I SLAYED THE CISSP BEAST! Finally...

TXCISSP

My CISSP Advice:
I’d like to start out by thanking all of those that have taken the time to contribute their thoughts, input, sweat and blood to this website. I’ve been a long time lurker, and I can assure you, there are many others just like me. I took the exam back in May of this year and failed but not by much (673) so had I been just a bit more prepared I would have gotten it the first time. My primary source of material back on attempt number one was the CCCure.org test engines (all 1800+ questions). OVER and OVER and OVER. For the record, that alone is NOT enough!

First and foremost, this test is NOT 1 mile wide, and 1” deep! That’s complete garbage! This test is about 10 miles wide and at least 3” deep! What I mean is that for those that try to claim this test is not technical, well, they must have gotten a different exam template than the one I got!
As many others have claimed, the exam questions will NOT be verbatim or even really all that equivalent to anything you’re going to see in the books, question banks, or anyone else’s slide deck banks. KNOW THIS! The key to success is to go in OVER-PREPARED! That’s the only way you’ll pass this beast.
It’s doable! There were many times during the exam that I completely freaked out because I would use my very best deductive reasoning and there were still 2 very good answers to choose from. Just remember the goals of the CISSP and their mindset. You’re mainly there to advise, gather information and report it to management so they’re prepared to make the best decisions for the company.
Good luck to everyone who hasn’t taken this test. You’ll be fine. Just don’t underestimate the knowledge you’ll need to consume. Use multiple resources like I did. That’s what ultimately got me over the hump and a PASS on my second attempt.
Background/Experience in I.T.:

• 5 years as Network Admin
• 5 years as Network Engineer
• 5 years as Web Development Manager
• 2 years in Information Security

Other Certs:

• MCSE+I, CEH, LPT, CCA

Total Time to Prepare:

• 3 – 4 Months
• 1 – 3 Hours per Day
• 12 – 15 Hours (every day) over the final 2 weeks leading up to the exam.

Book & Video Study Material:

• Sybex ISC2 official study guide 7th edition (9/10)
• Sybex Official ISC2 Exam Questions (9/10)
• Eric Conrads Eleventh Hour CISSP Study Guide - 3rd Edition (9/10)
• Cybrary Videos – Kelly Handerhan’s approach to explaining the concepts is brilliant! (9/10)
• Cram – I created my own decks just to hammer home a lot of the memorization items (7/10)
• Brainscape – Another BETTER flashcards site. This one uses analytics to gauge competency (9/10)
• Sarari’s 10 Day Trial to specifically take advantage of the CISSP Video course by David Miller (60 Hours from the same guy that teaches for SANS with a 93% Pass rate) (9/10)

And of course, lots and lots of practical real world experience that comes into play.


Test Engine Additional Details:

• Sybex ISC2 Official Practice Tests – Comes in a book but through the purchase you have access to the online engine as well. Once I used the online engine, I never went back to the book It’s SO MUCH easier using the online engine.

Only if your prep time allows more questions:

• CCCure test questions – I find much of this material to be a bit irrelevant as it relates to the actual exam, however the format of the test engine is GREAT. You can’t know too much so if time allows, go through these engines as well. (5/10)

Again, thanks to all of those that passed and came back to update the rest of the group. Just like me, there are MANY people out there looking for advice that aren't posting. WE DO APPRECIATE IT!!

kabooter

CongratZ!
And thanks a lot for posting valuable tips. "WE DO APPRECIATE IT!!"
Your first post is excellent. Very detailed and encouraging at the same time.
I do agree that test is certainly deeper than an inch. The questions cant be so granular if test was not deep.
You have not mentioned CBK book. How did you prepare for newer technologies like Cloud, Mobile etc. which appear to dominate these days?

Mike-Mike

great breakdown, I have my test in Jan

gespenstern

Congratulations!

p@r0tuXus

Congrats and great post! Thanks for lending something new for me to add to my list of resources!

Mooseboost

Congrats!

cyberguypr

Congrats!

PC509

Congrats! Thanks for that writeup. It's both encouraging and scary at the same time!

NotHackingYou

Congratulations!

TLeTourneau

Congratulations!

TXCISSP

kabooter wrote: »

CongratZ!
And thanks a lot for posting valuable tips. "WE DO APPRECIATE IT!!"
Your first post is excellent. Very detailed and encouraging at the same time.
I do agree that test is certainly deeper than an inch. The questions cant be so granular if test was not deep.
You have not mentioned CBK book. How did you prepare for newer technologies like Cloud, Mobile etc. which appear to dominate these days?

