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SAA-C03: AWS Solutions Architect – Associate

Learn to design AWS architectures the way working architects do — and prepare for the SAA-C03 exam with real scenarios.

  • 24 hours of live, trainer-led sessions over three days
  • Hands-on labs building a multi-tier architecture
  • Structured around the four SAA-C03 design domains
  • Scenario drills that mirror exam-style questions
  • Weekday and weekend batches in IST and Gulf Time
Aligned to Amazon Web Services (AWS) exam SAA-C03
Duration
3 Days | 24 Hrs
Next batch
Batches on request
Delivery
Live Online · Classroom · Onsite · Corporate
Level
Intermediate
Exam
SAA-C03
Language
English

Why learn SAA-C03 with Ace Skills

  • Think like an architect

    Learn to weigh security, resilience, performance and cost against each other instead of memorising service lists.

  • Build a real architecture

    Labs assemble a working multi-tier application, so each service is learnt in the context where it is used.

  • Scenario-focused preparation

    Practice questions are discussed in depth so you learn to spot the requirement that decides the answer.

  • The most requested AWS credential

    Associate-level architecture skills are widely asked for in cloud roles across India and the Gulf.

Course overview

Solutions architects are the people who decide how an application should be built on AWS: which services to use, how they connect, how they stay available when something fails and how much they will cost. This three-day course teaches that decision-making through design discussions and hands-on builds, using the trade-offs you will meet both in projects and in the SAA-C03 exam.

Day one lays the foundations of secure design: IAM policies and roles, multi-account structures, VPC design with public and private subnets, and protecting data with encryption. Day two focuses on resilience and performance, covering EC2 and Auto Scaling, load balancers, storage choices, databases, caching and decoupling with queues and events. Day three looks at serverless and container patterns, cost optimisation, disaster recovery strategies and a final exam-readiness session.

Labs build on each other. You will design a VPC, place an application behind a load balancer with Auto Scaling, connect it to a managed database, add caching and content delivery, and then decouple parts of it with SQS and Lambda. Along the way the trainer pauses for design reviews, asking what would change if the requirement were cheaper, faster or more fault tolerant — the exact thinking scenario questions test.

The course closes with timed practice on scenario questions and a walkthrough of how to read long question stems. It is aligned to the SAA-C03 exam guide and prepares you for the exam; check the AWS Certification site for the latest exam guide before you book.

Key features

  • Design-first teaching with architecture reviews
  • Progressive labs that build one complete solution
  • Coverage of all four SAA-C03 domains
  • Disaster recovery and cost optimisation patterns
  • Timed scenario-question practice with explanations
  • Architecture diagrams to keep for revision
  • Course completion certificate from Ace Skills Consulting
  • Post-training doubt support while you prepare

Who should attend

  • System administrators and engineers moving into cloud roles
  • Developers who want to design end-to-end solutions
  • Solution and pre-sales architects working with AWS
  • Cloud Practitioner holders progressing to associate level
  • Technical leads responsible for migration projects

Prerequisites

  • Hands-on familiarity with the AWS console or Cloud Practitioner-level knowledge
  • Networking basics: IP addressing, subnets, DNS
  • General understanding of servers, databases and web applications

Curriculum

3 Days · 24 Hours · 9 Modules · 8 Labs

  1. Identity and access design

    • IAM policies, roles and permission boundaries
    • Cross-account access and AWS Organizations
    • Service control policies
    • Federation with IAM Identity Center
    • Lab: Create least-privilege roles and test cross-account access · 45 min

    VPC design

    • CIDR planning, subnets and route tables
    • Internet and NAT gateways
    • Security groups versus network ACLs
    • VPC endpoints and PrivateLink
    • VPC peering and Transit Gateway
    • Lab: Build a two-tier VPC with public and private subnets · 60 min

    Protecting data

    • Encryption at rest and in transit
    • AWS KMS keys and key policies
    • Secrets Manager and Parameter Store
    • S3 bucket policies and Block Public Access
    • Lab: Encrypt an S3 bucket with a customer managed key · 30 min

  2. Compute and scaling

    • EC2 instance families and placement groups
    • Launch templates and Auto Scaling policies
    • Application and Network Load Balancers
    • Multi-AZ design
    • Lab: Deploy a web tier behind an ALB with Auto Scaling · 60 min

