Just finished CISA exam

blackhole · February 2012

ak1153 wrote: »

Care to post their response here for those who are extremely lazy lol

Its big however its not that easy what we all thought of simple scanning

I just broken in numbers see number 8-12. I didn't knew this before.

1. processing of exam results very seriously.
2. policy is to release the results of all of our exams together
3. administer exams in over 250 locations worldwide
4. The first step in the grading process is the review of the preliminary statistical analysis
which begins when a majority of answer sheets are returned.
5. usually occurs a week or two after the exam administration date
6. preliminary analysis is conducted on each exam item in every language that the exam item is offered
7. offers 4 different exams, in up to 10 languages
8. it identifies items that did not perform well based on statistics.
9. Items with poor statistics are reviewed by the members of the respective certification committee.
10. If an error or inconsistency is discovered within an item, the answer key is adjusted to ensure candidates are not penalized for the error.
11. Items with performance statistics on translated exams are also reviewed to determine if errors in translation occurred, impacting the candidate’s ability to answer an item correctly.
12. his review is performed by multilingual members who hold the respective certifications.
13. Once the answer keys are finalized, a passing point is determined and approved by the Certification Committee for each certification. At this point, the testing agency processes each of the exam candidate’s final grades by converted it into a score between 200 and 800.

Kun_IT_Pro · February 2012

No announcements no nothing !!

Ridiculous !!

JDMurray · February 2012

ak1153 wrote: »

Care to post their response here for those who are extremely lazy lol

Dude, just copy-n-paste the line into Google!

CISA Frequently Asked Questions

As to the 8-week processing time, my guess is that--like the (ISC)2--ISACA outsources to a professional exam development and processing company, and they are waiting in a queue for the batch of your exams they submitted to be processed. ISACA is made to wait so you all wait. Never waited in line before?

Now go take your collective minds off the wait by starting to study for your next cert. A "watched pot," people.

ak1153 · February 2012

blackhole wrote: »

Its big however its not that easy what we all thought of simple scanning I just broken in numbers see number 8-12. I didn't knew this before.

1. processing of exam results very seriously.
2. policy is to release the results of all of our exams together
3. administer exams in over 250 locations worldwide
4. The first step in the grading process is the review of the preliminary statistical analysis
which begins when a majority of answer sheets are returned.
5. usually occurs a week or two after the exam administration date
6. preliminary analysis is conducted on each exam item in every language that the exam item is offered
7. offers 4 different exams, in up to 10 languages
8. it identifies items that did not perform well based on statistics.
9. Items with poor statistics are reviewed by the members of the respective certification committee.
10. If an error or inconsistency is discovered within an item, the answer key is adjusted to ensure candidates are not penalized for the error.
11. Items with performance statistics on translated exams are also reviewed to determine if errors in translation occurred, impacting the candidate’s ability to answer an item correctly.
12. his review is performed by multilingual members who hold the respective certifications.
13. Once the answer keys are finalized, a passing point is determined and approved by the Certification Committee for each certification. At this point, the testing agency processes each of the exam candidate’s final grades by converted it into a score between 200 and 800.

Thank you Boss!!!!

ak1153 · February 2012

BTW - with the exception of a few, majority of us in this thread are nOObs.

+1 For an all NOOB thread LOL

Sam2011 · February 2012

blackhole wrote: »

Its big however its not that easy what we all thought of simple scanning I just broken in numbers see number 8-12. I didn't knew this before.

1. processing of exam results very seriously.
2. policy is to release the results of all of our exams together
3. administer exams in over 250 locations worldwide
4. The first step in the grading process is the review of the preliminary statistical analysis
which begins when a majority of answer sheets are returned.
5. usually occurs a week or two after the exam administration date
6. preliminary analysis is conducted on each exam item in every language that the exam item is offered
7. offers 4 different exams, in up to 10 languages
8. it identifies items that did not perform well based on statistics.
9. Items with poor statistics are reviewed by the members of the respective certification committee.
10. If an error or inconsistency is discovered within an item, the answer key is adjusted to ensure candidates are not penalized for the error.
11. Items with performance statistics on translated exams are also reviewed to determine if errors in translation occurred, impacting the candidate’s ability to answer an item correctly.
12. his review is performed by multilingual members who hold the respective certifications.
13. Once the answer keys are finalized, a passing point is determined and approved by the Certification Committee for each certification. At this point, the testing agency processes each of the exam candidate’s final grades by converted it into a score between 200 and 800.

I like points 8 to 12 too , first time I read it !!
Thanks mate

Sam2011 · February 2012

JDMurray wrote: »

Now go take your collective minds off the wait by starting to study for your next cert. A "watched pot," people.

