Need Advice

jarias2311

Hello all,

I am new to the forum and I would like to ask for some advice concerning the A+ exam. I am currently studying for the 801/802 exam using Exam Cram 6th edition. I am almost done with the book and once that is complete I plan on reading the book over again and watching professor Messer's videos. I am currently unemployed having just been laid off so I have free time all the way until Aug 26th when my fall semester begins. I read about 60-80 pages a day and seem to do well on the quizzes as of right now. My ? is do you think I will be ready for the exam(s) before the 26th? Or should I not rush and take my time? if anyone can tell me how long they studied for the exams that would be greatly appreciated.

Snow.bros

jarias2311 wrote: »

should I not rush and take my time?

I think you should definitely take your time and make sure you fully understand what you are doing, you can also download the exam objectives just to monitor your progress so far.

jarias2311 wrote: »

if anyone can tell me how long they studied for the exams that would be greatly appreciated.

I studied for the A+ for about a month and i had a gap of one week in between exams both exams.
Good luck on both exams and let us know about the results one way or another!!!

jarias2311

Update: I have scheduled my exams for tomorrow at 10and 1:15EST. I have read my Exam cram book twice and feel as though I have picked up a lot of little things that I did not pick up the first time reading through it. I also am watching PM's videos for the 802 exam as I feel like the 802 will be much harder for me. I have also done the Exam Cram tests and have done pretty well on both the 801 and 802 versions. I am at the point where I feel like if I dont pass the tests, than I never will because I have studied so much. One more day to study! Hopefully tomorrow I will come back on the board with some good news!

jvrlopez

Good luck!

--chris--

jarias2311 wrote: »

Update: I have scheduled my exams for tomorrow at 10and 1:15EST. I have read my Exam cram book twice and feel as though I have picked up a lot of little things that I did not pick up the first time reading through it. I also am watching PM's videos for the 802 exam as I feel like the 802 will be much harder for me. I have also done the Exam Cram tests and have done pretty well on both the 801 and 802 versions. I am at the point where I feel like if I dont pass the tests, than I never will because I have studied so much. One more day to study! Hopefully tomorrow I will come back on the board with some good news!

Thats bad mojo, dont think like that. It also makes you sound like a quitter.

You are right, you will most likely pass...but if you fail, you will have the knowledge of what the exam is like and have a better point of view for preparing for it. Follow your plan, but make a back up plan as well....

jarias2311

Update: I ended up failing both exams. I dont know how this happened to be honest. I read my Exam Cram book twice over, looked at PM's video and did practice exams over and over until they made my head spin. I am pretty deflated, but I will not give up my quest for this A+ cert.

Now with that being said, does anyone have any suggestions to make this not happen again? Do i need to change my study sources?

jvrlopez

Sorry to hear about that. I am sure you will knock them out next time!

I wouldn't change your study sources, but maybe add to them. The Exam Cram series is more of a concise review type book for those already familiar with the material. The Exam PREP series (same publisher and same looking cover) are more detailed and should cover all that is needed in a thorough manner.

When you are studying, find and acknowledge what you are comfortable, familiar, and strong with. Make sure you refresh and review that material so as to not lose that level of familiarity with it. See what it is that you are not too comfortable or well versed in and study that material over and over again.

Static things that can be memorized (in A+'s context, I guess that would be metrics [stats, speed, etc] of devices, protocols, etc) can be 'learned' by writting them over and over again until it becomes almost muscle memory.

Also, now that you have taken the exam, you have some insight into the format, question style, and material that you should be aware of or comfortable with.

Good luck, do not let this dissuade you but rather encourage you to try harder!

--chris--

jarias2311 wrote: »

Update: I ended up failing both exams. I dont know how this happened to be honest. I read my Exam Cram book twice over, looked at PM's video and did practice exams over and over until they made my head spin. I am pretty deflated, but I will not give up my quest for this A+ cert.

Now with that being said, does anyone have any suggestions to make this not happen again? Do i need to change my study sources?

It happens.

Im sure you know what areas tripped you up, I'd write them down while its fresh in your mind then go back and hit them hard until you are certain you know them from to back, top to bottom.

Like mentioned above, the "Cram" series is more suited for someone that has either already taken an A+ cert and needs to recert or someone with a 1+ years of field experience. Its very likely the Cram book skimmed over the lighter areas...

How did you do on the included disk w/practice exam questions that came with the cram book? I ask because that's what I've been using to find weak spots in my self study, I'm hoping its on the right course...

jarias2311

I took the EC practice tests on the CD and aced them. They were simple. I actually feel like they gave a false sense of security. I believed the test would be something similar to that. Boy was I wrong.

--chris--

jarias2311 wrote: »

I took the EC practice tests on the CD and aced them. They were simple. I actually feel like they gave a false sense of security. I believed the test would be something similar to that. Boy was I wrong.

Great.

So the EC practice questions are nothing like the real questions?

jarias2311

--chris-- wrote: »

Great.

So the EC practice questions are nothing like the real questions?

IMO not really. I was getting in the upper 90's every time I took the exams. It wasnt because I memorized the answers either. Maybe my studying style wasnt the best. I studied for about a month and really crammed in the last two weeks. Judging by my scores in practice quizzes from EC and online, I felt I was more than ready. Maybe I got a hard test bank? Maybe I choked? Who knows.

Slept in today. I am going to give my brain a couple days off. I am still feeling pretty disappointed. I think it has hit me more today. Sucks.

unfbilly11

Sorry to hear that, you'll pass it next time. I failed the 801 the first time (my first certification test ever), it happens.

The first thing I would do would be to focus on 1 test at a time rather than taking both in one day. Take whichever one you scored higher on (801 or 802) and go through that material again. Focus on that test and only schedule that test.

I don't really think any 1 resource is better or worse than any other. Exam Cram is great because it gives you multiple practice tests. Go through the material for 1 specific exam again and take a new practice test. When you go through the test, make sure you know WHY the 3 wrong answers are wrong. That is the best advice I received and that helped me a lot. If you are able to tell why the wrong answers are wrong as well as the correct answer, you'll be ok on the exam.

jarias2311

unfbilly11 wrote: »

Sorry to hear that, you'll pass it next time. I failed the 801 the first time (my first certification test ever), it happens.

The first thing I would do would be to focus on 1 test at a time rather than taking both in one day. Take whichever one you scored higher on (801 or 802) and go through that material again. Focus on that test and only schedule that test.

I don't really think any 1 resource is better or worse than any other. Exam Cram is great because it gives you multiple practice tests. Go through the material for 1 specific exam again and take a new practice test. When you go through the test, make sure you know WHY the 3 wrong answers are wrong. That is the best advice I received and that helped me a lot. If you are able to tell why the wrong answers are wrong as well as the correct answer, you'll be ok on the exam.

I schedule my second attempt for 9/3 which is two weeks from now. Hopefully this will give me enough time to pass the 801 exam.