AI-Era Software Engineer · Associate

AI can write code.
This proves you can own it.

A practical certification for engineers who build, verify, explain, and own AI-assisted software: agentic workflows, prompt & context engineering, RAG, verification discipline, repo ownership, and defense.

See what's tested
  • Proof-backed, not video-watching
  • Original scenario questions
  • Not vendor-specific
What this is not
  • A generic prompt-engineering badge
  • A vibe-coding certificate
  • A cloud-vendor AI certification
  • A certificate for watching videos
It is a practical, proof-backed credential: pass a scenario-based exam, complete a hands-on capstone, and (soon) attach verification, ownership, and defense proofs from across the Skills Tech ecosystem.

Build with agents

Drive AI coding agents with plans, permissions, and verification, not passive prompts.

Verify and secure

Tests, blast-radius review, supply-chain and injection awareness before you ship.

Own the repo

Explain the architecture, predict change impact, and catch AI overconfidence.

Explain and defend

Say what the AI did, what you accepted, what you verified, and what risk remains.

What's tested

Seven domains, weighted like the exam.

70 questions · 110 minutes · pass at 75% · versioned blueprint · valid 18 months.

See the AI tools covered (category-based, no vendor lock-in)

AI coding agent workflow

20%

The AI-era engineering mindset and human accountability, assistant vs agent, the agentic loop (plan, tools, approval, tests, PR), permission modes, and when to stop or restart the agent.

Prompt, context, and agent instructions

15%

Prompt engineering (how you ask), context engineering (what the agent can see), and agent engineering (tools, memory, permissions). Reviewable outputs and injection awareness.

RAG and AI application fundamentals

15%

Retrieval-augmented generation (embeddings, chunking, retrieval, reranking, grounding, evaluation) and AI application architecture (tool calling, structured outputs, human-in-the-loop, cost/rate limits, fallback).

Verification, testing, and safety

20%

The verification discipline for AI-assisted changes: tests, type checks, static analysis, security and dependency scanning, blast-radius review, rollback, observability, and secrets handling.

Repo ownership and change understanding

15%

Owning the repository: key files, architecture, dependencies, change impact, behavior prediction, freshness/staleness, and recognizing overconfidence about AI-generated code.

Communication and defense

10%

Explaining and defending an AI-assisted change: what the AI did, what you accepted or rejected, what was verified, what risks remain, and how to explain it to a manager and a security reviewer.

Responsible AI, security, and governance

5%

Security and governance for AI-assisted work: prompt/tool injection, data exfiltration and secret leakage, over-permissioned agents, dependency hallucination, audit trails, and secure MCP usage.

Proof-backed

Earned by evidence, not by watching.

The signed certification combines your exam pass and hands-on capstone with safe-derived proofs from across the ecosystem: verification (OpenThunder), repo ownership (Repo Mastery), and defense (Skills Tech Talk), signed by Skills Tech Workspace. We never store your source code, secrets, or recordings.

Pricing

Start free. Certify at the founding price.

Renewal assessment after 18 months. Payments are processed by Skills Tech Talk.

Not sure you're ready?

Free Readiness Check

Free

See exactly where you stand.

  • 20+ question diagnostic
  • Score by domain
  • Gap map + study path
  • Shareable readiness badge
Start free
Early adopters

Founding Certification

$59one-time

Get certified at the founding price.

  • Full study path + practice bank
  • Timed mock exam + final exam
  • Hands-on missions
  • Certificate on passing
  • Proof-backed capstone
  • Founding price, limited window
Start free diagnostic
After the founding window

Standard Certification

$99one-time

The full certification.

  • Everything in Founding
  • Standard exam price
  • 18-month validity
Start free diagnostic
Want it fast

Certification Sprint

$149from

Guided, accelerated prep.

  • Everything in Standard
  • Accelerated study plan
  • Priority path to exam-ready
Start free diagnostic

Paid certification checkout is being finalized with Skills Tech Talk billing. Start the free readiness check now.

Frequently asked questions

Are you affiliated with Microsoft, AWS, or the certification vendors?

No. Skills Tech Certified is independent third-party exam preparation. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any certification provider. All product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. You take the official exam with the vendor; we help you get ready for it.

Are these real exam questions or brain dumps?

Neither. Every question is original and written to the publicly published exam objectives. We never use leaked, recalled, or copied exam content. Brain dumps violate vendor policies and can get your certification revoked, so we build understanding instead of memorization.

Do you guarantee I'll pass?

No honest prep company can. What we do is measure your readiness transparently across knowledge, coverage, consistency, hands-on practice, and recency, so you know when you're genuinely prepared before you book the exam. Readiness is an evidence-based estimate, not a guarantee.

SkillsTech Certified is an independent certification-training and exam-preparation platform. Certification exams and official credentials are administered and issued by their respective providers. SkillsTech Certified is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by AWS, Microsoft, Google, or any certification provider. Product names, certification names, and trademarks belong to their respective owners.