Failed 461

Tawaz

Hi

Its sad that i ddn't manage to pass 461 after putting much effort.I scored 620 and to be honesty the exam was tough.I am thinking maybe watching CBT Nuggets only wasn't enough.The exam had lot of questions not even mentioned in nuggets.I am not quiting though,i will give it a second shoot .

knownhero

This exam for me was a complete nightmare. Don't worry so much on the fail, you now know where you need to put more effort so focus on that and smash it in the second shot offer. Good luck mate!

NotHackingYou

Don't sweat it too much. This exam is known to be very difficult and often requires a few attempts. The good news - Microsoft brought second shot is back, so you can get 2x more chances for the price of one.

Did you do any other studying besides CBT nuggets?

fuz1on

It's all good, man! I'm sure you'll get it next time. Failure is nothing but success trying to show us the way NOT to do things.

Tawaz

I only watched the nuggets but i think i need xtra studying material.Any suggestions?
Thanks a lot for your sympathy.I won't hang my gloves till i pass it!!

shaun5263

I'm preparing for this exam right now and am about a third of the way through Microsoft's sql 2012 training kit. From what I've heard and what I've read so far it seems like a pretty solid resource for the exam.

NotHackingYou

I recommend the Microsoft book by Iztik Ben-Gan. I read the book, watched the videos on Pluralsight and used the included practice exams with the book.

With this exam, practice is everything. You should practice every technique in the book, and especially practice the ones that are new to you.

N2IT

I wish you the best. Between getting kicked by 433 and 461 I've run out of lives! I was never able to pass,I eventually gave up, lot's of going on right now.

I used the Iztik book read it mostly did 1/3 of the labs. I used SQL everyday for the last 2.5 years. You really have to know your stuff and the specific material Microsoft wants you too know. If you pass 461 I can say without a doubt you are solid at SQL. I would automatically give you the Advance Beginner or Intermediate skill level.

I'm not a natural when thinking in sets, but I manage and like anything the more practice the better. I found my course of learning is to pull away from the certification and actually set up projects at work and at home. For instances setting up backups on my home database then purposely blowing away tables and doing restores. Designing reports in SSRS and exception reports using advance SQL techniques such as SP, Views and Windowing just to name a few.

Right now I am practicing updating tables using not exists and complex joins. It's very challenging for me

Good luck this is a tough one!

Tawaz

Thanks a lot .I will pass i am very positive