Passed ! Respect for the exam ! Nothing like it.

vmaddela

This exam is a monster! I cant believe I passed it on my first try. My prayers were answered. Thank you Jesus! Also have to thank my fiancee and family for the support and understanding when I literally isolated myself for 3 weeks to focus on the exam. You really need to do that if you want to pass.

Now about the exam, it was hard ! I have read tons of posts in here where people have finished in under 3-4 hours but I was still in front of the computer when the time ran out !!! I didn't leave before, I wanted to make sure I gave the best possible answer to each and every question. The exam is nothing like the questions you see in practice tests. I have to thank couple of the members in here for their sound advice. Its all about CONCEPTS. I will say it one more time CONCEPTS !!!

I started the test and the first question itself made me realize that it isn't going to be like the practice test questions. I panicked. I didn't know what I was answering, I crossed 50 questions I thought I was going to fail and pretty much gave up. My head was bursting because I still wasn't seeing the kind of questions that were in practice tests. After crossing a hundred questions I calmed down a bit and then I started answering quicker. Its the key, to stay calm, even if you see 10 questions in a row that you don't know the answers to, stay calm and get on with it, you can come back later and work on them. I finished my questions around 4 hour mark, then took a break ate something, went back and checked all the questions one more time, this time with a much calmer mind. I thought I answered every question wrong but during review I found that I had selected the best answer the first time around itself. It was the CONCEPTS that I had taken great pain to understand that helped me process the questions in my mind without me even realizing it. If you are going in there expecting to get test bank questions and memorizing the smaller numbers, details and hoping to pass, you will be in for a rude shock! CONCEPTS, CONCEPTS, CONCEPTS. Understand them and you will be able to answer any question thrown at you.

Study materials.
Shon Harris. If you have the time or even if you dont, you should still go through this book. Its not just about reading enough to pass. As security professionals, we owe it to ourselves and to the infosec community to gain as much knowledge as we can, especially the domains in which we dont have experience. It will simply help us do our jobs better. You can pass the exam without going through it cover to cover but you will understand a lot more things if you do.

Sybex. Pretty good read. Can be the alternative to Shon harris, if you dont have time.

11th hour Eric conrad. Read it on the last day. Very solid read. You should read this the day before exam and complement it with sunflower or Michael overly cram guide to make sure you have covered everything.

Cybrary videos : Very good from a conceptual perspective for the domains you dont have experience in. Cant remember who it was but thanks to the guy who posted in the forums about Cybrary a week ago.

CBT nuggets. Very good coverage over all.

Each author and presenter mentioned above have different styles but all of them help. You wont go wrong with any one of them.

Practice tests.

Shon harris CISSP practice exams Second edition : Worth it. It will test your understanding and ability to apply the concepts.
Mc Graw hill online : About as close as it gets to real test.
AIO book test : Very good
Total Testers : Got this on CD with the purchase of AIO book. Very good supplement to the above mentioned tests.
Elsevier : Easy questions, will help you get used to the exam.
Cccure paid version. Dont bother with it because the above mentioned resources and some other free ones you can find are more than sufficient to help you practice. Save your money.

I myself have asked a dozen times on this forum about practice questions, whether to opt for the paid transcender, cccure or anything but trust me, you DONT need them. I agree that you do remember things when you are practicing and it helps you retain specific points but thats not how we should be learning because it wont help you much in the exam.

Bottomline. Understand the concepts to answer well in the exam and use the practice tests to prepare yourself for the rigor of the exam not vice versa. Paid vs free practice tests debate, I am taking the side of the free tests.

Its a long post but I want to give out as much as I got from this forum. Thanks to Jvrlopez, GForce75, TheForce and the rest of the members for their advise. I came out after this exam a lot better in career but also as a person because it needed discipline, commitment and a strong will to accomplish it. Good luck to all who are taking their exams shortly.

thehayn1

Wow, thanks man! And congrats! How scary was that, going into 100 questions thinking you had them all wrong, geez thats crazy...

When you say "concepts" could you give an example? Not an actual example from the test, but I'm not 100% sure what you mean. Also good to hear about the questions, glad I didn't waste money on CCCure. Thanks everyone for that.

vmaddela

thehayn1 wrote: »

Wow, thanks man! And congrats! How scary was that, going into 100 questions thinking you had them all wrong, geez thats crazy...

When you say "concepts" could you give an example? Not an actual example from the test, but I'm not 100% sure what you mean. Also good to hear about the questions, glad I didn't waste money on CCCure. Thanks everyone for that.

