Which certifications can you actually earn now? Eligibility, honestly
Some respected certifications require years of verified work experience to earn — they are not first credentials, no matter how often they're marketed that way. Others are open to anyone who registers. Here is the honest split per credential, with the requirement cited to the certifying body. The point is to help you avoid paying for a credential you can't yet hold.
| Certification | Eligibility | Experience to earn it | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| (ISC)2 CISSP | Not an entry credential | 5 years | see page |
| AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| AWS Certified Solutions Architect Associate | Open, but experience recommended | None | see page |
| Certified Associate in Project Management | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| Certified Kubernetes Administrator (CKA) | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| Cisco Certified Network Associate | Open, but experience recommended | None | see page |
| CompTIA A+ | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| CompTIA Network+ | Open, but experience recommended | None | see page |
| CompTIA Security+ | Open, but experience recommended | None | see page |
| EC-Council CEH | Depends on your route | 2 years (self-study route only) | see page |
| ISACA CISA | Not an entry credential | 5 years | see page |
| ISACA CISM | Not an entry credential | 5 years | see page |
| Linux Foundation Certified System Administrator | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| Microsoft Azure Administrator Associate | Open, but experience recommended | None | see page |
| Microsoft Azure Fundamentals | Open to beginners | None | see page |
| Red Hat RHCSA | Open to beginners | None | see page |
How to read this
- Open to beginners — no prerequisite and no work-experience requirement; anyone can register.
- Open, but experience recommended — no hard gate, but the vendor recommends meaningful prior experience.
- Depends on your route — earnable without experience via one official route; another route requires experience.
- Not an entry credential — requires years of verified experience; there's usually a provisional/associate path while you earn it.
Sources
- Official certifying-body eligibility / requirements pages (cited per credential).
Citation Ledger
| ID | Supports | Evidence | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| CIT-01 | Per-credential eligibility & prerequisites | Official certifying-body pages | See each page |