CISM/CISA/CRISC/CGEIT December 2012 Feedback

za3bour

Can't wait for CRISC results, it was a very hard exam for me so i really hope that I did well. I don't understand though why it takes all that long time to get the results. Waiting is really hard....

cyclinglen

Like week 7? Week 8 would be next Saturday.

bmac

Taken these dates from previous threads.

exam date was 14.06.2008, results announced on 22.07.2008
exam date was 12.12.2009, results announced on 29.01.2010
exam date was 12.06.2010, results announced on 13.08.2010
exam date was 11.12.2010, results announced on 28.01.2011
exam date was 11.06.2011, results announced on 02.08.2011
exam date was 10.12.2011, results announced on 03.02.2012

I think you might be right, Paul78. Going on lasts years results day, this years will be the 1st Feb (depending on time zones).

CISPhD

za3bour wrote: »

Can't wait for CRISC results, it was a very hard exam for me so i really hope that I did well. I don't understand though why it takes all that long time to get the results. Waiting is really hard....

You have to figure that they only administer the exams twice per year (well, more often in 2013, but still). They have every single individual trying to certify, or sometimes recertify, all at the same time, for every ISACA exam, for every country the exams are administered in. This somewhat small organization received all those results at once, and has to review and process each form individually.

I can likely assume the next comment will be something similar to "Then why don't they make the exam electronic, like ISC2 did with the CISSP!?"... The answer there is simply cost. The financials associated with building your own, or contract with someone like Pearson Vue, is a very expensive endeavor. ISACA is a not for profit organization, but they are also not a charity. They have to "break even" at year end. This means that any additional costs associated with administering the exams get passed onto you and I. If you thought the exam costs were high now, give them a peak with the those administrative costs added in.

paul78

As the resident TE conspiracy theorist, I assert that the wait is part of the exam and to determine if you have the mettle to be ISACA certified and they deduct points whenever you call or send email to ISACA asking for a date.

CISPhD

paul78 wrote: »

As the resident TE conspiracy theorist, I assert that the wait is part of the exam and to determine if you have the mettle to be ISACA certified and they deduct points whenever you call or send email to ISACA asking for a date.

Why isn't this man working for the secret service!?!?!?!?

Genius.

pktlabs

CISPhD wrote: »

I can likely assume the next comment will be something similar to "Then why don't they make the exam electronic, like ISC2 did with the CISSP!?"... The answer there is simply cost. The financials associated with building your own, or contract with someone like Pearson Vue, is a very expensive endeavor.

While I agree with this, CISA certifications are not free. In comparison to the ISC2, here are my findings:

ISC2 Exam
CISSP CBT Exam - $599
AMF dues $85/yr x 3 years = $255.00
Total cost: $854 (3 years)

ISACA Member
CISA Exam (ISACA Member) - $410 (early registration)
Apply for CISA Certification Fee- $50
ISACA Membership - $135 + Chapter dues ($25) - $160 x 3 years = $480.00
AMF dues - $45/yr x 3 years = $135

Total cost: $1074 minimum (3 years)

Non-ISACA Member
CISA Exam (Non ISACA Member) - $585 (early registration)
Apply for CISA Certification Fee - $50
AMF dues - $85/yr x 3 years = $255.00

Total cost: $890 (3 years)

Obviously each certification comes with its benefits, this is strictly for a 3 year certification.

paul78

@pktlabs - interesting comparison. But I wonder what each group's revenue and expense budgets are like. Maybe ISC simply has more members and can scale better to cover expenses. I think both are 501c nonprofits so that info should be available.

CISPhD wrote: »

Why isn't this man working for the secret service!?!?!?

Yeah, either that or clown in a circus

JDMurray

pktlabs wrote: »

Obviously each certification comes with its benefits, this is strictly for a 3 year certification.

It's a three-year reporting period to collect CPE hours for maintaining the certifications, so also factor in the money spent to collect those CPE hours (such as, attending InfoSec conferences and workshops, buying books and magazine subscriptions, paying professional organization chapter dues, time doing volunteer work, etc.).

za3bour

CISPhD wrote: »

You have to figure that they only administer the exams twice per year (well, more often in 2013, but still). They have every single individual trying to certify, or sometimes recertify, all at the same time, for every ISACA exam, for every country the exams are administered in. This somewhat small organization received all those results at once, and has to review and process each form individually.

I can likely assume the next comment will be something similar to "Then why don't they make the exam electronic, like ISC2 did with the CISSP!?"... The answer there is simply cost. The financials associated with building your own, or contract with someone like Pearson Vue, is a very expensive endeavor. ISACA is a not for profit organization, but they are also not a charity. They have to "break even" at year end. This means that any additional costs associated with administering the exams get passed onto you and I. If you thought the exam costs were high now, give them a peak with the those administrative costs added in.

Thanks a lot, this was very informative indeed i appreciate your response, i think you are right since they are a non profit org. You are also right for me 500$ is expensive especially if i compare it to MS exams for example.

I guess the wait is almost over, i am sure next week they will release them depending on history.

numberfive

" The answer there is simply cost."
This is not true, current process cost more than electronic version, but it is also more reliable and it minimizes risks of cheating, therefore protecting reputation of all holders of ISACA credentials.
It was stated somewhere in Q&A by ISACA officials.

iwantcisa

numberfive wrote: »

" The answer there is simply cost."
This is not true, current process cost more than electronic version, but it is also more reliable and it minimizes risks of cheating, therefore protecting reputation of all holders of ISACA credentials.
It was stated somewhere in Q&A by ISACA officials.