Thanks Kabooter,

The David Miller videos have some decent info on Cloud, Mobile, SSO, Federated (SAML, Oauth, OpenID) types of details. These are all fairly recent InfoSec topics that are gaining momentum today. Not only within the CBK for CISSP but also in the real world.

These topics are covered slightly in the Sybex material but I found most of my information on these topics by watching YouTube videos and the like.

Whenever you find that you're getting bogged down with a clear understanding of any topic, Google it!, then if that doesn't render a more clear understanding, YouTube it! That always helps me!

TXCISSP

PC509 wrote: »

Congrats! Thanks for that writeup. It's both encouraging and scary at the same time!

PC509,
I really just want everyone still preparing for this exam to understand the depth of it. While it's doable, you WILL NOT pass this exam by reading a few Transcenders and Exam Cram questions like you would with MANY other certifications out there. This one takes lots of work, lots of dedication, lots of GIVING UP your social life and yes, even Thursday Night Football to get through it! Just keep in mind as you're doing it, it's only a couple of months and then life can resume as normal.

A half-hearted effort will not cut it for the CISSP. That said, it's one of the more rewarding feelings you can have to finally crack it!

chrisone

TXCISSP wrote: »

First and foremost, this test is NOT 1 mile wide, and 1” deep! That’s complete garbage! This test is about 10 miles wide and at least 3” deep!

Congrats on the pass! I know how you feel and agree with you 100% on the statement above. I guess the people who had this previous statement of 1 mile wide and 1" deep took the test 5-10 years ago. We both took the updated 2015 test and I totally kept thinking this 1mile 1" deep analogy was not even close lol I felt it was 10 miles wide and 1 mile deep lol

sameoj

Great post and congrats on your achievement.

momolicious

Congrats! I'm currently studying for this exam. I have been for 2 weeks. I scheduled the exam a month out before starting my studies (we're talking 8 hours a day). I was planning to take it Jan 6th.

I will definitely end up moving it to the right, and by a lot. There is just way too much information.

I have a BS in ISS, 8 years in IT with the military, 2 years in Systems Administration and 2 years in Information Systems Security as a Contractor.

I've only read a few chapters of the Sybex book, and after bombing some of the CCCure practice questions, it's clear I'll need more time to have a very clear understanding of the material.

I'm learning you need to know things, even at a technical level, because you'll be expected to differentiate the nuances of similar concepts & terms.

Again, congrats!

jcundiff

congrats! I passed in 2014 and yes it is an absolute beast of an exam. Only certification exam I have taken that I literally had no idea if I passed or failed. I have failed certification exams but I knew I was failing before I ever hit submit. With CISSP, it was the walk of shame to the proctor station and of course they hand you the paper upside down lol

All I knew after 4 hours was that my head truly hurt

dhay13

Congrats! I just passed a couple months ago and it is a tough one.

PureCoffee

Congrats! I passed 6 weeks ago. Still waiting for the "Official" word from (ISC)2.

I did get an email asking to give them the full 6 weeks. So at least some acknowledgement.
Cheers,
SF

Raransky

Congrats!
I know the great feeling after you passed. You are so right about exam - it is much deeper then commonly stated.

MitM

Congratulations.

I'm also going to be using Dave Miller's courses from Safari.

greg9891

Glad I finally found another beast slayer. Congrats!

TXCISSP

MitM wrote: »

Congratulations.

I'm also going to be using Dave Miller's courses from Safari.

I only found out about the Dave Miller courses about 1 week away from my exam date. Even though I was really up against it from a time perspective, I dove in and tried to get as much as possible out of those video courses. There are over 60 hours of videos that cover all 8 domains. I was looking for a fresh perspective having done the Kelly Handerhan courses on Cybrary.IT. Kelly's style was definitely a far cry different from the Shon Harris stuff I'd seen. That was refreshing.

I highly recommend gaining as much knowledge on each domain from as many sources as possible. Not every style will fit everyone's personality but I thought the Dave Miller stuff really resonated with me. As did Kelly's courses! Both were fantastic.

Take lots of notes for your flash cards as you're watching the videos. Yes, it slows you down a little but that way you don't have to keep going back to them later. Just review your details in the flash cards and you're golden!!