Reflecting on HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate 002
Published: 2023-01-21 04:10:18

---
title: Reflecting on HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate 002
published: true
date: 2023-01-21 03:56:41 UTC
tags: 
canonical_url: https://write.as/kelvintaywl/reflecting-on-hashicorp-certified-terraform-associate-002?pk_campaign=rss-feed
---

![](https://i.snap.as/MzNfsghI.jpg)

## Background

I passed the [HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate 002](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/tutorials/certification) exam on Jan 14th 2023. This was [my first try](https://www.credly.com/badges/559bdc0f-110e-4a6b-b8f4-547f2b1e0769), fortunately.

In terms of my Terraform experience prior to the exams, I have yet to build any Terraform project at a production level. My recent exposure was mainly around trying to play around with [CircleCI’s Nomad client Terraform setup](https://github.com/circleci-public/server-terraform).

## Motivations

In my past career, I have used loads of AWS CloudFormation. _Yes, I have had some battle scars re: IaC._I always wanted to learn more about Terraform, given that it supports more than 1 cloud platform.

In particular, I am interested in contributing a Terraform provider for CircleCI. This means creating a provider/plugin for creating CircleCI webhooks / scheduled pipelines via Terraform for example.

This above may likely be a lofty ambition, but I thought I’d hedge this by also trying for the certification. Kill two birds in one quarter, as they say.

## Breakdown of Score

| Content Area | Score (%) |
| --- | --- |
| Understand infrastructure as code (IaC) concepts | 100 |
| Understand Terraform’s purpose (vs other IaC) | 100 |
| Understand Terraform basics | 85 |
| Use the Terraform CLI (outside of core workflow) | 100 |
| Interact with Terraform modules | 50 |
| Navigate Terraform Workflow | 100 |
| Implement and maintain state | 75 |
| Read, generate and modify configuration | 72 |
| Understand Terraform Cloud and Enterprise capabilities | 100 |

Overall, I scored 84% (70% required).

## Word of Advice

If you are not using Terraform on a daily basis, practice Terraform CLI commands definitely!

The exam has a few questions where they may test you to type the code / command required. See sample questions [here](https://developer.hashicorp.com/terraform/tutorials/certification/associate-questions).

I did have a “doh!” moment, since it wasn’t clear how “complete“ the answer should be.

In particular, one question I got was: How would you reference the `vpc_id` from this module in the code snippet?

To reference the module output, it would be `module.aws_vpc.vpc_id` for example. I think the full answer should be: `vpc_id = module.aws_vpc.vpc_id`.

I had only typed `module.aws_vpc.vpc_id` due to lack of clarity in the question. I think I likely lost points there!

In terms of studying for it, I highly recommend the following Udemy course + practice exam!

- [HashiCorp Certified: Terraform Associate Practice Exams 2023](https://www.udemy.com/course/terraform-associate-practice-exam/)
- [More than Certified in Terraform](https://www.udemy.com/course/terraform-certified/)

Lastly, there will be a newer exam version (003). I understand this update would remove older questions referring to already-deprecated commands (e.g., `taint`). So if you can wait, do go for the 003 version instead!

## Final Thoughts

It was a fun exam to take, for sure!

Given that it is really about a tool and its ecosystem, I’d highly encourage folks to try out Terraform while practicing for the exam.

Your mileage on the Terraform tool will go a long way if you practice. This way, the exam questions will make way more sense too, as you practice.

[buy Kelvin a cup of coffee](https://www.buymeacoffee.com/kelvintaywl) ☕