. I am still undecided if I should pursue it regularly. In case you find this article helpful, do clap, share or give a response. It will help me immensely to get some feedback. :-)

About Me: My name is Kangkan J Talukdar, from Assam (India). I have been working in the IT Services industry for the past 8.5 years. In my spare time, I like to dabble between playing guitar, digital photography(both self-taught though) and watching interesting series/movies.