AWS Cloud Engineer Interview Questions And Sample Answers

Updated 14 August 2023

If you are looking for a job as an Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud engineer, you may encounter interview questions that explore your technical expertise and your personality. Employers often seek to understand both aspects of a candidate to ensure they hire someone who can perform the job duties and assimilate into the company culture. Understanding how to answer interview questions is a skill you can use throughout your career to increase your chances of getting a position. In this article, we explain why employers ask AWS cloud engineer interview questions and provide several sample questions, and answers for reference.

Please note that none of the companies, institutions or organisations mentioned in this article are associated with Indeed.

Why Do Employers Ask AWS Cloud Engineer Interview Questions?

Employers ask AWS cloud engineer interview questions to explore a candidate's technical expertise in cloud development and the AWS platform. They might also want to find out more about what you included on your resume, asking specific questions about professional achievements, skills or personal philosophies. These questions help the interviewer compare your skills and experience against the requirements of the position, and determine whether you might be a good match for the team.

General Interview Questions

General interview questions often explore general skill sets, experience or expand on your resume. Here are some examples:

What motivated you to pursue a career in cloud computing, and why did you choose AWS specifically?
How have you been keeping up with the latest developments and trends in AWS technology?
What are some of the biggest challenges you have faced while working with AWS and how did you overcome them?
Can you describe a complex AWS infrastructure deployment that you have been a part of and the role you played in it?
What is your experience with AWS networking and security, and how do you ensure the security of AWS environments you work with?
Can you explain how you might set up and manage an AWS environment for a highly-available, and scalable web application?
How do you optimise the cost of running AWS resources and what tools or techniques do you use for this purpose?
Can you describe your experience with migrating applications or workloads to AWS, and what steps might you take to ensure a successful migration?
What is your experience with automating the provisioning and management of AWS resources, and how have you used automation tools?
Can you discuss a time when you had to troubleshoot a production issue with an AWS environment and how you resolved it?

Questions About Experience And Background

Here are some examples of interview questions that explore your AWS experience and professional background:

Can you tell us about your professional experience working with AWS cloud technology?
How have you been keeping your AWS skills up-to-date and what certifications do you hold in AWS?
What is your experience with designing and implementing highly-available. and scalable AWS infrastructures?
Can you discuss a particularly challenging AWS project you have worked on and how you overcame any difficulties during the project?
Can you describe a situation where you had to make a significant architectural decision when working with AWS and how you approached it?
What is your experience with migrating on-premise workloads to AWS and what tools, and methodologies did you use for the migration?
Can you discuss your experience with security and compliance in AWS, and how you ensure the security of AWS environments?
Can you explain your experience with automating the deployment and management of AWS resources?
Can you give an example of a time when you had to troubleshoot a production issue in an AWS environment and how you resolved it?
Can you discuss your experience with AWS cost optimisation and what methods or techniques have you used to manage AWS costs effectively?

In-Depth Interview Questions

In-depth questions focus on more specific technical skills and situations, and allow an employer to determine your skill level. Here are several examples:

Can you discuss your experience with VPC network design and how you might set up a secure, and scalable VPC architecture in AWS?
Can you explain the differences between EC2 instance types and when you might use each one?
Can you discuss your experience with AWS auto-scaling and how you might set up auto-scaling for a multi-tier web application in AWS?
Can you explain the difference between S3 standard and S3 intelligent-tiering storage classes, and when you might use each one?
Can you describe your experience with setting up and managing AWSRDS databases, including database replication and disaster recovery?
Can you discuss your experience with AWS security groups, network ACLs and security-focused VPC design elements?
Can you explain how you might set up and manage an AWS environment for a multi-region, highly-available web application?
Can you discuss your experience with AWS Lambda and how you might use it to build a serverless application in AWS?
Can you describe your experience with AWSELB and ALB, and how you might set up load balancing for a multi-tier web application in AWS?
Can you discuss your experience with AWSCLI and how you might use it to automate AWS resource management tasks?

AWS Cloud Engineer Interview Questions With Sample Answers

Here are some interview questions with sample answers to help improve your responses:

1. Can you explain the architecture of a highly available and scalable application in AWS?

This is another example of a technical question an employer may ask to examine your core skill set in AWS cloud development. Explaining the architecture of a scalable application in AWS shows an employer that you have the necessary skills to develop the applications they need. Being able to give a clear explanation of complex concepts can demonstrate that you might also be a good coach. Here is an example of how you might answer this question:

Example: I achieve a highly available and scalable application in AWS through the use of multiple AWS services. A common architecture for such an application might include EC2, Elastic Load Balancer, or ELB, autoscaling and Relational Database Service. EC2 is the backbone of the infrastructure and provides the virtual machines for hosting the application. I can create multiple EC2 instances across multiple availability zones, ensuring high availability by allowing the application to continue running even if one instance fails.

I might also use ELB to distribute incoming traffic across the EC2 instances. This helps to ensure that the application can handle traffic even if one of the instances is unavailable. Autoscaling automatically increases or decreases the number of EC2 instances based on demand, which helps to ensure that the application has enough resources to manage incoming traffic.

2. How do you ensure the security and compliance of sensitive data in AWS?

Security and compliance are important aspects of cloud engineering, and something an employer may want to be certain job candidates understand. Hiring managers may prefer cloud engineers with a thorough understanding of security and compliance techniques, so make sure you answer this question thoroughly. Here is an example of how to do so in your next interview:

Example: I understand that successful cloud engineering depends on security and compliance, and I have a specific process that I follow to ensure this. This involves controlling access and managing the identity of users. I typically achieve this by using AWS Identity and Access Management to create, and manage user accounts and permissions. I also use Multi-Factor Authentication to add an extra layer of security. Additionally, AWS provides several encryption options, including Elastic Block Store, S3, Secure Sockets Layer and Transport Layer Security encryption.

3. Can you explain how you prioritise and manage multiple tasks, and projects?

Cloud engineers often have multiple projects or tasks to complete, and you may require organisational and prioritisation skills to accomplish your goals. An employer might ask about these soft skills to ensure you understand the potential workload and to explore your unique perspective on time management, and project organisation. Here is an example of how you might answer such a question to highlight your skills:

Example: As a cloud engineer, managing multiple tasks and projects simultaneously is an important aspect of my work. I adopt a simple approach to prioritising my workload by identifying the tasks and projects that are most critical in terms of urgency, and impact. I then create a timeline for each project that includes deadlines or other important dates. To keep track of my progress, I use project management tools to monitor project parameters and communicate with participants and clients.