I tried hardly to forget it but I cannot because it means a lot for my career. I am working and doing my job, but still CISA in my head somewhere, and even if I forget it every one around me, knew that I took the exam, asking me about the result because I told them it should be announce any time this week,,
So, How can we do what you asked ?? please guide us ??

ak1153 · February 2012

Sam2011 wrote: »

I tried hardly to forget it but I cannot because it means a lot for my career. I am working and doing my job, but still CISA in my head somewhere, and even if I forget it every one around me, knew that I took the exam, asking me about the result because I told them it should be announce any time this week,,
So, How can we do what you asked ?? please guide us ??

I hope you are kidding and being sarcastic in your response!?!

CISA is just an exam and if you dont pass it, there is always next time.

Remember CISA has a 50% passing rate for first time takers ...

Forget CISA! Start poppin bottles with models!

Sam2011 · February 2012

ak1153 wrote: »

I hope you are kidding and being sarcastic in your response!?!

CISA is just an exam and if you dont pass it, there is always next time. Remember CISA has a 50% passing rate for first time takers ...

Forget CISA! Start poppin bottles with models!

My friend ak1153,
First I am not posting on security forum to tell jokes, I mean every words I wrote in my previous post. Maybe it is not the case for you but it doesn't mean that all of us here exactly like you comfort zone situation. I know there is another chance to do it, but in my situatin, this exam is my second attempt and I will get much more benefits if I get it this time.
Finally, I agree that CISA it is not a big deal and just a certification, but in the business language this piece of carton means a lot to prove your knowledge and experience.

Good luck every one ..

cncncn · February 2012

Sam2011 wrote: »

My friend ak1153,
First I am not posting on security forum to tell jokes, I mean every words I wrote in my previous post. Maybe it is not the case for you but it doesn't mean that all of us here exactly like you comfort zone situation. I know there is another chance to do it, but in my situatin, this exam is my second attempt and I will get much more benefits if I get it this time.
Finally, I agree that CISA it is not a big deal and just a certification, but in the business language this piece of carton means a lot to prove your knowledge and experience.

Good luck every one ..

Plus, in my country, laws and regulations encourage and sometimes make it neccessary to have a CISA degree in order to conduct IT Audits.
Also it has a huge effect in promotions in career.
So, it is not just an exam! for me either..

w0rd · February 2012

JDMurray wrote: »

As to the 8-week processing time, my guess is that--like the (ISC)2--ISACA outsources to a professional exam development and processing company, and they are waiting in a queue for the batch of your exams they submitted to be processed. ISACA is made to wait so you all wait.

Since we're just waiting around with nothing to do... might as well break this down and analyze.

Short answer: Don't agree with you.

Long answer --

I suspect there are multiple companies that can offer to process test results. As such, there is 'competition' and pressure to get whatever processing company they are using to submit back results in a quicker manner. Additionally, there has to be SLAs in place to keep things in check. No way does ISACA say, "Okay guys, here are the Scantrons, run 'em and get them back to us whenever you can." There needs to be concrete time windows in place. So, you can control that situation.

Now, let's pick apart the FAQ on this from their site.

ISACA takes the processing of exam results very seriously. Best practice dictates that item performance be carefully reviewed after each exam administration to ensure that items performed in a fair and consistent manner. Also, ISACA’s policy is to release the results of all of our exams together, rather than individually as they are processed.

OK. Agreed that you wouldn't want to scan one, grade, release, scan the next, grade, release. But I hope they aren't holding up my results because the ISACA tests that were administered in the amazon jungle haven't come in yet. Not my problem and not the way to do things; holding up the majority for a small batch of tests yet to come in (or be processed).

ISACA works with its testing agency to administer our exams in over 250 locations worldwide. The first step in the grading process is the review of the preliminary statistical analysis which begins when a majority of answer sheets are returned. This usually occurs a week or two after the exam administration date. This preliminary analysis is conducted on each exam item in every language that the exam item is offered. Currently, ISACA offers 4 different exams, in up to 10 languages. This step is essential because it identifies items that did not perform well based on statistics. Items with poor statistics are reviewed by the members of the respective certification committee. If an error or inconsistency is discovered within an item, the answer key is adjusted to ensure candidates are not penalized for the error.
Items with performance statistics on translated exams are also reviewed to determine if errors in translation occurred, impacting the candidate’s ability to answer an item correctly. This review is performed by multilingual ISACA members who hold the respective certifications.

