Cloud Computing: AWS vs Azure in College: The Choice That Could Secretly Limit Your Career Later

When you’re in college — whether it’s CS or IT — the decision between AWS and Azure feels like one of those “you can’t go wrong”. Your classmates pick AWS. Your professor shrugs and says, “Either is fine.” Your YouTube search pulls up 500 AWS tutorials in 3 seconds. So, you go with AWS. And that choice? It might quietly close more doors than you realize — until it’s too late to pivot easily.

The Myth of “It Doesn’t Matter Which Cloud You Learn First”

You’ve probably heard some version of this:

Cloud is cloud. Once you know one, you can pick up the others.

And while that’s technically true at a high level. It’s like saying, “Once you know French, Spanish is easy.” Sure — until you need to work in Spanish in a professional setting, under pressure, with cultural nuance and business stakes.Cloud platforms are not interchangeable when it comes to:

Real-world implementation
Corporate stack decisions
Career paths

And especially not for students trying to break in.

The Enterprise Hiring Trap No One Talks About

Most real-world entry-level cloud jobs — especially ones that pay well and offer growth — are inside enterprise environments.

And those environments? They run on Microsoft 365, Teams, security policies, and yes — Microsoft Azure.

So while you’re over there launching EC2s and configuring Route 53, the jobs you’re applying to are looking for someone who can:

Manage hybrid identities with Azure AD
Automate workflows with Power Automate.
Monitor enterprise security with Microsoft Defender.
Integrate with SharePoint, Outlook, and Intune

In other words, you’re learning cool things, just not the ones companies are hiring for.

But AWS Has More Market Share!

AWS is the biggest cloud provider by revenue. It’s widely used. It’s powerful. It’s beloved by startups. But ask yourself this:

Are you applying to startups that want you to spin up infrastructure? Or are you applying to entry-level enterprise jobs that already have 400 Azure policies in place?

There’s a massive difference between:

Building your toy project on AWS
Walking into a corporate environment and managing their real, legacy-heavy Azure setup

And most students are trained for the former whereas the money and opportunity live in the latter.

The Door That Quietly Closes

Here’s what happens when you go all-in on AWS in school:

You build a cool portfolio.
You might even get certified.
Then you interview a company that needs someone to manage Azure resources inside Intune and Microsoft Endpoint Manager.
Now you’re stuck.

You’ve built up cloud muscle — but in the wrong direction for that role. You’re kind of cloud-ready, but not for their stack. So they move on.

What You Should Do

If you’re early in your tech journey — or mentoring someone who is — here’s what I’d suggest:

Start with Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900).
Even if you never certify, the training is gold for real-world enterprise understanding.
Build a project that integrates Microsoft 365 + Azure + security policies.
You’ll instantly stand out from the “Hello World EC2” crowd.
Learn both platforms — but master Azure first.
It’s the less popular, more lucrative path for many early-career tech jobs.

Do What Pays You Back

AWS feels cooler. The branding is stronger. The community is louder. But college isn’t the time to play favorites — it’s the time to optimize for opportunity.