Credentials
Certified across the Kubernetes stack.
Hands-on, independently assessed certifications across the Kubernetes and cloud-native stack. They underpin every solution we design — and you can see that knowledge applied in our engineering projects and articles.
Cloud Native Computing Foundation
CNCF Kubestronaut
Awarded by the CNCF to people who hold all five of its Kubernetes certifications at the same time: CKA, CKAD, CKS, KCNA and KCSA.
The five certifications
- CKA
Certified Kubernetes Administrator
Performance-based exam on installing, configuring and operating Kubernetes clusters.
- Issued
- Aug 2026
- Valid until
- Aug 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
- CKAD
Certified Kubernetes Application Developer
Performance-based exam on designing, building and deploying cloud-native applications on Kubernetes.
- Issued
- Jul 2026
- Valid until
- Jul 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
- CKS
Certified Kubernetes Security Specialist
Performance-based exam on securing container platforms and workloads across build, deploy and runtime.
- Issued
- Sept 2026
- Valid until
- Sept 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
- KCNA
Kubernetes and Cloud Native Associate
Foundational knowledge of Kubernetes and the wider cloud-native ecosystem.
- Issued
- Sept 2026
- Valid until
- Sept 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
- KCSA
Kubernetes and Cloud Native Security Associate
Foundational knowledge of cloud-native security, threat models and compliance.
- Issued
- Sept 2026
- Valid until
- Sept 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
Not new to Kubernetes
- CKA — first earned in Sept 2021
- CKAD — first earned in Jan 2022
Renewed in 2026.
Service mesh
- ICA
Istio Certified Associate
Performance-based exam on installing and operating the Istio service mesh: traffic management, resilience, security and observability.
- Issued
- Oct 2026
- Valid until
- Oct 2028
- Issuer
- The Linux Foundation
Additional learning
- Building with the Claude APIAnthropic · Jul 2026
- Introduction to High-Performance and Parallel ComputingCoursera · Jan 2023
- Parallel, Concurrent, and Distributed Programming in Java SpecializationCoursera · Dec 2021