Associate Android Developer Certification

The exam consists of a coding project and an exit interview. Both of these exam components are available only in English at this time.

The exam is designed to test the skills of an entry-level Android developer. Therefore, to take this exam, you should have this level of proficiency, either through education, self-study, your current job, or a job you have had in the past. Assess your proficiency by reviewing "Exam Content." If you'd like to take the exam, but feel you need to prepare a bit more, level up your Android knowledge with some great Android training resources.

You must use the latest version of Android Studio to complete the Associate Android Developer Certification Exam.

If you are under 13, you are not eligible to take the exam or to become certified. If you are between 13-17 years of age, you may test and receive certification with parental consent. If you are participating in a location that requires by law a lower minimum age for entry into such programs, then the minimum age limit for that person will be the stated minimum required age. Individuals 18 years or older are eligible for certification without any age-related restrictions.

Writing tests to verify that the application's logic and user interface are performing as expected, and executing those tests using the developer tools. Candidates should be able to analyze application crashes, and find common bugs such as layout errors and memory leaks. This includes working with the debuggers to step through application code and verify expected behavior.

• Write and execute a local JVM unit test
• Write and execute a device UI test
• Given a problem description, replicate the failure
• Use the system log to output debug information
• Debug and fix an application crash (uncaught exception)
• Debug and fix an activity lifecycle issue
• Debug and fix an issue binding data to views

Implementation of the visual and navigational components of an application's design. This includes constructing layouts—using both XML and Java code—that consist of the standard framework UI elements as well as custom views. Candidates should have a working knowledge of using view styles and theme attributes to apply a consistent look and feel across an entire application. Understanding of how to include features that expand the application's audience through accessibility and localization may also be required.

• Mock up the main screens and navigation flow of the application
• Describe interactions between UI, background task, and data persistence
• Construct a layout using XML or Java code
• Create a custom view class and add it to a layout
• Implement a custom application theme
• Apply a custom style to a group of common widgets
• Define a RecyclerView item list
• Bind local data to a RecyclerView list
• Implement menu-based or drawer navigation
• Localize the application's UI text into one other language
• Apply content descriptions to views for accessibility
• Add accessibility hooks to a custom view

Understanding of Android's top-level application components (Activity, Service, Broadcast Receiver, Content Provider) and the lifecycle associated with each one. Candidates should be able to describe the types of application logic that would be best suited for each component, and whether that component is executing in the foreground or in the background. This includes strategies for determining how and when to execute background work.

• Describe an application's key functional and nonfunctional requirements
• Create an Activity that displays a layout resource
• Fetch local data from disk using a Loader on a background thread
• Propagate data changes through a Loader to the UI
• Schedule a time-sensitive task using alarms
• Schedule a background task using JobScheduler
• Execute a background task inside of a Service
• Implement non-standard task stack navigation (deep links)
• Integrate code from an external support library

Determining appropriate use cases for local persisted data, and designing solutions to implement data storage using files, preferences, and databases. This includes implementing strategies for bundling static data with applications, caching data from remote sources, and managing user-generated private data. Candidates should also be able to describe platform features that allow applications to store data securely and share that data with other applications in.

• Define a database schema; include tables, fields, and indices
• Create an application-private database file
• Construct database queries returning single results
• Construct database queries returning multiple results
• Insert new items into a database
• Update or delete existing items in a database
• Expose a database to other applications via Content Provider
• Read and parse raw resources or asset files
• Create persistent preference data from user input
• Toggle application logic based on preference values

Extending applications to integrate with interfaces outside the core application experience through notifications and app widgets. This includes displaying information to the user through these elements and keeping that information up to date. Candidates should also understand how to provide proper navigation from these external interfaces into the application's main task, including appropriate handling of deep links.

• Create an app widget that displays on the device home screen
• Implement a task to update the app widget periodically
• Create and display a notification to the user