    Storage and databases

    • EBS, EFS and FSx options
    • S3 storage classes and lifecycle
    • RDS Multi-AZ and read replicas
    • Aurora and DynamoDB design choices
    • ElastiCache for performance
    • Lab: Connect the web tier to RDS and add a read replica · 45 min

    Decoupling and edge

    • SQS, SNS and EventBridge
    • CloudFront and Global Accelerator
    • Route 53 routing policies and health checks
    • Lab: Decouple order processing with SQS and Lambda · 40 min

  3. Serverless and containers

    • Lambda design patterns
    • API Gateway
    • ECS, Fargate and EKS at a glance
    • Step Functions for orchestration
    • Lab: Build a serverless API with API Gateway, Lambda and DynamoDB · 45 min

    Cost-optimised design

    • Savings Plans, Reserved and Spot Instances
    • Storage tiering for cost
    • Cost Explorer and Compute Optimizer
    • Data transfer cost considerations
    • Lab: Analyse and right-size a sample workload · 30 min

    Disaster recovery and exam readiness

    • Backup and restore, pilot light, warm standby, multi-site
    • AWS Backup and cross-Region replication
    • Reading long scenario questions
    • Timed practice set with review
Download full syllabus (PDF)

Skills you will gain

  • AWS IAM
  • Amazon VPC
  • EC2 Auto Scaling
  • Elastic Load Balancing
  • Amazon S3
  • Amazon RDS & Aurora
  • DynamoDB
  • AWS Lambda
  • Amazon SQS & SNS
  • CloudFront
  • Route 53
  • AWS KMS
  • Disaster recovery
  • Cost optimisation

Tools & technologies

  • AWS Management Console
  • AWS CLI
  • AWS CloudShell
  • AWS Pricing Calculator
  • AWS Cost Explorer
  • draw.io

Certification exam

Exam details
Exam nameAWS Certified Solutions Architect – Associate
Exam codeSAA-C03
Number of questions65
Duration130 minutes
Passing score720 / 1000 (scaled)
Voucher includedNo — book directly with the vendor
Question formatMultiple choice, Multiple response
DeliveryOnline proctored or Test centre
Validity & renewal3 years

Skill areas measured

  1. Design Secure Architectures
  2. Design Resilient Architectures
  3. Design High-Performing Architectures
  4. Design Cost-Optimized Architectures

Exam details are pending verification. Vendors change exams; confirm on the official vendor page before booking. Official exam page (opens in a new tab)

Schedule & Pricing

Live Online

Individual

Price on request

  • 24 hours of live, trainer-led sessions
  • 8 hands-on labs
  • Ace Skills course completion certificate

Onsite / Classroom

At your office or our centre

Pricing depends on location, group size and dates.

  • Delivered at your premises or an Ace centre
  • Same curriculum and labs as live online
  • Dates planned around your team

Corporate / Team

Private batch for your organisation

A private batch with content adapted to your environment and goals.

  • Customised curriculum
  • Private batch, online or onsite
  • Progress and assessment reports
  • GST invoice and PO-based billing

No public batches scheduled — Talk to an Advisor for a private batch.

Projects & labs you will build

  • Day 1 · 60 min

    Build a two-tier VPC with public and private subnets

  • Day 2 · 60 min

    Deploy a web tier behind an ALB with Auto Scaling

Your certificate

Certificate of Completion — Ace Skills Consulting

Awarded on completing the course. It records the course title and training hours, and you can share it on your LinkedIn profile.

The Amazon Web Services (AWS) certification itself is awarded by Amazon Web Services (AWS) when you pass exam SAA-C03.

Frequently asked questions

Should I take Cloud Practitioner first?

It is not required. If you have used AWS before or work with infrastructure, you can start here; complete beginners benefit from Cloud Practitioner first.

How much hands-on work is included?

Each day includes several labs that together build one working architecture, and you keep the lab guides to repeat them afterwards.

How long should I study after the course?

Most working professionals revise for three to five weeks after the course, mainly with scenario questions. We share a revision plan on the final day.

Is the exam fee included?

Only when a batch states that a voucher is included. Otherwise you book and pay for the exam directly with AWS.

Do you offer corporate batches?

Yes. We run private batches for teams and can tailor labs to your existing AWS landing zone or migration plans.

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Train your team on SAA-C03

Private batches online or at your office in India and the GCC, with a curriculum adapted to your environment.