TOGAF vs. CPSA-F: Which Software Architecture Certification is Right for You?
Choosing the right software architecture certification can be a game-changer for your career. Two of the most widely recognized certifications in the architecture field are TOGAF (The Open Group Architecture Framework) and CPSA-F (Certified Professional for Software Architecture - Foundation Level) by iSAQB. Each opens doors to distinct roles and career paths.
In this article, we’ll explore the unique advantages of TOGAF and CPSA-F and guide you toward the one that can make the biggest impact on your future as a software engineer, developer, or IT professional.
Enterprise Architect vs Software Architect
Before diving into the TOGAF and CPSA-F certifications, it’s essential to understand the difference between the roles they support. An enterprise architect (supported by the TOGAF certification) focuses on high-level strategy, aligning IT infrastructure with broader business goals. An enterprise architect oversees an organization’s technology landscape, ensuring systems are cohesive, scalable, and supportive of long-term objectives. Enterprise architects often engage in planning, governance, and aligning technology with business strategy.
It’s important to understand that while enterprise architects focus on broad organizational goals in IT organizations, they don’t handle many of the technical, hands-on responsibilities that software architects do. Enterprise architects typically don’t work on code-level design, detailed component structures, or hands-on development. They also don’t engage in the specifics of application performance tuning, database optimization, or choosing software frameworks for individual projects.
On the other hand, a software architect (supported by the CPSA-F certificate) is much more hands-on with system design. They dive into the nitty-gritty of creating efficient, reliable software solutions while working closely with software developers. A typical software architect develops technical designs through specialized diagrams like UML, makes technology choices, and ensures code quality within the development team while being more hands-on with code. A software architect is expected to have substantial software development experience while having a wide range of other soft skills and problem-solving skills to take complex requirements towards a production-ready software solution.
How to Choose Between TOGAF and CPSA-F®
Both enterprise and software architects hold valuable roles, yet they differ significantly in their day-to-day activities.
Enterprise architects benefit from a bird’s-eye view of how IT aligns with business goals. They often work closely with senior leadership, influencing major decisions and setting strategic technology direction. Enterprise architecture can be fulfilling for those who enjoy strategic and business planning.
Software architects, however, often find satisfaction in shaping the technical foundation of products and applications. They work closely with software developers, project managers, testers, DevOps, and other stakeholders to create software that meets specific user requirements. This path can be especially rewarding if you’re passionate about solving complex technical challenges, choosing the right design patterns, frameworks, and programming languages, working closely with development teams, and being much more hands-on with code and technologies.
Essentially, if enterprise architects are the architects of a city’s layout, software architects design each individual building.
So, if you want to be more involved in the business strategy and organizational level, becoming an enterprise architect and pursuing the TOGAF certification is the right path for you.
On the other hand, if you enjoy architecting software systems, designing APIs, and working on more technical problems in your daily work, becoming a software architect and pursuing the CPSA-F® certificate by iSAQB® - the International Software Architecture Qualification Boards is the best choice for you.
Who is the CPSA-F Software Architecture Certificate for?
The Certified Professional for Software Architecture – Foundation Level (CPSA-F) by iSAQB - the International Software Architecture Qualification Board is a leading software architecture certification for anyone with at least 18 months of software development experience who wants to master software architecture and to work towards the role of a technical lead or software architect.
This includes:
Software developers
Software analysts
Engineering managers
This certification is also commonly sought after by already-established:
Software architects
Technical leads
Engineering managers
Software architecture consultants
Who want to close any skill gaps and have an independent, globally recognized certificate that can show to current or future employers or clients.
The CPSA-F certification curriculum focuses on the essential principles, practices, and patterns every software architect needs, focusing on practical skills from architectural decision-making to understanding software patterns, documentation, communication, and evaluation of software architecture.
How do you Study for the CPSA-F Certificate Exam?
CPSA-F curriculum is very comprehensive and covers many complex areas. The CPSA-F exam conducted by independent certification bodies is also considered quite difficult, even for experienced software architects, so preparing for the CPSA-F certification without guided instruction can be quite challenging.
While the International Software Architecture Qualification Board (iSAQB®) sets the Certified Professional for Software Architecture certification curriculum, it doesn’t conduct trainings on its own.
Instead, iSAQB® delegates the training to independent accredited training providers and accredited trainers who demonstrate substantial industry and teaching experience in the field of software architecture. Those training providers and their trainers are held to high-quality standards to ensure the students pursuing the CPSA-F certification get proper, practical knowledge and are well prepared to pass the CPSA-F certification exam.
Learn with Top Developer Academy
As North America's first iSAQB CPSA-F® accredited training provider, Top Developer Academy offers one of the most popular and comprehensive training for the CPSA-F certification while also being the first to offer fully self-paced training tailored for busy professionals.
Top Developer Academy’s CPSA-F training not only covers the entire exam curriculum but ensures you gain practical, real-world architecture skills, with lots of examples of software architecture, and application of the principles taught in class.
Some of the topics you’ll learn include how to:
Design the most effective software architecture for your system
Ensure your architecture meets complex project requirements
Apply industry-proven design principles, patterns, and best practices
Evaluate and assess the quality of your software architecture
Document and communicate design decisions, interfaces, cross-cutting concerns,
and more
By the end of the training, you will be ready to take the official CPSA-F® certification exam and apply this knowledge in your daily work.
One of the great parts about the CPSA-F® certificate is that it never expires.
If you’ve ever earned a cloud certification like AWS, GCP, or Azure, you already know that those certificates need to be renewed every few years, which costs money.
However, since the software architecture skills you learn by taking the CPSA-F training will last you for your entire career and aren’t ephemeral like cloud technologies, this certificate is yours for life.
So, with a lifetime certification, you can build a career on timeless software architecture skills rather than worrying about renewals and changing technology trends.
Join Top Developer Academy’s CPSA-F course today and take your next big step toward mastering software architecture while gaining the skills, confidence, and certification to stand out as a top software architect in your field.
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Choosing the right software architecture certification can be a game-changer for your career. Two of the most widely recognized certifications in the architecture field are TOGAF (The Open Group Architecture Framework) and CPSA-F (Certified Professional for Software Architecture - Foundation Level) by iSAQB. Each opens doors to distinct roles and career paths.
In this article, we’ll explore the unique advantages of TOGAF and CPSA-F and guide you toward the one that can make the biggest impact on your future as a software engineer, developer, or IT professional.