Passed SY0-301!

neonballoonneonballoon Member Posts: 9 ■□□□□□□□□□
Just got back from the testing center with a passing score of 841/900. I am hugely relieved as I was unsure if I would pass while taking it.

Background:
I graduated with a BA in Information Systems and have 3 years of tech support experience with exposure to SQL and basic troubleshooting the company's software/website. I have an A+ and Network+ I passed back in 2010.

Study Material:
-I watched all 185 Professor Messer videos and took diligent notes.
-Read Darril Gibson's Security+ Get Certified Get Ahead book highlighting important bits. I got around 60% on the first assessment test in the beginning of the book. Took notes during the chapter tests and reviewed questions I was iffy on.
-Read Darril Gibson's book through again focusing on the highlighted parts and retaking all the practice questions. I scored 90-95% on both assessment tests.
-Typed out all the "Remember This" parts, printed it out and read through it 3 times. Highlighted parts that I missed practice questions on.
-Memorized all the port #s and whether it was TCP/UDP.
-Watched and took sample performance based questions I could find online.

Overall I spent around 3 months because I am overseas and have a lot of time and wanted to take advantage of it. Passing with 1-2 month prep time is possible.

The Exam:
I had about 5-6 performance based questions and totally shook me up as the first question had me configure the MOST secure WEP and it was not a drop down menu, I had to type all the information in. I feel most of the questions were also poorly worded and introduced things I don't remember studying. The questions were much more vague and indirect than the practice questions but I went through them using common sense and process of elimination. There were a surprising number of questions on WEP and PKI.
I finished the exam with about 40 minutes to spare so I re-did the performance questions and the flagged questions and felt much better going through the exam again.

The next step:
I am aiming to get an entry-level position with a government contractor so I am going by the DoD 8570 chart. Studying for C|EH next.

Big thanks to Darril Gibson and his book, it was easy to follow and wasn't bored to tears.

Question - how long does it take for CompTIA to update my website profile with the results? I'm not seeing the results yet.

Comments

  • Justin-Justin- Member Posts: 300
    Great job, congrats on the pass! icon_thumright.gif

    I am currently studying for the SY0-401, using Sybex. So far I've read 1/4 of the book so I still have a while to go.
  • IT_NerdIT_Nerd Member Posts: 25 ■■■□□□□□□□
    Great job! That's an awesome feeling!
  • DntH8MeDntH8Me Member Posts: 73 ■■■□□□□□□□
    Congrats on the pass icon_cheers.gif I'm hoping to take the exam pretty soon
    2019 Certification Goals: ​CEH | PenText + | CISM? | stop procrastinating
  • mr.comfortablymr.comfortably Member Posts: 83 ■■■□□□□□□□
    Congratulations! It looks like you put in the hard work for it. Thanks for the advice as I will soon be taking it as well. Best of luck on future exams and the DoD job search
  • tahjzhuantahjzhuan Member Posts: 288 ■■■■□□□□□□
  • DAVIS NGUYENDAVIS NGUYEN Member Posts: 1,472 ■■■□□□□□□□
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