LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Certification, AWS, CompTIA: How to Get the Most Wanted Online Professional Certifications?

In a job market where recruiters filter hundreds of resumes with the help of automated systems, online professional certifications have become one of the few objective signals that you know how to do what you write in your profile. We’re not talking about a decorative diploma, but about a verifiable standard, with a credential code, an expiration date, and a passing exam.

The problem is that the term “certification” can refer to very different things. A certificate of completion for a 3-hour course and an industry certification obtained after a proctored exam both appear in the Licenses & Certifications section of LinkedIn — but they don’t carry the same weight in the eyes of an employer.

In this guide, we’ll walk you through four of the most sought-after IT certifications: LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Certification, AWS Certification, and CompTIA. We’ll look at who each one is for, how much they cost, how long they’re valid for, and how to renew them.

Note: The prices and methods listed are current as of August 2026. Always check the provider’s official website before signing up for an exam.

What Is an Online Professional Certification?

An online professional certification is a credential issued by a recognized provider (technology vendor, industry association, or educational platform) that is earned by completing a training program and/or passing a remotely administered exam.

There are three distinct categories of professional certifications:

Typically, certificates of completion show the direction you’re learning, while exam-based certifications show the level you’ve reached. A solid profile combines both.

Why Online Professional Certifications Matter in 2026

While the focus in IT hiring, in the selection phase, is on practically demonstrable skills (i.e., what you can actually do on a test), in the initial recruitment phase and filtering of candidates who will go for an interview, certifications play an important role – they help you beat the noise and make your resume stand out from a wider base of competitors.

Why are certifications important in the IT hiring process?

• They bypass automated filters. ATS systems look for exact terms like “AZ-104,” “Security+,” or “AWS Certified.” There’s no way an undocumented course will show up there.
• They reduce the employer’s perceived risk. For a junior with no experience, an exam-based certification is the cheapest form of credibility.
• They are contractually required. In consulting and partnerships with Microsoft or AWS, companies need a minimum number of certified employees.
• They can be obtained in parallel with the job, online, with video surveillance, from home.
• They have an expiration date. What seems like a disadvantage is actually an advantage: an active certification demonstrates that you are up to date, not that you were good seven years ago.

Comparison of the Four Certifications

What Each Professional IT Certification Entails

LinkedIn Learning

Who is it for: People just starting out or retraining who want to test multiple areas before investing in an exam; professionals who need soft skills (management, communication, project management) or office and marketing tools.

What it entails: The platform (owned by Microsoft, formerly Lynda.com) offers over 17,000 video courses, organized into Learning Paths — thematic routes of 5–20 hours. There is no proctored exam: you receive the certificate after completing the entire course’s videos, tests, and exercises.

What it looks like on your CV: The certificate is automatically attached to the Licenses & Certifications section of your LinkedIn profile. The real benefit is not so much the certificate, but the skill tags added to your profile, which influence how you appear in recruiters’ searches.

Cost: About $30–40/month or around $240 for an annual subscription, with a free trial. Many public libraries and employers offer free access—check before you pay.

Validity: Unlimited. Certificates don’t expire and don’t require renewal.

Limitation to keep in mind: It’s a certificate of completion, not an externally verified credential. It’s not a good idea to list it on your resume as a “Microsoft certification” or “AWS certification”—technical recruiters don’t appreciate that. Instead, use it as a stepping stone to a real exam.

The LinkedIn Learning certification is great for orientation and to round out your profile, but it’s not enough on its own to land a technical role.

Microsoft Certification

Who is it for: System administrators, developers, data analysts, security specialists, and consultants working with Azure, Microsoft 365, Power Platform, or Dynamics. It is the preferred route in large companies in Romania, where Microsoft infrastructure is dominant.

What it involves: The program is organized by roles, not products, and has three levels:

Exams are taken at Pearson VUE, either in person or online, with video surveillance. The typical duration is 100–120 minutes, and the passing score is 700 out of 1000 points.

Estimated cost: approximately $99 for the Fundamentals level and around $165 for Associate and Expert. Prices vary by country.

Validity: This is the most important specific feature of the Microsoft program. Fundamentals certifications never expire. Role-based certifications (Associate, Expert) and specialty certifications are valid for one year from the date of acquisition.

How to renew: Through a free online assessment on Microsoft Learn — unsupervised, open book, which lasts about 45 minutes and covers only new developments since the initial certification. The renewal window opens 6 months before expiration. If you pass, the validity is extended by another year from the expiration date. You can retake the assessment multiple times (there is a 24-hour break after the second attempt).

Be careful: if you let your certification expire, it disappears from your profile and you have to retake the full exam, for a fee. Set a reminder on your calendar 6 months after your certification — Microsoft emails often end up in spam.

AWS Certification

Who is it for: Cloud engineers, DevOps, solution architects, data engineers, and developers building on Amazon Web Services. AWS remains the largest public cloud provider, and its certifications are among the highest-paying globally.

What it entails: The program has four levels and covers around 11 active exams in 2026:

• Foundational — AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner (CLF-C02) and AI Practitioner. Entry point, suitable for non-technical roles as well.
• Associate — Solutions Architect (SAA-C03), Developer, CloudOps Engineer (formerly SysOps), Data Engineer, Machine Learning Engineer.
• Professional — Solutions Architect Professional (SAP-C02), DevOps Engineer Professional, Generative AI Developer.
• Specialty — niche exams, such as Security or Advanced Networking.

There are no prerequisites: you can take an Associate exam directly without going through Cloud Practitioner, although AWS recommends a certain level of practical experience for each step. The exams are taken at Pearson VUE or online, with a passing score between 700 and 750 on a scale of 100–1000. The result appears immediately, and in case of failure there is a waiting period of 14 days until rescheduling.

