Earn an Atlassian Certification to Advance your Career: Where (and How!) to Start

Editor’s note: This post exists because we keep seeing folks across Community ask, in one way or another, “I’m interested in getting certified. Where should I start?” So we roped in our resident expert Atlassian Certification team member to give us the run-down. What follows is her (very helpful) answer to that question!

 

If you’re thinking about getting certified, you’ve already won! Embarking on the Atlassian certification journey is a win-win for everyone. No matter the outcome, you will learn a lot just by trying. The knowledge and skills you gain while preparing for the exam are invaluable assets for your own job. And product expertise is a plus for the rest of the team because you can help them be more knowledgeable and productive, too. For you, of course, it’s a career boost. You can showcase your hard-earned credentials on Atlassian Community and professional sites like LinkedIn—and 73% of Atlassian Certified folks surveyed in 2021 said certification increased their job prospects.

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Of course, you have questions. Which exam is right for me? Where should I start? How long will it take to prepare? Am I ready? We’ll tackle these questions in this post. Read on to kickstart your certification success and earn globally recognized credentials to validate your expertise amongst your team, employer, and industry peers.

Which exam is right for me?

Atlassian University offers two types of certifications: Associate and Professional.

Associate Certifications

The associate-level certification tier helps you get credentialed as soon as you become skilled in Atlassian products and solutions. Designed for beginner to intermediate learners, they’re affordable and quick to earn – while still carrying the weight of Atlassian’s globally recognized reputation. You can build your certification stack around the skills most relevant to your work.

Associate exams are 60 minutes long and there are 25 questions. The cost is $100.

Currently, there are two available associate certifications.

 

Exam

Exam Topics

Atlassian Certified Associate - Jira Software Essentials Certification

  • Basic Concepts (28% of exam)

  • Jira Navigation (16% of exam)

  • Working with Issues (44% of exam)

  • Issue Lifecycle, Workflow, and Boards (12% of exam)

Atlassian Certified Associate - Jira Software Board Configuration

  • Board types and concepts (16% of exam)

  • Configuring board permissions & filters (36% of exam)

  • Configuring columns & swimlanes (20% of exam)

  • Configuring board appearance (12% of exam)

  • Configuring estimation & working days (16% of exam)

Two more associate certifications are coming out in the first quarter of 2024.

Professional Certifications

Atlassian Certified Professional certifications are role-based and reflect and validate your Atlassian administrative expertise – in projects, products, and organizations. Preparing to earn a Professional certification requires considerable product experience, independent study, and Atlassian-provided training courses.

Professional exams are 180 minutes long and there are usually between 60 and 80 questions. The cost is $249.

There are six professional certifications in total.

Two of them are for Data Center/Server and the rest for Cloud. So the first thing you need to determine is which platform you currently work in, or, if you work in both, which one are you best versed in.

The following two certifications are for Data Center / Server.

Our insider tip is to start with the first one (ACP-610 in Managing Jira Projects), even if you are a Jira Administrator, and especially if this is your first Atlassian certification. You will likely find it easier since it focuses only on projects and boards, and none of the admin features. The latter exam tests your knowledge of the breadth, depth, and complexity of maintaining the entire Jira system. It also assumes, and tests to some smaller extent, your knowledge of projects and boards. You can think of ACP-100 as incorporating the knowledge of ACP-610—plus much more.

 

Exam

Exam Topics

ACP-610 Managing Jira Projects for Data Center and Server Certification

  • Project Creation (5-15% of exam)

  • Board Configuration (30-40% of exam)

  • Managing Projects (25-35% of exam)

  • Extended Project Administration (5-10% of exam)

  • Reporting (15-25% of exam)

ACP-100 Jira Administration for Data Center and Server Certification

  • Access, Permissions, Security (27% of exam)

  • Project Configuration (11% of exam)

  • Issue Types, Fields, Screens (18% of exam)

  • Workflows and Automation (10% of exam)

  • Notifications (9% of exam)

  • Advanced User Features (14% of exam)

  • Jira Administration (11% of exam)

The following certifications are the Cloud counterparts of the ones above for Data Center / Server.

Our advice is the same as the ones above. You will likely find it easier to start with the one for project admins first. Note also that the Atlassian Certified Associate - Jira Software Board Configuration is a small subset of the content for the ACP-620. Namely, board configuration is 25-35% of the exam.

 

Exam

Exam Topics

ACP-620 Managing Jira Projects for Cloud Certification

  • Project Creation (10-15% of exam)

  • Board Configuration (25-35% of exam)

  • Managing Projects (25-35% of exam)

  • Automation (15-20% of exam)

  • Reporting (15-20% of exam)

ACP-120 Jira Administration for Cloud Certification

  • User Features (10-15% of the exam)

  • Configuring Global Settings and User Communications (5-10% of the exam)

  • Product and Project Access and Permissions (30-35% of the exam)

  • General Project Configuration (10-15% of the exam)

  • Issue Types, Fields and Screens (15-20% of the exam)

  • Workflows and Automation** (5-10% of the exam)

  • Notifications and Email (5-10% of the exam)

  • Administering and Extending Jira (5-10% of the exam)

The fifth certification we currently have available is specific to Jira Service Management. It’s geared toward those who administer service projects in the Cloud.

