CKAD Curriculum
Certified Kubernetes Application Developer - Demonstrate your ability to design, build, and deploy cloud-native applications on Kubernetes
About CKAD
Section titled “About CKAD”The CKAD is a hands-on, performance-based exam that validates your ability to design, build, configure, and expose cloud-native applications for Kubernetes.
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Format | Performance-based (hands-on) |
| Duration | 2 hours |
| Questions | 15-20 tasks |
| Passing Score | 66% |
| Validity | 3 years |
Curriculum Structure
Section titled “Curriculum Structure”| Part | Topic | Weight | Modules |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part 0 | Environment | - | 3 |
| Part 1 | Application Design and Build | 20% | 5 |
| Part 2 | Application Deployment | 20% | 5 |
| Part 3 | Application Observability and Maintenance | 15% | 6 |
| Part 4 | Application Environment, Configuration, Security | 25% | 7 |
| Part 5 | Services and Networking | 20% | 4 |
| Total | 100% | 30 |
Module Overview
Section titled “Module Overview”Part 0: Environment (3 modules)
Section titled “Part 0: Environment (3 modules)”- 0.1 CKAD Overview - Exam format and domains
- 0.2 Developer Workflow - Setting up your environment
- Part 0 Cumulative Quiz
Part 1: Application Design and Build (5 modules)
Section titled “Part 1: Application Design and Build (5 modules)”- 1.1 Container Images - Building and managing images
- 1.2 Jobs and CronJobs - Batch workloads
- 1.3 Multi-Container Pods - Sidecar, init containers
- 1.4 Volumes - Storage for applications
- Part 1 Cumulative Quiz
Part 2: Application Deployment (5 modules)
Section titled “Part 2: Application Deployment (5 modules)”- 2.1 Deployments - Rolling updates, rollbacks
- 2.2 Helm - Package management
- 2.3 Kustomize - Configuration customization
- 2.4 Deployment Strategies - Blue-green, canary
- Part 2 Cumulative Quiz
Part 3: Application Observability and Maintenance (6 modules)
Section titled “Part 3: Application Observability and Maintenance (6 modules)”- 3.1 Probes - Liveness, readiness, startup
- 3.2 Logging - Container log management
- 3.3 Debugging - Troubleshooting applications
- 3.4 Monitoring - Metrics and alerts
- 3.5 API Deprecations - Handling version changes
- Part 3 Cumulative Quiz
Part 4: Application Environment (7 modules)
Section titled “Part 4: Application Environment (7 modules)”- 4.1 ConfigMaps - Application configuration
- 4.2 Secrets - Sensitive data management
- 4.3 Resources - Requests and limits
- 4.4 Security Context - Container security settings
- 4.5 Service Accounts - Pod identity
- 4.6 CRDs - Custom Resource Definitions
- Part 4 Cumulative Quiz
Part 5: Services and Networking (4 modules)
Section titled “Part 5: Services and Networking (4 modules)”- 5.1 Services - Exposing applications
- 5.2 Ingress - HTTP routing
- 5.3 Network Policies - Traffic control
- Part 5 Cumulative Quiz
How to Use This Curriculum
Section titled “How to Use This Curriculum”- Set up your environment - Complete Part 0 first
- Follow the order - Modules build on each other
- Practice hands-on - This is a practical exam
- Use the three-pass strategy - Quick wins first
- Time yourself - Build exam speed
Start Learning
Section titled “Start Learning”Begin with Part 0 to understand the exam format and set up your development environment.
Good luck on your CKAD journey!