Yeah it was scary, I was thinking how to adjust another 600$ for my next exam during the exam . When I mean concepts, take any model or plan for example. Instead of simply memorizing the steps understand what entails each phase and why its necessary to do what they do in that phase. I hope this gives you an idea. This applies to all the core concepts of each domain.

thehayn1

Gotcha.. and I know what you mean about the $, lol I was thinking the same thing during CEH but I passed

papadoc

Congrats! Looks like you had a good study plan.

successrealm

Great write-up, and Congrats!

beads

No offense but when I did my CISSP on paper the guy with the most perfectly colored dots you could imagine? Well... he finished in about an hour and a quarter. Actually looking around many finished in less than two hours. Big room. Now, I have no idea how many if any besides myself passed that day but it was a large room, about 60 or so exam takers if I remember correctly so lets say the pass rate back then was 50% (close) still would have been 30+ people passing the exam that day.

From what I have heard others tell me over the years is the comfort level with taking tests in the first place dictates how fast your going to complete the exam. The more structured, commercial exams I take the better and faster I get completing said exams. No sweaty palms. No nervous anticipation. Now, its more like pure focus and lets get this done and out of here kind of feeling. Mind you I have taken ALOT of exams in the past few decades as well. Shoot me!

Congrats on the pass. I think you'll find the elation short lived.

- b/eads

dave0212

beads wrote: »

No offense but when I did my CISSP on paper the guy with the most perfectly colored dots you could imagine? Well... he finished in about an hour and a quarter. Actually looking around many finished in less than two hours. Big room. Now, I have no idea how many if any besides myself passed that day but it was a large room, about 60 or so exam takers if I remember correctly so lets say the pass rate back then was 50% (close) still would have been 30+ people passing the exam that day.

From what I have heard others tell me over the years is the comfort level with taking tests in the first place dictates how fast your going to complete the exam. The more structured, commercial exams I take the better and faster I get completing said exams. No sweaty palms. No nervous anticipation. Now, its more like pure focus and lets get this done and out of here kind of feeling. Mind you I have taken ALOT of exams in the past few decades as well. Shoot me!

Congrats on the pass. I think you'll find the elation short lived.

- b/eads

They do usually proctor SSCP exams at the same time so you may have had some slow SSCP'ers

vmaddela

None taken beads. I agree there were a few who left in a couple of hours but I didnt see them very happy when they were leaving, not sure if they passed or not. Your profile shows tons of certs so I'm sure your experience in taking these exams makes a lot of difference and changes the way you approach them. Yes, the elation is short lived. Now I'm wondering what next

JohnnyBiggles

Congrats!

beads

dave0212 wrote: »

They do usually proctor SSCP exams at the same time so you may have had some slow SSCP'ers

This was many years ago but if I remember correctly there were zero SSCP exams being taken; three concentrations, all ISSEPs if memory serves. Cause I remember the lead, strict acting female, proctor remarking on how over weighted the CISSP examinees were in the room.

And yes, I am STILL in complete awe of the guy next to me with the perfect little dots. I tried... couldn't even make my pencil scratch that darkly, let alone that perfect. Not that your supposed to peek at someone else's answer sheet. It was something I noticed out of the corner of my eye before thinking: "Wow! That's amazing...!" So, yeah I failed that part of the test, lol. I would have argued the who artistic thing as they walked me out the door as well.

@vmaddela

No worries on the elation thing. Its just the way goes with these exams. Soon you'll discover the other side of this maxim: "Its more valuable to people without it than people who do..." Forget who said that to me but I was floored at first then begrudgingly accepting of the truth.

- b/eads

Falcon56

vmaddela, I have to say, I was absolutely amazed when I read the one sentence post in your other thread where you stated you passed. I was following the thread the past couple of days and was just *sure* you were going to postpone and take the exam after the 15th.

That is a great write-up concerning your experience and one that will help a lot of people. CONGRATS on the pass!

mjsinhsv

beads took his first cert using a chisel and stone tablet.
Dead on about the cert being more important to people without it.
After finally completing the track and following the forum for a little while, it's not much a big deal anymore.

The ISSAP is still a big deal..

vmaddela

Falcon56 wrote: »

vmaddela, I have to say, I was absolutely amazed when I read the one sentence post in your other thread where you stated you passed. I was following the thread the past couple of days and was just *sure* you were going to postpone and take the exam after the 15th.

That is a great write-up concerning your experience and one that will help a lot of people. CONGRATS on the pass!

Thanks Falcon.

zme783

Congratulations!!!!

chickenlicken09

great stuff, well done.

mdragon

Great write up. I went through exact same thing that you went through when I took it last week, except I was thinking that I am not taking the exam again when I fail. I never felt like that about an exam. I was so happy when I found out that I passed. I thank God that I passed because it was a monster and it was only about 40 or 50 questions that I knew I had correct, the others I was not so sure of.

Congrats!!!!