How to Learn Google Cloud: Courses, Training, and Resources

Google Cloud is a cloud storage tool for individual and commercial use. There are many ways a person can learn the Google Cloud Platform (GCP), starting with the many courses, training, and resources available online. One of the best ways to learn is right from the Google Cloud website, as it offers many certified courses. 

In this guide, we will go over all things Google Cloud to put you on a path to learning the platform. 

What Is Google Cloud?

Google Cloud is a cloud computing platform that uses the same infrastructure Google is built on. Businesses use GCP to store and protect data, improve machine learning and AI, and data warehousing. GCP is also available for individual use.

What Is Google Cloud Used For?

Google Cloud was created as a way for businesses to store and manage data and build and run applications. Most businesses use Google Cloud to build and run software. This is made easier as GCP is accessed entirely online, so it does not require separate software downloads.

Many major companies use Google Cloud to streamline their systems, including Nintendo, Spotify, Twitter, PayPal, Fidelity, and FedEx.

Some jobs that are available for people who are familiar with Google Cloud include: 

• Google Cloud Architect
• Google Cloud Engineer
• Java Tech Lead with Google Cloud
• Cloud Data Architect

GCP has more than 100 products, and each is designed for a specific use. These products fall into 17 categories. Below are 10 of the products that Google Cloud offers. 

• AI and machine learning. These products are for businesses who want to use AI for building, conversation, and documents. 
• API management. This can be used for API analytics, monetization, cloud endpoints, and as a developer portal. 
• Data analytics. The products for data analytics include data catalog, cloud fusion data, Google data studio, and Google Marketing Platform. 
• Health care and life sciences. These products are used in the health care and life sciences industry. They include AI for natural language, cloud life sciences, cloud healthcare API, and Apigee healthcare APIs.
• Media and gaming. The two GCP products in this area are Game Servers and OpenCue. They are used for game server and media management. 
• Security and identity. These products are for security, including protecting identity and data. Among these services are Cloud Identity, Cloud Key Management, Firewalls, Cloud Asset Inventory, and Identity Aware Proxy.
• Networking. These networking products help companies manage and scale networks, such as virtual private cloud, Cloud DNS, Cloud Armor, and Cloud NAT.
• Developer tools. These tools are used to increase developer productivity within the GCP. The products used for this are Cloud Code, Cloud SDK, and Spring FrameWork.
• Serverless computing. Using this, businesses can focus on building and running apps. They can use Google app engine, workflow, and cloud functions, to help run apps.
• Storage. These products enable better use of Google cloud storage. They include cloud storage, persistent disk, cloud storage for firebase, and Google Workplace essentials. 

Learning the Google Cloud Platform

There are many options available to learn the Google Cloud Platform. Google offers many training and certification options for individuals and teams at a company. 

Besides those on the Google Cloud website, you can also find many other courses and training online and in-person that will help you excel at Google Cloud.

How Long Does It Take to Learn the Google Cloud Platform?

There are many courses available to help you learn Google Cloud. These courses range in length from 30 minutes to a few hours each, and may span a period of several weeks. 

How to Learn Google Cloud: Step-by-Step

Below is a rundown of how you can learn to use Google Cloud. 

1. Create an account. First, you should create a free account on Google Cloud. 
2. Find courses. Next, find the courses that you are most interested in studying.
3. Take the certification exam. After you completed the desired courses, you will have to pass a certification exam. 

There are eight possible professional certifications, including Cloud Architect, Cloud Developer Beta, Data Engineer, Cloud DevOps Engineer, Cloud Security Engineer, Cloud Network Engineer, Collaboration Engineer, and Machine Learning Engineer. 

There are also three certification levels, namely, associate, professional, and user. Your level will be based on how many years of experience you have and what field you are certified in. 

The Best Google Cloud Courses and Training

There are many ways you can get trained in Google Cloud. You may want to take an online course at your own pace, attend live online classes, or sign up for a traditional classroom experience.

Online and In-Person Google Cloud Courses

There are benefits to both online and in-person studies. Many digital GCP classes are taught in real-time by certified instructors. Google’s own OnCloud classes are taught by Cloud experts and provide students with hands-on labs and skill tests. 

Google Cloud also partners with educational institutions to provide in-person classes. However, due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, some of these classes have been moved online. 

Below is a list of virtual and in-person classes you may want to take in GCP. 

