Schedule

12-Week Bootcamp Schedule

Your week-by-week guide. Each week tells you what to prepare before class, what we cover in the Saturday session, and what to complete afterward. Heavy weeks (marked with 2 sessions) span two Saturdays.

Week 1May 24, 2026 Completed

Cloud Foundations & Identity

Phase 1 · 5 modules · Set up your AWS account securely and create the IAM foundation for CloudShop

Before Class

  • Complete IT Fundamentals modules 00-03 (if new to IT)
  • Create your AWS account and enable MFA on root
  • Install AWS CLI and configure credentials

In Class

  • What is cloud computing and why it matters
  • AWS Regions, AZs, and Edge Locations
  • IAM users, groups, policies, and roles
  • Policy evaluation logic (explicit deny wins)
  • Live demo: creating IAM users and testing permissions

After Class

  • Read Modules 01-05 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 01: AWS Account Setup
  • Complete Lab 02: IAM Users, Groups, and Roles
  • Take Module 01-05 quizzes
  • Take Phase 1 Exam (25 questions, 70% to pass)
Week 2May 31, 2026This Week

Networking

Phase 2 · 7 modules · Build the CloudShop VPC with public/private subnets across 2 AZs

Before Class

  • Review IT Fundamentals Module 03 (Networking & Internet)
  • Understand IP addresses, CIDR notation basics
  • Have your AWS account ready with IAM admin user

In Class

  • VPC design: public vs private subnets
  • Internet Gateway vs NAT Gateway
  • Security Groups (stateful) vs NACLs (stateless)
  • Route 53 routing policies
  • Live demo: building a multi-AZ VPC from scratch

After Class

  • Read Modules 06-12 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 03: Build CloudShop VPC
  • Complete all module quizzes (06-12)
  • Take Phase 2 Exam
  • Draw your own VPC architecture diagram
Week 3Jun 7, 2026

Compute

Phase 3 · 8 modules · Launch CloudShop web servers on EC2, then build a serverless order processor with Lambda

Before Class

  • Review IT Fundamentals Module 01 (Computers & OS)
  • Understand Linux basics (command line, SSH)
  • Familiarize yourself with Docker concepts

In Class

  • EC2 instance types and when to use each
  • EBS volumes, snapshots, and encryption
  • Auto Scaling Groups and Launch Templates
  • Lambda: serverless event-driven compute
  • Containers: ECS vs EKS vs Fargate decision
  • Live demo: launching EC2, writing a Lambda function

After Class

  • Read Modules 13-20 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 04: EC2 Instances & Auto Scaling
  • Complete Lab 05: Lambda Functions
  • Complete Lab 06: ECS Fargate Deployment
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 3 Exam
Week 4Jun 14, 2026

Storage

Phase 4 · 6 modules · Set up CloudShop product image storage with S3, versioning, and lifecycle policies

Before Class

  • Understand file vs block vs object storage concepts
  • Review S3 pricing page on AWS

In Class

  • S3 object model: buckets, keys, metadata
  • Storage classes and lifecycle policies
  • S3 security: bucket policies, ACLs, Block Public Access
  • Glacier archive tiers and retrieval options
  • EFS shared file systems vs EBS vs S3
  • Live demo: S3 bucket with versioning and lifecycle

After Class

  • Read Modules 21-26 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 07: S3 Storage for CloudShop
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 4 Exam
Week 5Jun 21 & Jun 28, 20262 Saturday Sessions

Databases

Phase 5 · 8 modules · Build CloudShop data layer: RDS PostgreSQL for products, DynamoDB for cart sessions

Before Class

  • Review IT Fundamentals Module 08 (Databases & Data)
  • Understand SQL basics (SELECT, INSERT, JOIN)
  • Read about NoSQL vs SQL trade-offs

In Class

  • Session 1 (Jun 21): RDS, Multi-AZ, Read Replicas, Aurora
  • Session 2 (Jun 28): DynamoDB, ElastiCache, Redshift, choosing the right DB
  • SQL vs NoSQL decision framework
  • Live demo: RDS Multi-AZ setup, DynamoDB table design

After Class

  • Read Modules 27-34 lesson content (split across 2 weeks)
  • Complete Lab 08: RDS for CloudShop Product Catalog
  • Complete Lab 09: DynamoDB for CloudShop Shopping Cart
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 5 Exam
Week 6Jul 5 & Jul 12, 20262 Saturday Sessions

Application Integration & APIs

Phase 6 · 8 modules · Add ALB as CloudShop front door, build the order processing queue with SQS/SNS

Before Class

  • Understand HTTP methods (GET, POST, PUT, DELETE)
  • Review message queue concepts
  • Have CloudShop VPC and compute layers running

In Class

  • Session 1 (Jul 5): ALB, NLB, API Gateway, health checks
  • Session 2 (Jul 12): SQS, SNS, EventBridge, Step Functions
  • Decoupled architecture patterns
  • Live demo: ALB with path routing, SQS fan-out

