How to Become a Cloud Computing Engineer: Career Paths, Skills, and Certifications

Introduction

In April 2019 the government released 13 new high‑tech occupations, highlighting AI, IoT, big data and cloud computing, and many graduates now consider cloud computing as an ideal career direction.

Interview with Cloud Engineer Adam

Adam, a post‑1995 cloud engineer, graduated from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, taught himself programming, and now works for a cloud service company in Hong Kong, focusing on building and managing cloud platforms. He also runs a technology video channel to promote cloud knowledge.

Typical Cloud‑Computing Job Types

Different companies have various cloud‑related positions:

Cloud platform providers

Software and platform partners

System integrators

Software vendors

Enterprises that use cloud services

Learning Roadmap for Beginners

Knowledge can be grouped into four categories:

1. Cloud Platform Fundamentals

Basic: cloud servers, CDN, DNS, relational cloud databases, load balancers, object storage, VPC.

Advanced: serverless computing, API gateways, container services, NoSQL databases, data‑stream processing.

2. Development Skills

At least one programming language (Python, JavaScript; shell scripts for developers).

Database knowledge (SQL, NoSQL).

Front‑end and back‑end architecture.

Cloud‑native technologies (containers, micro‑services).

3. Operations Knowledge

Linux basics.

Network architecture fundamentals.

Resource monitoring and management.

Cloud‑native operations (containers, micro‑services).

4. DevOps Practices

Infrastructure as code (configuration management).

Automation.

CI/CD pipelines.

Adam suggests using books for foundational topics, online courses for rapidly evolving cloud services, and hands‑on projects or open‑source contributions to enrich a résumé.

Certification Advice

For beginners and junior positions, certifications are useful because they demonstrate general technical competence and are often favored by recruiters. Adam recommends starting with widely‑adopted cloud‑provider certifications, such as Alibaba Cloud ACA, then ACP, and later ACE after 1‑2 years of experience.

Selected Q&A

Which programming language is best for cloud learning? Adam: For non‑developer tracks, simple Python or JavaScript is enough; developers should also learn Shell scripts.

Career advice for non‑CS majors? Adam: Consider operations or system‑integrator support roles first, then move to pre‑sales or other areas after gaining knowledge.

Is a training class needed for certifications? Adam: Self‑study via official documentation, whitepapers, and online courses is sufficient.

Role of virtualization in cloud computing? Adam: Virtualization is a core infrastructure technology; research positions are in demand at cloud vendors.

What does a cloud engineer actually do? Adam: Provides post‑sale technical support, builds and manages customers' cloud resources, communicates with clients, and develops automation tools (e.g., multi‑cloud instance management using serverless and Ansible).

Relationship between cloud, big data, AI? Adam: Cloud provides the elastic infrastructure needed for big data and AI; beginners should start with operations and programming before moving to data‑oriented fields.