Google Cloud 

Below are some of the free courses offered by Google that include the option to attend class in person.

Courses: 

• Google Cloud Fundamentals: Core Infrastructure
• From Data to Insights with Google Cloud Platform
• Getting Started with Google Kubernetes Engine
• Architecting with Google Cloud: Design and Process
• Security in Google Cloud

Online Google Cloud Courses

Google Cloud 

Google Cloud offers 592 courses online, broken down into sections like big data, infrastructure and DevOps, machine learning, website & app dev, and security, backup, and recovery. Below are just a few of those nearly 600 courses.

Cost: Free

Courses: 

• Google Cloud Essentials
• Baseline: Infrastructure
• Cloud Architecture
• Deploy and Manage Cloud Environments with Google Cloud
• Automate Interactions with Contact Center AI
• Cloud Engineering
• BigQuery Basics for Data Analyst

Coursera

Coursera has partnered with Google Cloud to offer these classes. 

Cost: Free
Courses: 

• Cloud Architecture with Google Cloud Professional Certificate
• Google Cloud Security Professional Certificate
• SRE and DevOps Engineer with Google Cloud Professional Engineer
• Google Cloud Networking Professional Certificate 
• Architecting with Google Compute Engine Specialization

Cloud Academy

Cloud Academy is a training platform for cloud services that offers many learning opportunities for GCP.

Cost: Free 7 day trial/$39-$49 per month
Courses: 

• Designing Google Cloud Infrastructure 
• Working with Google Cloud Storage from Console
• Google Cloud Platform for Solution Architects
• Google Cloud Platform Fundamentals
• Google Cloud Networking Playground

Google Cloud Books

If learning online isn’t for you and you would rather read a book, there are many written materials out there about GCP. Below are just a few of the books available to help you getter a better grasp on Google Cloud. 

Google Cloud Platform for Developers – Ted Hunter and Steve Porter

This Google Cloud Platform for Developers book will educate you on how to create and run applications on Google Cloud. In this book, you will learn to write, design, and manage applications. Some other key chapters cover debugging cloud-hosted apps and streamlining developer workflows.

Google Cloud Platform for Architects – Vitthal Srinivasan, Judy Raj, and Janani Ravi

In this book, you will learn about the public cloud and how Google architects are designing a better infrastructure with better overall security. It goes over the best services on GCP, and how and when to use them. It also covers how to analyze and optimize business and technical terms using Google Cloud.

Azure for Architects – Ritesh Modi

This book goes over the Azure cloud that architects can use jointly with GCP. Throughout the book, you will learn about the cloud structure, cloud design patterns, and Azure Deployment. It also discusses security practices and design patterns on Microsoft Azure. 

Data Science on the Google Cloud Platform – Valliappa Lakshmanan

This book covers machine learning techniques and how to apply them to real-world scenarios. By understanding how data science works with GCP, you will learn how to approach it in a transformational way. It also explains how to create dashboards in Google Data Studio, and how to automate data on the App Engine application. 

Online Google Cloud Resources

Google Cloud

On the Google Cloud website, you will find many resources to help you understand the platform. It provides many resources, like courses and articles regarding updates to the cloud. It is one of the best resources because it comes straight from the company. 

YouTube

YouTube is a great resource if you know what to search for. The website has millions of informational videos, including a Google Cloud page which provides great insight if you want to learn more. The videos include help for GCP coursework and keynotes with speakers from Google explaining any changes to the platform. 

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a great resource. Everyone uses it to make connections and to apply for jobs, but some may not realize that it also includes a lot of informational posts and articles from companies. On the Google Cloud LinkedIn page, there is a lot of information about updates on the cloud. You can also check out the latest job posts from Google Cloud while you’re there. 

Should You Learn Google Cloud?

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Alt text: Lights bouncing off buildings
Caption: Are you ready to learn the skills for Google Cloud Platform?

Google Cloud Platform is a great service if you are looking to streamline your business affordably. As you have read above, there are many benefits to using this service, including the hundreds of courses available to help you become an expert on the system.

As discussed, there are many jobs available for those who want to work with Google Cloud. One possible job is as a computer network architect. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average salary of a computer network architect is $112,690 per year in the US. 

After reading this article, we hope that you now have a better understanding of what Google Cloud is used for, and the resources that are out there to help you master it. If it’s something that you’re interested in, find the course that is best for you and get studying.