So do you mean to say that tests like PMP which are conducted in "electronic" format are succeptible to cheating? So, some of those credential holders could be cheaters? I somehow find difficult to believe this!

za3bour

iwantcisa wrote: »

So do you mean to say that tests like PMP which are conducted in "electronic" format are succeptible to cheating? So, some of those credential holders could be cheaters? I somehow find difficult to believe this!

I think any exam is susceptible to cheating whether it is electronic or not.

paul78

@iwantcisa - Unfortunately, yes, some credential holders are cheaters. That's just reality. You referenced the PMP; I actually had a conversation with a PMP holder about a year ago. I had asked him about his PMP and he casually mentioned that it was an easy exam because there were lots of **** resources available. And that in his chapter (I assume that there are local chapters of some sort), information was readily available. I think he detected the horror on my face so he prefaced that the PMP was more of a way for program managers to network professionally versus some acknowledgement of skill or experience.

@numberfive - good point. I had a look at the ISACA and ISC2 annual reports. And I was quite surprised to see the amount of revenue (as I recall USD$45MM) that ISACA collects each year. ISACA is a much larger financial concern that I had ever suspected.

I personally like the method that ISACA administers their testing. Their method give me a perception that somehow the ISACA exams are more "official".

iwantcisa

za3bour wrote: »

I think any exam is susceptible to cheating whether it is electronic or not.

I agree - I think the means of exam administration should not be linked to the possibilities of "cheating". Any mechanism of exam administration would have possible vulnerabilities.

numberfive

iwantcisa wrote: »

So do you mean to say that tests like PMP which are conducted in "electronic" format are succeptible to cheating? So, some of those credential holders could be cheaters? I somehow find difficult to believe this!

No, I mean that risks of cheating are lower on bi-annual paper based exam than on any electronic exam with static DB of questions.

iwantcisa

On Facebook page, ISACA says "You can expect to receive results about eight weeks after the exam...mid-February. Good luck Niranjana and all awaiting results!" URL]https://www.facebook.com/ISACAHQ[/URL Is the wait really that long? What do you think - I am still expecting to receive the results by Feb-01. All the best to everyone!! It was not at all an easy one.

lysje

February 2nd would be exactly 8th weeks after the exam. Technically it would still be the 8th week till February 8th(mid-February??). I really hope that you're right and we can expect the results by February 1st or earlier!

paul78

The reason why most people are hopeful that it's Feb 1 is because that's a Friday. Previous experience is that the Dec results are provided the last week of Jan or first week in February. So if it's not Feb 1, the other most likely would be between Feb 4 and Feb 8. Last year, the results were delivered on Feb 3. The other odds is that the Dec results have been posted on Friday - so the other reason why people are hopeful that it's Feb 1.

I should have been a bookie instead

iwantcisa

paul78 wrote: »

The reason why most people are hopeful that it's Feb 1 is because that's a Friday. Previous experience is that the Dec results are provided the last week of Jan or first week in February. So if it's not Feb 1, the other most likely would be between Feb 4 and Feb 8. Last year, the results were delivered on Feb 3. The other odds is that the Dec results have been posted on Friday - so the other reason why people are hopeful that it's Feb 1.

I should have been a bookie instead

You're super... yes - did observe the pattern... Feb-01 right bookie buddy

4leafclover

I took it last December and the results were released the Friday of the 8th week. I did not pass, and therefore took it again in June. The June results were released the Wednesday of the 8th week. I did not pass again, and sat for it one last time (hopefully third time's a charm?!) this past December. I anticipate the results to be released this week...hopefully sooner rather than later!

paul78

Good luck 4leafclover. I admire your perseverance. Don't give up if you don't get it.

4leafclover

Thanks, Paul.

NotEvenTrying

FYI

When I called yesterday, I was told the results would not be released this week.

I asked if next week then, being told maybe.

Not impressed.

I feel forced to place little value in a certification with information systems in the name, yet the organization seems to resist embracing it.

I'd gather that other organizations get quite the laugh from that.

4leafclover

Hopefully soon they will conduct computer based exams as opposed to the ancient scantron. Even so, a scantron should not take two months to score - even with all the analyzations/curves they claim to use to process them. You're right, for an IS certification, it is quite ironic that more efficient technology is not used to score the exams.

4leafclover

I just called ISACA's CISA certification department. I was told that they are hoping to have the results released early next week.

lysje

I really hope they are kidding about waiting another week, the suspense is killing me...

paul78

meh - a little wait never hurt anyone. All you young whippersnappers with your fancy 4G, high-speed internet, smart phones, and fast food could benefit from how we used to do it in the old days before instant exam results. In my day, we had to walk to work uphill both ways in the snow and we didn't have any of those sissy icons or windows. And we did all our programming with 1's and 0's.

badrottie

If there is one thing ISACA drills into candidates, it is learning the value of patience. When they say 8 weeks before they will release results, they mean 8 weeks.

vasyvasy

paul78 wrote: »

meh - a little wait never hurt anyone. All you young whippersnappers with your fancy 4G, high-speed internet, smart phones, and fast food could benefit from how we used to do it in the old days before instant exam results. In my day, we had to walk to work uphill both ways in the snow and we didn't have any of those sissy icons or windows. And we did all our programming with 1's and 0's.

OK, that's not necessarily a good thing to wait... there is a new world out there, if you take the time to use 3G, someone else will be using 4G (you understand my analogy)

ISACA said 8 months, it should be 8 months (or less, of course)
Otherwise, you can follow them with a non-conformity report