Google currently has two mobile-focused certifications: the Associate Android Developer, which is geared towards Android development knowledge and the Google Play Store Listing, which is focused on Google Play Store knowledge.

In this handy blog, our focus will just be on the Associate Android Developer Certification, also known as AAD. By breaking down and explaining the process, it will become less scary - we promise!

AAD in Practice:

AAD is split into two stages: the first is an 8-hour project, and the second is an interview to answer some project questions. Although, in the past, this interview was done in person, now, you have up to 7 days after finishing your project to answer questions asked by software; these are then recorded.

At the moment, there isn’t really a scale of Android certifications like with GCP (Google Cloud Platform). In GCP, you can get a range of certifications from associate to engineer. But, while there isn't a scale for AAD certification, it is far from easy! We’ve seen professionals with more than two years of experience trying and not succeeding.

But hey! Here’s a tip: it doesn't matter if you are a Jedi; you always have something to learn from a young Padawan.

While the AAD certification may be considered “beginner”, it does require knowledge that you might not have worked on before.

Is AAD Worth it?

By now, you might be asking yourself: is this certification even worth it if it’s so challenging?!

According to one survey, 86% of mobile developers think that having an AAD developer certification helps them stand out from the crowd. You get a certificate and a virtual badge when completed. You can use this badge on your social media handles and also as an email signature! We all love a good email signature!

The AAD certificate and badge have many advantages, such as:

• Your chances of getting hired as an Android app developer can increase;
• You can get a higher salary;
• You can get more clients, and they'll pay more to develop or enhance your apps;
• You will be recognised as a more authentic Android developer than non-certified developers.
• You can get a chance to attend the Android developer's meetings, with all expenses paid by Google.

AAD and Coding:

Currently (2023), you can take the exam in either Java or Kotlin. These programming languages are some of the easier ones to learn! Mastering at least one is essential for any aspiring Android Development specialist!

Since both Java and Kotlin ultimately turn into bytecode to run on a JVM (Java Virtual Machine), either or both can be used in a project. But we warn you; unlike other projects we work on here, if you choose one language, the project must be entirely in that language!

Coding Trivia!

Did you know that Java is an object-oriented programming language invented in 1995, with more than 3 billion devices running its software, and it works with all major operating systems? It is stable and popular among back-end developers; however, it can be a bit like a bag of bricks... just kidding! But it can be slow and requires extra memory space.

Kotlin, on the other hand, is an open-source programming language invented in 2011 (before Swift) by Jetbrains.

Because it incorporates functional and object-oriented programming, it runs faster than Java, producing cleaner code with fewer bugs. It became the leading language in IO in 2016 and now just might be the best-loved by mobile developers and even some backend devs. However, Kotlin's online learning resources are limited.

If you are already a Java pro, consider learning Kotlin to expand your coding knowledge, especially if this stuff interests you!

AAD Certification Stages:

As we mentioned before, there are two stages to certification, but we will further break it down into four stages for easier understanding:

Stage One - Study:

The main topics of the exam cover basic knowledge for a mobile app developer, these are:

• App Functionality
• Android user interface
• Data management
• Debugging
• Testing

Google provides a free study guide for the exam, organised into five main sections. Each section contains links to practical free courses from Codelabs and Android. Gotta love free learning resources!

Another exciting thing is to join the bootcamps, even if you have experience. They have a platform that will award you with badges for completed courses on the android developer platform itself.

The exams change every 45 days, but these topics usually show up:

• ViewModelFactory
• Coroutines
• Room
• Jetpack basic libraries, livedata, paging, navigation...
• Res, Frame layout, merge
• Difference between WorkManager, JobShedule, Services

Stage two - Payment and Design:

You need to make the $149 payment, and after that, you will need to download a plugin to do the project.

In the exam, you receive a project and instructions to implement it and fix some bugs.

We recommend setting aside a day to focus around 8 hours on solving the problem; realistically, you need at least 6 hours to finish.

Here comes our first tip: use the last 30 minutes for review because if time runs out, your code will be shipped, and if you implement features at the end, you may not be able to compile.

After implementing improvements and fixing bugs, validate all unit tests.

Submit to Google using the plugin, or it will submit itself if you run out of time.

Stage Three - Interview:

By now, you are hopefully rested and recovered after 8 hours of programming like there is no tomorrow!

You will have seven days after submitting the project to access the exam site, which will have some questions about the project you submitted. So our next tip here is to use the next 2 or 3 days to study the points requested in the exam.

Stage Four - Getting your result!

Now the hardest part: to wait for the result, which can take up to 30 days.

And if you don't achieve the certification, don't be discouraged if your first attempt fails. Google's retake policy is as follows:

• After your first failure, you must wait fourteen days before retaking the exam;
• After the second, you must wait two months before retaking;
• After the third, you must wait a full year before retaking.
• You will have to pay $149 for each exam retake.

If you’ve made it to the end of this blog, you know everything you need to start working on your certification! We hope we’ve made it less scary! Congratulations in advance on your certification!!