 

Exam

Exam Topics

ACP-420 Managing Jira Service Projects for Cloud

  • Working with service projects and issues (5-10% of exam)

  • Managing Access and Permissions (15-20% of exam)

  • Project Configuration (25-35% of exam)

  • Notifications (5-10% of exam)

  • Knowledge Management (5-10% of exam)

  • Reporting (10-15% of exam)

  • Customer Portal (3-5% of exam)

  • Automation and Integrations (10-15% of exam)

The final professional certification is about administering users and groups across multiple Atlassian Cloud organizations, sites, and products. It’s geared toward administrators who work in the Admin Hub. When you purchase the exam, you’ll receive a voucher to take your exam plus the Exam Success comprehensive study companion.

 

Exam

Exam Topics

Atlassian Cloud Organization Admin Certification (ACP-520)

  • Atlassian Organizations (35-45% of the exam)

  • Users and Groups (25-35% of the exam)

  • Admin Roles (10-15% of the exam)

  • Advanced Features (15-20% of the exam)

For Confluence, we do not have a certification but a Pro Skills Badge, APB-220 Confluence Space Administration Pro Skills Badge, which is agnostic for both Cloud and Data Center / Server.

Where should I start?

Here’s quick video outlining Atlassian Certification — and how to get started:

After you picked the exam you’ll start with, go to the exam description page to learn more about it. For associate certifications, the easiest way to prepare is to go through the learning path.

For professional exams, download the exam topics guide. You’ll see a breakdown of the main sections of the exam by percentages, as well as the detailed topics within each, and links to relevant documentation. Just by reading the exam topics page carefully, you will already be able to self-assess how much you know or how much you may need to study and experiment with.

For several of our professional exams, we have an exam success course. This is essentially a certification prep course that takes you topic by topic through the concepts you need to know. There are also accompanying lab challenges that suggest the hands-on learning and experimentation that you should do in your own environment, in order to get exposure to the topic areas. Note that you have to set up your own sandbox, but we provide you with the guidance to do so. You can try Jira Cloud for free for the purposes of studying for the exam.

Additionally, for professional exams, there are plenty of sample questions within the prep course that test your knowledge and let you get comfortable with the question format and style. For the two other professional certifications without a specific exam success course, there are also sample questions directly linked from the exam description page.

And of course, you should enroll in the recommended learning path that will give you the foundation you need to succeed.

How long will it take to prepare?

Assuming you set aside study time every week, most students will take anywhere from 3-5 weeks to prepare for an associate exam and 6-10 weeks for a professional exam. You should go through each topic, one by one, to learn the concepts. And you should experiment in a test environment or perform the suggested labs, if available. You will probably find that you’re already an expert in some of the topics and you can breeze through them. But in other areas, especially where you have rarely used the features, you may be reading documentation and practicing much more. Keep the exam topics close by and check them off as you go.

If you feel confident and answer most of the sample questions correctly early on, you may find that you can shorten the overall timeframe.

 

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Am I ready?

The answer to this question depends on how much preparation you’ve done. Remember the steps above:

  • Review the exam topics.

  • For professional exams, read through the entire exam topics guide, the relevant documentation links and the entire exam success course, if there is one.

  • Enroll in Atlassian University courses in the learning path.

  • Set aside dedicated time for study.

  • Practice in a lab environment.

  • Try the sample questions, available for professional exams.

If you’ve done all that, you’re ready to schedule your exam.

Afterward, to keep your Certification active, see Maintain your certifications.

And if you keep progressing on the certification journey, you can even earn the Atlassian Certified Expert credential.

Find out more on our site: Atlassian certification overview.


💡 How to get certified


Let us know: Which certifications do you already have? If none — which one will you start with?

p.s. Get some #inspo from fellow Community members who’ve completed Atlassian Certifications, like @Deepanshu Natani Atlassian Certified Expert Deepanshu Natani shares the motivation behind his certification journey, @Pramodh M : Pramodh Kumar M shares why becoming Atlassian certified and helping others globally go hand in hand,  and  @Ammar Ahmed Butt: Community Leader Ammar Butt shares his inspiration and path into Atlassian certification

 

21 comments

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Mayur Jadhav
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
March 24, 2023

@Jaime Netzer thanks for sharing detailed information on certification, it will definitely help people who are confused about which certification will be good for their role and which one needs to consider as a first.

Like # people like this
edwin vasquez
Rising Star
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March 26, 2023

This is a great article! Thanks for sharing.

