AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate credential artwork

AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate (MLA-C02) Exam Guide

Validates skills in preparing data, building and tuning models, and deploying and securing machine learning workloads on AWS.

The exam presents ML engineering scenarios and asks for the best AWS approach to data preparation, model or foundation model choice, deployment, monitoring and security. Learn SageMaker AI and Bedrock from one course, build a small pipeline and a RAG application, then use practice questions to sharpen your choices between close options.

Understand the exam

Syllabus

Domain 1Data preparation for ML and AI28%
  1. 1.1Collect and store data
  2. 1.2Perform data transformation, feature engineering, and pre-processing
  3. 1.3Validate data quality and manage bias

Example scenario: A team wants a chatbot to answer from 50,000 PDF manuals. How would you prepare and store the documents so relevant passages can be retrieved?

Domain 2ML model and foundation model (FM) development24%
  1. 2.1Choose appropriate modeling approaches for ML and AI solutions
  2. 2.2Train, fine-tune, and customize models for ML and AI solutions
  3. 2.3Analyze and evaluate the performance of ML and AI systems

Example scenario: A fraud model scores 99% accuracy but misses most fraud cases. Which metric would you look at instead, and what would you try next?

Domain 3Deployment and orchestration of ML and AI workflows24%
  1. 3.1Manage deployment infrastructure for ML and AI model types
  2. 3.2Provision and configure resources for ML and AI workloads based on existing architecture and requirements
  3. 3.3Implement automated orchestration and continuous integration and continuous delivery (CI/CD) pipelines for MLOps and AI workloads

Example scenario: A model is called a few times an hour with unpredictable spikes, and the team wants to pay only when it runs. Which inference option would you compare first?

Domain 4Operating, monitoring, and securing ML and AI solutions24%
  1. 4.1Monitor ML and AI model inference and performance
  2. 4.2Optimize and manage ML and AI infrastructure costs and performance
  3. 4.3Secure ML and AI workloads and model endpoints

Example scenario: A model's predictions have slowly become less accurate since launch, although nothing in the code changed. What would you monitor to confirm the cause?

Official MLA-C02 exam guide · MLA-C02

Format

Questions
85
Duration
2h 50m
Delivery
Test centre or online
Languages
English

Question types

Choose the single best answer from four options; one is correct and three are distractors.

CertUp example

A fraud model reports 99% accuracy, but only 0.5% of transactions are fraud and the model misses most of them. Which metric should the team track instead?

  1. Recall on the fraud class
  2. Overall accuracy
  3. Training time
  4. Model file size
Show answer

Recall on the fraud class. Accuracy is high simply because fraud is rare; recall shows how many frauds the model actually catches.

Eligibility and booking

Create an AWS Certification account with a personal email and schedule with Pearson VUE. In English you can book only the MLA-C02 beta until general availability on 14 January 2027. Beta results are usually posted within five business days.

Schedule your AWS examExam details

Make a study plan

Read the exam guide and its MLA-C01 comparison first. Then take one course, reproduce its SageMaker and Bedrock examples in your own account, and finish with practice questions.

Most candidates spend 50–100 hours. Plan for the low end if you already build with SageMaker and Bedrock; add time if either machine learning or generative AI on AWS is new to you.

8 weeksto be ready
  1. 1Understand the examRead the syllabus and format, check you’re eligible and pick a target date.4 h
  2. 3Learn the core conceptsWork through one main course or book, topic by topic.48 h
  3. 4Practice with mock examsTake timed practice tests and review every mistake.24 h
  4. 5Prepare for exam dayBook the exam and check the ID and delivery rules.4 h

Learn the core concepts

One course that covers MLA-C02 plus hands-on work in your own account. Use the exam guide's comparison page to check the generative AI topics added since MLA-C01.

Best official routeExam Prep Plan: AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer - Associate (MLA-C02)AWS · Free · some items need a subscriptionBest low-cost courseAWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer Associate MLA-C02 Video CourseTutorials Dojo · $13 · 1 year accessBest in-depth courseAWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer Associate: Hands On!Stéphane Maarek and Frank Kane · $100 · lifetime access
See all 3 AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate courses →

Watch your AWS bill. Set a billing alert before using GPU instances, endpoints or foundation models, and delete endpoints and knowledge bases when you finish.

Practice with mock exams

Start with AWS's free question set. Use a practice bank that covers MLA-C02, and for every miss note which detail in the scenario pointed to the right service or setting.

Official Practice Question Set (MLA-C02)AWS · Free · free Skill Builder account · retakes allowedOfficial Pretest (MLA-C02)AWS · $29/month or $449/year Skill Builder subscription · retakes allowedPractice Exams: AWS Machine Learning Engineer Associate CertStéphane Maarek and Abhishek Singh · $64.99 list · lifetime access
See all 4 AWS Certified Machine Learning Engineer – Associate practice tests →

Are you ready?

  • You can pick the right SageMaker inference option for a traffic pattern and budget.
  • You can explain when to use RAG, fine-tuning or prompt engineering with Bedrock.
  • You finish fresh timed practice exams and can explain why the close alternatives are wrong.

Prepare for exam day

Choose the checklist for your test-centre or online appointment.

Before going to the test centre

  • Bring two IDs, or one primary and one secondary ID, matching the name in your AWS Certification account.
  • Arrive 15 to 30 minutes before your appointment.
  • Store your belongings as instructed. Breaks are allowed, but the exam clock keeps running.
AWS test-day policies

You can reschedule or cancel up to 24 hours before the appointment, and reschedule twice at most. Results are posted to your AWS Certification account within five business days.

Advice from exam takers