Scored 690 then 695 on CISSP.....
I'm pretty depressed. Took a week-long Learning Tree Bootcamp, then used whatever free resources I could find to do thousands of practice questions. I thought I knew the information quite well. On each test, I thought I did great... until I got the score. Some of the areas that were stressed in my boot camp didn't seem to be on the test at all. I had no questions at all about cryptography and hardly any about physical security. I'm not even sure which questions I got wrong because there were very few questions that stumped me.
Probaby not going to throw in another $600 to take another shot after losing $1200 in 2 months. So close.... Anyone else have the same experience?
Probaby not going to throw in another $600 to take another shot after losing $1200 in 2 months. So close.... Anyone else have the same experience?
Comments
After taking the test (twice) I am not even sure which questions I got wrong. Maybe I said the same (wrong) answer each time since many of the questions were familiar. I think I should get a price break next time.......
Same here.
You could always take a break and take the SSCP 1st. That is what I did. They cover some of the same topics, but SSCP is harder than many people think.
But you are making a good progress. If you do just the same you can expect another 5 points increment that will get you right into 700, i.e. a pass!
I would recommend that any areas of difficulty you encounter, you take the concepts and phrase it into your own words. Also, you can do word / phrase association to help memorize confusing / complex topics.
Since you are so close to passing, it's likely that you are just getting mixed up by the nuances in the test questions (meaning you aren't reading the whole question to find out exactly what they are looking for). Sometimes tests will give you a lot of ambiguous information that has no relevance to the actual question they are asking - so it's fluff material to throw you off, and make you assume they are looking for A when in reality the question focuses on B.
Since I work full-time and have a family it has been challenging to study. I tend to learn better through repetition and application of knowledge so I like 5ekurity's suggestions. At work we are developing policies and procedures while going through a PCI gap analysis. I try and pair up what I've read in the Eric Conrad study guide to help me associate the material. In some ways, the knowledge I am gaining out weighs the value of the certification because it applies to my company's goal of improving security. Who knows if I'll need to take the exam multiple times or not, but the knowledge gained thus far has been valuable in my current role.
IMHO practice questions and boot camps are useless. If you can explain the concepts in detail to someone that is not familiar with them then I would think you are ready.
I wouldn't say practice questions are completely useless - the day I decided to try for CISSP I took one of the ISC2 self tests and used the results to rank the domains and prioritize what areas to study. I bought the Shon Harris book, worked through the three domains I wasn't clearly passing on according the the self test, reviewed the rest, finished the book and took the test about a week and a half later and passed.
I wouldn't say that it took me only that long to prepare, though - I'd add in some percentage of 20+ years in IT, various home lab experiences, grad school (crypto is easier with number theory) , college....even high school era playing around with timeshare systems might have been good for a question or a concept or two.
I guess what I'm suggesting is that as assessment will suggest what you need to spend time on, then study that for awhile, see how much you improved, then estimate the study time based on how long it takes you to pick stuff up. I expect it will vary a lot based on what you've had hands on and how often & what your learning style is.
But in your case you know your advantage is you know where you are lacking so here is an scenario. A latest phone is released on the market for $900, that will give you some use, some improvement, and you may spend that in a whim. Why are you thinking it as a waste of money for a word that can kick start the recruitment world for you and get more return on investment almost instantaneously. So solider on, next I wish we hear from you is when you come back with a 'I PASSED'.
Best of luck. You can do it! Consider this you have almost done it TWICE. My last attempt was 67x 68x some where there and I haven't gone back to take it again. You are there! Can't encourage you more. Just do it!
-kalkan
"Part of my problem was that I studied SO hard, that I over-thought a lot of these questions."
Due to work, I won't be taking the exam until the end of November. I've already put in almost 2 months of studying (3 or 4 hours day - reading and notes). I've avoided practice questions because I really want to make sure I understand the material I've read thus far. I will use practice exams/questions, but I hope by then I'll at least be familiar with the subject matter.
I say give it another shot! Only being 5 points away on such a challenging test is still impressive in my book!!!
College: MBA Project Management (2012) | Bachelors IT Management (2010)
Experience: Cyber Security, Information Assurance, and IT Management Officer