Like # people like this
Rilwan Ahmed
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
March 28, 2023

Completed
ACP-610 Managing Jira Projects for Data Center and Server Certification
ACP-620 Managing Jira Projects for Cloud Certification
ACP-100 Jira Administration for Data Center and Server Certification

Now preparing for ACP-420 Managing Jira Service Projects for Cloud

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Like # people like this
Brant Schroeder
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
May 18, 2023

I have been working on my ACP-100.  

Like Joanna Thurmann likes this
Graham Twine
Rising Star
Rising Star
Rising Stars are recognized for providing high-quality answers to other users. Rising Stars receive a certificate of achievement and are on the path to becoming Community Leaders.
May 23, 2023

Good breakdown of the learning paths.

 

I have registered for these exams a number of times over the last few years and life keeps getting in my way :(

Like Joanna Thurmann likes this
Justyna Gdowik _ Deviniti _
Marketplace Partner
Marketplace Partners provide apps and integrations available on the Atlassian Marketplace that extend the power of Atlassian products.
May 23, 2023

Kudos for sharing your knowledge and making the certification journey a little less daunting for everyone! 👏🌟

Like # people like this
Kyren Cabellon May 23, 2023

I have just discovered this after using Atlassian tool set for many years.

Thank you for this one.

Like # people like this
Laurie Sciutti
Rising Star
Rising Star
Rising Stars are recognized for providing high-quality answers to other users. Rising Stars receive a certificate of achievement and are on the path to becoming Community Leaders.
May 23, 2023

Super helpful.  Thank you!  

Like # people like this
Krishnakumar Kesavan May 24, 2023

thanks for the details on certification. 

Like Joanna Thurmann likes this
Joanna Thurmann
Atlassian Team
Atlassian Team members are employees working across the company in a wide variety of roles.
May 25, 2023

Hi community,

We are pleased to announce that the Atlassian Organization Administrator Certification Exam (which is on the path to becoming an ACE, Atlassian Certified Expert) is now officially available! 

So sign up, go through the Exam Success Course (which has loads of practice questions, exam hints, and learning content), and you'll do great! 

Check out this announcement: NEW CERT ALERT 🚨 Announcing Atlassian Cloud Organization Admin.

If you're new to the Admin Hub, look at the Atlassian Cloud Organization Admin learning path at Atlassian University. 

Best wishes,

Joanna and the Atlassian University certification team

Like Laurie Sciutti likes this
Craig Nodwell
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
May 31, 2023

This is perfect.  Thank you for putting this together.

Like # people like this
Dan Breyen
Rising Star
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Rising Stars are recognized for providing high-quality answers to other users. Rising Stars receive a certificate of achievement and are on the path to becoming Community Leaders.
June 2, 2023

Thanks for this, I need to look into it.

Like # people like this
Marjorie
Rising Star
Rising Star
Rising Stars are recognized for providing high-quality answers to other users. Rising Stars receive a certificate of achievement and are on the path to becoming Community Leaders.
June 9, 2023

Thank you for this detailed article!  Very helpful

Like Jaime Netzer likes this
Emily _ DevSamurai
Marketplace Partner
Marketplace Partners provide apps and integrations available on the Atlassian Marketplace that extend the power of Atlassian products.
June 20, 2023

thank you!

Ajay _view26_
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
July 4, 2023

Thanks for sharing the article! Happy to say that I have finally got my Atlassian Expert Badge ...The key is to have a plan to go around the certification process :)

Like Rajesh Viswanathan likes this
Suraj Yanpallewar August 2, 2023

Thank you for guiding and sharing the information about the atlassian certification.People who wish to pursue certification will find this information to be very beneficial

Like Jaime Netzer likes this
Utkarsh Singh
Atlassian Team
Atlassian Team members are employees working across the company in a wide variety of roles.
August 4, 2023

Don't miss the newest addition- ACP-520!!

Like Kate Pawlak _Appsvio_ likes this
Diane Farias August 21, 2023

Thank you for all the detailed information and descriptions of each certifications. 

Like Jaime Netzer likes this
Gonchik Tsymzhitov
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
August 27, 2023

Hi! 

Just curious why I did not find  any companies requesting certificates. 

and I read there it's needful, do you have some examples? 

Rilwan Ahmed
Community Leader
Community Leader
Community Leaders are connectors, ambassadors, and mentors. On the online community, they serve as thought leaders, product experts, and moderators.
August 31, 2023

                            images.jpg 
Officially I am an Atlassian Certified Expert. I completed 

  1. ACP-610 Managing Jira Projects for Data Center and Server Certification
  2. ACP-620 Managing Jira Projects for Cloud Certification
  3. ACP-100 Jira Administration for Data Center and Server Certification
  4. ACP-420 Managing Jira Service Projects for Cloud
  5. ACP-120 Jira Administration for Cloud
Like Joel Gituma likes this
Saralie S.
Community Manager
Community Managers are Atlassian Team members who specifically run and moderate Atlassian communities. Feel free to say hello!
September 5, 2023

Great article!

Like Jaime Netzer likes this
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