After Class

  • Read Modules 35-42 lesson content (split across 2 weeks)
  • Complete Lab 10: CloudShop ALB Setup
  • Complete Lab 11: SQS Order Queue + SNS Notifications
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 6 Exam
Week 7Jul 19, 2026

Infrastructure as Code

Phase 7 · 4 modules · Convert your manually-built CloudShop into a reproducible CloudFormation/SAM template

Before Class

  • Review JSON and YAML syntax (IT Fundamentals Module 05)
  • Install AWS SAM CLI locally
  • Understand the concept of declarative vs imperative

In Class

  • Why Infrastructure as Code matters
  • CloudFormation templates, stacks, and change sets
  • CDK: write infra in TypeScript/Python
  • SAM: simplified serverless templates
  • Live demo: deploy a full stack with sam deploy

After Class

  • Read Modules 43-46 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 12: Codify CloudShop as CloudFormation
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 7 Exam
Week 8Jul 26, 2026

CI/CD Pipelines

Phase 8 · 5 modules · Build an automated pipeline: git push triggers build, test, and deploy of CloudShop

Before Class

  • Review Git basics (IT Fundamentals Module 06)
  • Understand build/test/deploy lifecycle
  • Push CloudShop code to a Git repository

In Class

  • CI/CD fundamentals: why automate?
  • CodeBuild: buildspec.yml, build phases
  • CodeDeploy: blue/green, canary, rolling
  • CodePipeline: orchestrating the release process
  • Live demo: push code -> pipeline -> deployed

After Class

  • Read Modules 47-51 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 13: CloudShop CI/CD Pipeline
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 8 Exam
Week 9Aug 2, 2026

Encryption & Secrets

Phase 9 · 4 modules · Encrypt CloudShop RDS with KMS, store DB credentials in Secrets Manager with auto-rotation

Before Class

  • Review encryption basics (symmetric vs asymmetric)
  • Understand TLS/HTTPS certificate concepts
  • Review IAM roles from Phase 1

In Class

  • Multi-account strategy with Organizations
  • KMS: CMKs, envelope encryption, key policies
  • Secrets Manager: automatic rotation
  • ACM: free TLS certificates for your domains
  • Live demo: encrypt RDS with KMS, rotate a secret

After Class

  • Read Modules 52-55 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 14: Encrypt CloudShop Data
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 9 Exam
Week 10Aug 9, 2026

Detection & Compliance

Phase 10 · 5 modules · Attach WAF to CloudShop ALB, enable GuardDuty, configure Config compliance rules

Before Class

  • Review common web attacks (SQL injection, XSS)
  • Understand DDoS attack concepts
  • Review CloudTrail from Phase 1 Day-1 checklist

In Class

  • WAF: rules, rule groups, managed rules
  • Shield: Standard vs Advanced
  • GuardDuty: ML-based threat detection
  • Config: compliance rules and remediation
  • Security Hub: unified findings view
  • Live demo: WAF protecting CloudShop ALB

After Class

  • Read Modules 56-60 lesson content
  • Complete Lab 15: WAF & Detection for CloudShop
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 10 Exam
Week 11Aug 16 & Aug 23, 20262 Saturday Sessions

Operations & Observability

Phase 11 · 8 modules · Build the CloudShop operations dashboard, test Multi-AZ failover, analyze costs

Before Class

  • Have CloudShop fully deployed with all prior labs
  • Review the Four Golden Signals (latency, traffic, errors, saturation)
  • Check your current AWS bill in Cost Explorer

In Class

  • Session 1 (Aug 16): CloudWatch metrics, alarms, logs, X-Ray tracing
  • Session 2 (Aug 23): Cost optimization, backup, DR strategies, Systems Manager
  • Building operational dashboards
  • RTO/RPO and choosing DR strategies
  • Live demo: CloudWatch dashboard for CloudShop, cost analysis

After Class

  • Read Modules 61-68 lesson content (split across 2 weeks)
  • Complete Lab 16: CloudShop Monitoring Dashboard
  • Complete Lab 17: DR Failover Test
  • Complete all module quizzes and Phase 11 Exam
Week 12Aug 30, 2026

Architecture & Capstone

Phase 12 · 6 modules · Present CloudShop as a portfolio piece: architecture doc, demo, and Well-Architected review

Before Class

  • Have ALL prior labs completed (CloudShop fully operational)
  • Review the 6 pillars of Well-Architected Framework
  • Prepare your architecture diagram for CloudShop

In Class

  • Well-Architected Framework: 6-pillar review
  • Architecture patterns: three-tier, serverless, event-driven
  • Migration strategies (6 Rs)
  • Capstone project presentation prep
  • Live review: Well-Architected assessment of CloudShop

After Class

  • Run Well-Architected Tool against your CloudShop deployment
  • Complete your capstone architecture document
  • Record your 5-minute capstone demo
  • Take the SAA-C03 practice exam
  • Schedule your AWS certification exam