April Test Taker

Killj0y

Hello All,

I am taking the test in April. I have been studying:
Shon Harris v4 book
NIST pdf's
CCCure.org study guides
Exam Cram v2
Shon Harris DVD

I also have been taking great advice from TechExams.net and CCCure.org forums including the guide from JDMurray. Thanks man, that really helped a lot. I have been studying for about 4 months through jobs, wife, baby, life, etc. I have created a book from my notes that rivals the Shon Harris book in size. I found that her DVD really helped with the few topics that I was confused on especially IPSEC.

Right now, I am just reading and re-reading my notes. Any last words of advice during the home stretch anyone?

dynamik

What's your date?

That looks like a pretty solid list. I haven't had a chance to study much for mine, so I'm sensing impending doom on my front.

Welcome to the forums, and good luck with your exam! Let us know how you do.

JDMurray

It looks like you have a solid list of study materials. The only thing missing I'd suggest you use is the Official (ISC)2 Guide to the CISSP CBK. It is a reference that is consistently used by the people writing the CISSP exam items, so I'd at least try to borrow a copy and have a good, hard look through it.

Making a thick set of notes and using only them to study the last week or so before the exam is an excellent way to go. Stay focused and intense every day right up through the exam. There's plenty of time for relaxation and making up for lost time with your family after the exam when you are waiting for your score.

Good luck!

Killj0y

dynamik wrote: »

What's your date?

That looks like a pretty solid list. I haven't had a chance to study much for mine, so I'm sensing impending doom on my front.

Welcome to the forums, and good luck with your exam! Let us know how you do.

Thanks guys. I still think I need all the luck I can get. My test date is April 10th. I have been intense for at least the last 6 weeks. Due to my schedule, I usually have to study till midnight, just to wake up at 5 AM and go to work.

I will probably end up buying the Official Guide and CISSP Practice Questions at "Amazon.com: 2010 CISSP Certified Information Systems Security Professional Exam Simulation Software: 4,000 Practice Questions Software.: Alexander Marchand, Matthew Schlichter, Ernest O'Brien, Lingyun Zhou, Charles Waagen: Books". I will definitely give a post-exam wrap up and results of the exam whenever I get the results. Thanks again everyone.

NinjaBoy

Good luck with your CISSP exam, let us know how you get on

-ken

Killj0y

Update: I passed the CISSP exam. I received the email around 8:30 this morning. Ironically, I was taking the Security+ exam at that time so I did not see the email till later in the day. I was only taking the Security+ exam because I needed to take my mind off the CISSP exam since I kept wondering if I passed or failed. I passed that exam too so I was blessed twice today; now that is a good Friday.

I wanted to wait till I got my results to give my experience on the exam. So here we go: I took the exam on April 10th, at the Marriott Hotel with some co-workers. The place was packed with maybe 30 - 40 people. Oh, just a tip, leave early for the exam. There was an accident that I was able to avoid, thanks to a phone call from my wife. It never hurts to be early, but it sucks being late to an expensive exam. Ok, next, the exam is intimidating. Period. Anyone that says otherwise is lying to show off. If you study hard enough, you can pass the exam. It is just the fact that you are on the clock and you are trying to interpret every bit of information given to you which makes the exam hard. I felt that some of the questions were very subjective also. I took JDMurray's advice and circled words and phrases to help me comprehend the question. It also helped to cross out answers that were clearly wrong. In addition, I marked in the booklet first and then put it in the scan tron. I did that for every 50 - 60 questions.

I was one of the last people to leave. I had about 40 minutes to review my answers. I found a few that needed to corrected. When I left, I felt like a train hit me. I was not sure how I did and of course I had to look up a few questions that I remembered. I probably spent an hour trying to still figure out whether I answered it right or not. Another tip, once you leave the exam, have a few beers and go to sleep. You are not getting much done after that exam.


Luckily, I passed. Now, I have to get the endorsement done and then, on to OSCP and CCNA. Thanks again everyone for you advice and input.

dynamik

Wow, looks like a lot of people are getting their results in 2-3 weeks.

Congrats on the pass!

Now's a good time to do the OSCP. The new revision came out recently.

JDMurray

Congratulations!

And yes, it looks like a batch of (ISC)2 exam results were released today.

LeifAlire

Always good to read another person passed the exam

botbill

congrats on your two results passes on one day. way to go. Your hard work has paid off.
-

Killj0y

2nd Update:

Again I wanted to say thanks to everyone on the site. This site was very helpful throughout this process. I just got the email that says I have the "Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP®) designation".

I submitted my endorsement information on May 11th and I got the email today (going on 6 weeks). I had to have ISC2 endorse me. If you have just passed the exam, I recommend finding an endorser. Do whatever you can to find one. I am told that instead of 6 weeks, it takes 6 days. That is really ridiculous to me but meh. Anyway, I just wanted to update people and give a time frame of the endorsement process. Thanks again everyone.

JDMurray

Congratulations on your CISSP certification!