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Beginning of the CISSP journey
Hi folks,
I've been browsing this site for a while now, and thought I would say hello now that I'm about to begin my CISSP journey.
First, some background about me:
I finished an MS in Systems Technology about a year ago. I've got a little over two years of experience as the info-sec director at a small financial institution. I recently completed CompTIA A+ and then Sec+. I discovered this site while studying for the latter. My employer has been generous with paying for my certification materials and exams thus far, but I haven't specifically discussed the prospect of an expensive CISSP bootcamp yet. So here's my tentative plan:
I ordered the AIO combo pack (5th edition + practice exams), which should arrive by early next week. I have noticed that a lot of people recommend other books instead of, or in addition to, this one. The AIO books got me through A+ and Sec+ without any trouble, so I figure that I'll start with that and see how I do on a practice test and then decide if I want to add in the CISSP For Dummies book or the official ISC2 book.
Since I'm still about 21 months away from the required 4 years of experience anyway, I'm planning to take it slow and study the AIO book in my spare time for the next 9-12 months or so. I picked through A+ and Sec+ for about 6 months each, and it worked well for me. Considering that CISSP is supposed to be much more difficult, I think the extra time will be necessary. After that, I will assess my situation with practice exams and then either take a bootcamp course and the exam, or pick up another book. I also have an endorsement lined up whenever I finish the experience requirement.
My initial thought was to take a few months off from studying as going straight from grad school into the CompTIA certs while working full time has been quite mind-numbing, but now I'm thinking that I should go ahead and grind it out while the Sec+ stuff is still fresh on my mind. Any thoughts on that?
Also, is there any disadvantage to passing the CISSP exam a few months before completing the experience requirement? I guess I would be an Associate of CISSP for a short time.
Thanks!
I've been browsing this site for a while now, and thought I would say hello now that I'm about to begin my CISSP journey.
First, some background about me:
I finished an MS in Systems Technology about a year ago. I've got a little over two years of experience as the info-sec director at a small financial institution. I recently completed CompTIA A+ and then Sec+. I discovered this site while studying for the latter. My employer has been generous with paying for my certification materials and exams thus far, but I haven't specifically discussed the prospect of an expensive CISSP bootcamp yet. So here's my tentative plan:
I ordered the AIO combo pack (5th edition + practice exams), which should arrive by early next week. I have noticed that a lot of people recommend other books instead of, or in addition to, this one. The AIO books got me through A+ and Sec+ without any trouble, so I figure that I'll start with that and see how I do on a practice test and then decide if I want to add in the CISSP For Dummies book or the official ISC2 book.
Since I'm still about 21 months away from the required 4 years of experience anyway, I'm planning to take it slow and study the AIO book in my spare time for the next 9-12 months or so. I picked through A+ and Sec+ for about 6 months each, and it worked well for me. Considering that CISSP is supposed to be much more difficult, I think the extra time will be necessary. After that, I will assess my situation with practice exams and then either take a bootcamp course and the exam, or pick up another book. I also have an endorsement lined up whenever I finish the experience requirement.
My initial thought was to take a few months off from studying as going straight from grad school into the CompTIA certs while working full time has been quite mind-numbing, but now I'm thinking that I should go ahead and grind it out while the Sec+ stuff is still fresh on my mind. Any thoughts on that?
Also, is there any disadvantage to passing the CISSP exam a few months before completing the experience requirement? I guess I would be an Associate of CISSP for a short time.
Thanks!