This tells us, after the test date, one to two weeks in, they have the data they need to start looking at things that went wrong. It takes six weeks to do that? Furthermore, they mention four different exams in ten languages. I have to imagine that, different languages, are simply translated and the questions remain the same. Therefore, there are four exams overall.. doesn't matter if exam one, question three, is in English, Chinese, or Spanish... it asks the same thing. This whole question review error process could be done in an [x] day executive session in the conference room or, if they want, an off-site at a nice hotel.

Once the answer keys are finalized, a passing point is determined and approved by the Certification Committee for each certification. At this point, the testing agency processes each of the exam candidate’s final grades by converted it into a score between 200 and 800.

Back to SLAs. There should be something in place to control the time window on this.

ISACA and our testing agency are dedicated to the efficient processing of exam results. We are also committed to performing the proper due diligence so that test results are reliable.

If you're dedicated to the efficient processing of exam results, you have a long way to go.

Sorry. I firmly believe this shouldn't take this long for an organization that runs a test twice a year, especially for an organization that tests the skill of auditing and, as such, has the ability to look into things and adjust accordingly. It may be slow at the way beginning when you stand all of this up and give the test for the first time ever, but they've been running tests for how long? The historical data, for the past few years at least, suggest it continues to take around two months. Do I need this certification right away as some other posters in this thread (i.e. for a raise, promotion, whatever)? No, but doesn't mean I should have to wait around forever to get the result.

forestgiant · February 2012

w0rd wrote: »

Since we're just waiting around with nothing to do... might as well break this down and analyze.

Short answer: Don't agree with you.

Yep, I also don't agree. ISACA does a superb job at sending you emails about training programs, and nice color snail mail letters to remind you that your membership is going to expire, about to expire, and has expired. It screams, "Please please please send us money."

There is absolutely no excuse to take more than 7 weeks, given 1 week was Xmas/New Year. We are way past the days of utilizing a manual psycho-analytical, double-duty check and recheck approach as an excuse to better the exam process. PMI and Graduate Management Admission Council that have larger exam scope and they do just fine with CBTs.

I should add, that for an organization that enforces the IT governance framework, COBIT, ISACA doesn't seem to "align IT services to business strategies."

w0rd · February 2012

forestgiant wrote: »

Yep, I also don't agree. ISACA does a superb job at sending you emails about training programs, and nice color snail mail letters to remind you that your membership is going to expire, about to expire, and has expired. It screams, "Please please please send us money."

There is absolutely no excuse to take more than 7 weeks, given 1 week was Xmas/New Year. We are way past the days of utilizing a manual psycho-analytical, double-duty check and recheck approach as an excuse to better the exam process. PMI and Graduate Management Admission Council that have larger exam scope and they do just fine with CBTs.

I should add, that for an organization that enforces the IT governance framework, COBIT, ISACA doesn't seem to "align IT services to business strategies."

That's another good point. I haven't really kept track before the December 2011 exam regarding frequency of communication, but since then, I've received a ton of emails from ISACA and a few print materials. They hammer those out no problem.

Another good point on the whole CBT concept. I get the impression ISACA (and ISC2) stick with paper because it gives off a sense of "Oh.. wow.. it's a paper test in a CBT world, it must be super legit." They may also believe that paper tests somehow reduce some security risks. Certain areas of the world are corrupt and will continue to be... doesn't matter if you give them a paper test or it's on a computer. If that offends anyone, sorry, it's the real world. No reason why these tests cannot be administered via a computer. PMI does a fantastic job at this. If they can make it work and hold the value (which they absolutely do), no excuse why others can't.

JDMurray · February 2012

w0rd wrote: »

That's another good point. I haven't really kept track before the December 2011 exam regarding frequency of communication, but since then, I've received a ton of emails from ISACA and a few print materials. They hammer those out no problem.

This is because it is much, much easier to create and email sale and marketing material than it is to collect, analyze, and grade thousands of exams that were administrated all over the Earth.

w0rd wrote: »

Another good point on the whole CBT concept. I get the impression ISACA (and ISC2) stick with paper because it gives off a sense of "Oh.. wow.. it's a paper test in a CBT world, it must be super legit." They may also believe that paper tests somehow reduce some security risks. Certain areas of the world are corrupt and will continue to be... doesn't matter if you give them a paper test or it's on a computer. If that offends anyone, sorry, it's the real world. No reason why these tests cannot be administered via a computer. PMI does a fantastic job at this. If they can make it work and hold the value (which they absolutely do), no excuse why others can't.

