How to Get Your First Job in Cloud Computing (Without a CS Degree)
Cloud computing is no longer “the future.”
It’s the default infrastructure powering everything from startups to governments. But for junior engineers, system administrators, or DevOps hopefuls, breaking into the field can feel overwhelming.
At Raff Technologies, we work with developers, testers, ops engineers, and cloud architects every day. Many of them started with minimal experience and now deploy production systems confidently — often on our platform.
So we decided to share a practical guide on how to get your first job in cloud computing, even if you don’t have a CS degree or years of experience.
Step 1: Understand the Cloud Landscape
Before diving in, you need to grasp the basics:
-
What is cloud computing?
Delivering computing services (servers, storage, databases, networking, software) over the internet. -
Core platforms:
AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, DigitalOcean, and emerging indie players like Raff. -
Key roles in the field:
- Cloud Support Engineer
- DevOps / SRE
- Infrastructure Engineer
- Cloud Security Analyst
- Platform Engineer
💡 Tip: Choose one direction — not all cloud careers require coding.
Step 2: Learn the Tools That Matter
You don’t need to learn everything at once, but hiring managers love seeing hands-on experience with:
- Linux (especially Ubuntu)
- Docker & Containers
- CI/CD tools (GitHub Actions, Jenkins)
- Infrastructure as Code (IaC) — Terraform, Pulumi
- Cloud CLI & Console skills (start with AWS or use a platform like Raff)
💡 Tip: Use free credits (like Raff’s $200 bonus) to spin up your own servers and test environments.
Step 3: Build a Portfolio
Employers don’t hire based on certificates — they hire based on what you can do.
What to include in your portfolio:
- A personal project (e.g., deploy a web app on a VM)
- GitHub repo with an IaC setup (Terraform)
- A blog post or video: “How I deployed my first cloud service using Ubuntu and Docker”
💡 Tip: Use your Raff VM as your personal playground. Break things. Learn. Try again.
Step 4: Join the Right Communities
Cloud jobs often come through people, not job boards.
Join and engage in:
- Reddit: r/devops, r/linuxadmin
- Discord groups like “Learn DevOps”
- LinkedIn groups around Cloud & SRE
- Local hackathons or workshops
- Twitter/X circles using #DevOpsJobs, #CloudCareers
💡 Tip: At Raff, we’re building a community too — soon we’ll be opening up our Discord.
Step 5: Apply Smart, Not Broad
Instead of spraying 100 resumes, try:
- Tailoring your resume to each job
- Writing a short “Why I’m applying” blurb with every submission
- Including your GitHub, blog, and demo links
- Applying to internships, startups, or freelancing roles (even unpaid early on)
💡 Tip: Show you can work with real infrastructure — not just pass a test.
Start Your Cloud Journey with Raff
We built Raff to make powerful cloud infrastructure accessible to students, learners, indie hackers, and small teams. No complex dashboards. No hidden billing traps. Just clean, deploy-and-go computing.
- Launch Ubuntu VMs in seconds
- Perfect for testing, sandboxing, and building your portfolio