Question about exam format

Those hangers you like

Is the Network+ exam being changed in September (like A+) , I thought i saw something on the COMPTIA web site, but can't see it now.

Was I Dreaming?

bellboy

i don't believe there are changes to network+ at all. the objectives were changed last year, and i believe the implimentation of the exam going adaptive has been shelved.

RussS

Yup - Comptia is kind of embarrassed at how a lot of the industry heavyweights view things in regard to the adaptive A+ exam. To be able to blow through Core & OS in less than half the time allotted to either of them has had the effect of lowering the regard for A+.
A study group late last year came to the comclusion that if Net+ went adaptive that there would be an outcry from the industry so that idea was shelved. Now i believe A+ will be heading back to a regular style exam sometime soon.

bellboy

i saw something somewhere (and i hope to write to comptia to confirm this) that towards the end of the year, questions on the new objectives will be added (but not marked) to the exams.

perhaps once the new questions have completed beta tests, the exams will return to traditional exam format.

i felt i was ripped-off in someways by studying for two exams, to complete each in less than ten minutes, and getting charged £150 or something for the privilidge of doing each. i completed the network+ exam in just over thirty minutes (1/3rd the allowed time), but i did spend approaching forty minutes reviewing my answers.

lazyart

I took about 7 minutes on each of the A+ exams and felt cheated also. Regardless of the claims, I just don't feel that playing 20 questions is truly enough to certify with.

I think a traditional format would give A+ some weight.

For the record, I didnt get any of the "beta" questions when I took my exams in June and July.

Drakonblayde

From a challenge standpoint, I would have preferred a traditional test as well. But I honestly didn't mind the adaptive format. I know my stuff, and if I can prove it in 17 minutes instead of 60, that's fine by me, it ultimately won't make a difference to me. While I do feel that the test should be harder, it's still only certifying 6 months experience as a bench tech, and I think it does a pretty good job of doing that. Making each side 50 questions would probably refine the test enough to be just as challenging as it should be.

bellboy

btw, i wasn't slating adaptive testing and saying technicians certified via adaptive tests are less worthy than those tested using the usal means. it was the £20+ per minute i had to pay to prove it, as opposed to the £2 per minute for network+

Drakonblayde

hehe, I know you weren't knocking anyone that's passed the adaptive tests man, I didn't take it that way. And I agree with the feeling, it's hard not to feel a bit cheated. But I'm looking at it this way - since picking up my Net+ and A+, I now qualify for a good number of jobs that I didn't before. I've had 4 interviews in the past 3 weeks and been extended 3 job offers. The 4th interview I declined to finish after they decided they were going to be inflexible on the amount of scheduled hours. Of the other 3 offers I turned down, 2 were because the money they were offering wasn't worth the 30 mile commute, losing my benefits (it's really hard to give up health and dental when you've got 'em), and having to take an extra two quarters to graduate because they were only semi-flexible on the work schedule. Oh, and they were both level 2 phone support. I really do not want to do phone support ever again. The third job offer I declined because they expected me to be on call 24/7 in addition to a 40 hour work week and only wanted to pay me $21k. Considering that's only $3k more than I currently make and would totally mess with my school scheduling, and as I mentioned above, bye bye benefits, just wasn't worth it. The day I passed my A+, I had my business cards printed up, handed them out to a few folks I know and friends, and since then, I've been doing freelance tech work. In the past 3 weeks, I've made 500 bucks for work I could do in my sleep (I love realty agents, they don't know a damn thing about computers and they pay really well).

I don't mean to sound like I'm bragging or anything, but given that my job prospects have changed quite a bit just from picking up my basic entry-level certifications, I don't feel so cheated anymore

ghaouf

i like adaptive tests, because in the middle of the network+ i was sleepy, heck i have a 70-297 exam on the 14th wich is case study talk about boring, the only reason i am taking it is because it was offered to me for free.