The Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) is a foundational certification designed for individuals seeking to build a career in cloud-native technologies. This pre-professional certification validates a candidate's essential knowledge of Kubernetes and the broader cloud-native ecosystem. It is ideal for students and early-career professionals who are beginning their journey in cloud technologies and aspire to advance to more specialized certifications like the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD), or Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS).

A certified KCNA demonstrates an understanding of Kubernetes architecture, including containers, pods, nodes, and clusters. It also verifies knowledge of key cloud-native concepts such as storage, networking, GitOps, service mesh, and cloud-native security. This certification is a great stepping stone for those aiming to further their expertise in Kubernetes and related technologies within the Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) ecosystem.

The Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) certification is designed for individuals who are interested in developing foundational skills in Kubernetes and cloud-native technologies. This certification is ideal for:

• Students and early-career professionals seeking to build their knowledge in cloud-native technologies.
• Individuals looking to demonstrate their understanding of Kubernetes concepts and the cloud-native ecosystem.
• Candidates preparing to pursue advanced CNCF certifications, such as CKA, CKAD, and CKS.
• IT professionals transitioning to cloud-native roles and wanting to validate their Kubernetes skills.
• Organizations aiming to upskill their teams with essential Kubernetes and cloud-native knowledge.

This certification is a great fit for anyone eager to begin their journey in the cloud-native space or seeking to enhance their career in cloud computing.

A certified Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate (KCNA) confirms conceptual knowledge of the entire cloud-native ecosystem, with a particular focus on Kubernetes. This certification is designed to prepare candidates for working with cloud-native technologies and to provide a strong foundation for pursuing further CNCF credentials, including the Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA), Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD), and Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist (CKS).

• Kubernetes Resources
• Kubernetes Architecture
• Kubernetes API
• Containers
• Scheduling

• Container Orchestration Fundamentals
• Runtime
• Security
• Networking
• Service Mesh
• Storage

• Autoscaling
• Serverless
• Community and Governance
• Roles and Personas
• Open Standards

• Telemetry & Observability
• Prometheus
• Cost Management

• Application Delivery Fundamentals
• GitOps
• CI/CD

• The exam is delivered online and consists of 60 multiple choice questions.
• Candidates have 90 minutes to complete the KCNA exam.
• The exam is proctored remotely via streaming audio, video, and screen sharing feeds.
• Results will be emailed 24 hours from the time that the exam is completed.