Paper exams are far more secure. They are constantly in the possession of trustworthy people (except in transit and going through customs), and the paper is a tangible paper trail in case a grade reassessment audit is needed. In many countries there are very few trustworthy computer-based exam facilities. Those that do exist charge much more for their service, and part of this added cost would probably be passed along to exam candidates. So if ISACA or (ISC)2 moved to only computer-based exams, in most countries their exams would probably be more expensive and available to be taken in far fewer locations.

JimmyHan · February 2012

just curious if I stated that this CISA certification does not have any impact to my career, would CISA keep me to not passing the exam? haha.

Anyway, this is my second try and I expect passing this time. I also won't renew my membership.

Awaiting results · February 2012

mjefferson wrote: »

1. That email regarding purchasing the question database upgrade simply went to everyone who purchased the 2011 questions CD. There's no way their systems are that integrated that it was targeted to people who did not pass. I had the same feeling, but we're being paranoid.

I have not received any 100 question CD or any such thing.. I had purchased v11 questions CD for 2011.. Not sure whats going on.. iots just so killing.. cant they atleast give a precise date and time as to when they plan to release the results? M getting only their spams of membership renewals, webinars, mobile security n such stuff which I am in no mood to read till I get my results!!

Edwin.Mshanga · February 2012

Awaiting results wrote: »

mjefferson wrote: »

1. That email regarding purchasing the question database upgrade simply went to everyone who purchased the 2011 questions CD. There's no way their systems are that integrated that it was targeted to people who did not pass. I had the same feeling, but we're being paranoid.

I have not received any 100 question CD or any such thing.. I had purchased v11 questions CD for 2011.. Not sure whats going on.. iots just so killing.. cant they atleast give a precise date and time as to when they plan to release the results? M getting only their spams of membership renewals, webinars, mobile security n such stuff which I am in no mood to read till I get my results!!

Whatever the case all I need from ISACA is the communication to tell us when will the be out. I dont think that is very diffucult.

JimmyHan · February 2012

wondering if ISACA is using automated checking or not, my guess is that they checked it manually. lol

Awaiting results · February 2012

JimmyHan wrote: »

wondering if ISACA is using automated checking or not, my guess is that they checked it manually. lol

Checked?! or checkING... ?

JimmyHan · February 2012

Yeah checking... lol

Hear beats every time I receive email.

paul78 · February 2012

I don't understand. If you don't renew your ISACA membership, why take the CISA/CISM etc.

Don't you need to be an ISACA member to hold a valid CISA/CISM/CRISC cert?

Ps. My prediction for results is 3pm ET on Friday. I wonder if there are Vegas odds on this? Maybe we can start a pool

mjefferson · February 2012

My bet:
Next Tuesday, 5p Eastern time.

WGF · February 2012

paul78 wrote: »

I don't understand. If you don't renew your ISACA membership, why take the CISA/CISM etc.

Don't you need to be an ISACA member to hold a valid CISA/CISM/CRISC cert?

No, you don't need to be a member to have a CISA. From the ISACA website in what you need to do to become a CISA:

subi · February 2012

wait is just killing........ checked my emails 100 times today.

ak1153 · February 2012

Release time: Friday 230pm CST

*my prediction

htebazile · February 2012

i took the cisa exam in december, and like all of you, i am desperate to find out my score as well.someone said there is a 50% pass rate for those who take the cisa the first time. is that true? god i hope not!

AlexNguyen · February 2012

htebazile wrote: »

someone said there is a 50% pass rate for those who take the cisa the first time. is that true? god i hope not!

2003 CISA Exam Statistics:
Exam Takers = 11900 (10436 in 2002)
Pass Rate = 52% (51% in 2002)

Source: ISACA China Hong Kong Chapter - Certified Information Systems Auditor ® (CISA) Statistics

AlexNguyen · February 2012

Statistics from the June 2007 Exams:

CISA
Worldwide Exam Takers = 12350 Pass Rate = 49,5%
North America Exam Takers = 3691 Pass Rate = 58,4%

CISM
Worldwide Exam Takers = 1790 Pass Rate = 76,6%
North America Exam Takers = 630 Pass Rate = 81,9%

Source: http://www.isaca-calgary.org/upload/media_element/18/01/isaca-newsletter-jan08.pdf

Edwin.Mshanga · February 2012

Whew! No results again today....Wow! I guess the exams will be out next week. Right now I am not able to concetrate on anything. I just feel like I should go on leave and only come back when the results are out.

Awaiting results · February 2012

Hopefully will get something tonight.. I don wanna wait all through weekend! 8 weeks up for tomorrow!! can they exceed 8 weeks timeframe?

Just finished CISA exam

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