Indicative cost: $100 for Foundational, $150 for Associate, $300 for Professional and Specialty, plus local taxes.

Validity: 3 years from the date of promotion, for all AWS certifications, no grace period.

How to renew: You have three options.

1. Free recertification assessment — an online, unsupervised test of approximately 40 minutes, available in the last few months before expiration.
2. Promotion of a higher-level exam in the same track, which automatically renews lower certifications (for example, SAP-C02 renews SAA-C03 and CLF-C02).
3. Retake the entire exam, at full price.

A tip that may be useful for your planning – if you plan to advance to a higher level anyway, synchronize the exam with the renewal window. You will pay only once and reset the clock on your entire certification “stack”.

CompTIA

Who is it for: people entering IT without specialized studies, support technicians, network administrators and, especially, future cybersecurity specialists. The big advantage: CompTIA certifications are manufacturer-independent, so they validate principles applicable in any technological environment.

What it entails: a progressive path, designed to be completed in order.

Estimated Cost: After the June 2026 price increase, the Security+ exam costs around $439, the Network+ exam costs around $399, and the A+ exam costs around $548 for the two component exams. There are academic vouchers with significant discounts for students and bundles with CertMaster materials.

Validity: 3 years from the exam date (exact date, not calendar year). Certifications obtained before January 1, 2011 are “good-for-life” and do not expire.

How to renew: Through the CompTIA Continuing Education (CE) program:

• you accumulate 50 CEUs (Continuing Education Units) for Security+ over the 3 years — the number varies depending on the certification level;
• you pay an annual fee of around $50 ($25 for A+), which is around $150 per complete cycle;
• CEUs are earned from courses, conferences, college credits, published articles, mentoring, or relevant work experience (the latter is capped at 9 CEUs per cycle, so it cannot support renewal on its own).

Alternatively, earning a higher certification automatically renews all lower certifications in the path—for example, Security+ renews A+ and Network+, and CySA+ renews Security+. This is the most cost-effective strategy for those who hold multiple credentials.

Please note: there is no grace period, and you cannot “recover” an expired certification by adding CEUs retroactively. The only solution is to retake the exam at full price.

How to Choose the Right Online Professional Certification for You

Choose based on where you are:

• Don’t know what field is right for you yet? Start with LinkedIn Learning or a structured retraining course, then validate with a Fundamentals exam (AZ-900 or AI-900).
• Want your first IT job, with no prior experience? CompTIA A+ followed by Network+, or AZ-900 followed by AZ-104 if you’re targeting cloud infrastructure.
• Want to get into cybersecurity? CompTIA Security+ is the internationally recognized standard, often explicitly required in job postings.
• Already working in IT and looking for a pay raise? AWS Solutions Architect Associate or Microsoft AZ-104/AZ-305, depending on the technology your employer uses.
• Are you in business, marketing, or management? Fundamentals (AI-900, SC-900, PL-900) plus LinkedIn Learning certifications for soft skills and tools.
• Want to work with data? PL-300 (Power BI) or AWS Data Engineer Associate.

The decisive criterion is not the prestige of the certification, but the technology used by the employers you are targeting. Spend 30 minutes reading 20 relevant job ads and note which credentials appear most often. That is your answer.

6-Step Plan to Get a Professional Certification Online

Before you start the process of obtaining certification, it is good to have a strategy:

1. Choose a single target certification and write down the exact exam code (e.g. SAA-C03, AZ-104, SY0-701). Without a code, you have no objective.
2. Download the official exam guide from the provider’s website. It is the document that tells you exactly what is being tested and with what weight.
3. Set a realistic time frame: 6–10 weeks for a Fundamentals or entry-level exam, 3–4 months for an Associate-level exam, if you study 5–7 hours per week.
4. Combine theory with practice. Use the AWS Free Tier or Azure Free Account. A well-constructed exam tests scenarios, not memorized definitions.
5. Take mock tests until you consistently score above 85%. Don’t schedule the real exam before this threshold.
6. Schedule the exam as soon as you hit the threshold — a fixed date on your calendar is the most effective discipline tool. Then add the renewal date to your calendar.

Four Common Mistakes in Resumes

Having a certification is not everything, it’s also how you present it that counts. Below are some common mistakes that recruiters encounter, regarding certifications on their resumes.

1. Confusing certificates of completion with industry certifications. A technical recruiter notices the difference immediately.
2. Collecting credentials without projects. Three certifications and zero public projects on GitHub raises questions.
3. Listing expired certifications as active. The status is verifiable in the providers’ public databases.
4. Ignoring renewal. A Microsoft certification expires after one year, and an AWS or CompTIA one after three. Failure to renew completely cancels the initial investment.

Conclusion: Certification Validates, the Course Builds

The four routes presented meet different needs. LinkedIn Learning helps you explore and orient yourself. Microsoft and AWS validate skills on the most widely used infrastructure on the market. CompTIA gives you a neutral, solid foundation, especially in cybersecurity.

What they all have in common: an exam tests what you know at a given point in time, but it doesn’t teach you the job. Online professional certifications work best as a validation element for skills previously built through sustained practice, mentoring, and real-world projects.

This is exactly the role of NewTech Academy programs: we bring you from scratch to the level where the exam becomes a formality, and your portfolio speaks for itself at the interview. Explore the IT and Cyber ​​Security course, the Data Analyst course, or the AI ​​Automation Specialist course.

Apply now and take the first step towards a career in tech.

Frequently Asked Questions About Online Professional Certifications