Starting WGU MS:ISA Jan 1st

BGraves

Hi all,

Just wanted to start this thread and see if anyone else was starting their WGU MS:ISA Jan 1st like I was. Didn't know if anyone was but thought maybe we could stay in touch and help motivate, study, etc. Always nice to have someone else to bounce ideas off of.

The first class, DGC2 Crypto seems pretty straight forward and looks mainly like it's revolving around reading and Ucertify reading/quizzes and some videos thrown in too.

Pretty sure this would also count as CISSP CPE credits for Group A, so that's a real bonus too.

Also, Happy New Year!

da_vato

Congrats on starting your masters. I am actually finishing my sixth class right now. Cryptography was a pretty easy class especially if you have taken CISSP. The recommended reading for that class is far deeper in the weeds than you need. When you start reading and feeling like "why do I need to know this"... you most likely don't.

Good luck to you and anyone else starting MSISA.

BGraves

Thanks da_vato!
I've been looking through the Cryptography material and thinking it was a bit much in some areas

I think the objective based classes, exams/quizzes/certs are going to be quite enjoyable.
The paper writing courses however....lol

Nobylspoon

What other courses do you have scheduled for this term?

Today completes my first month working on the MSISA. I passed the updated Cryptography exam yesterday. My studying was primarily focused on uCertify material and the recommended videos. My test score was on par with what I was scoring on the uCertify tests and the pre-assessment. However, the actual exam seems to go more in depth than the practice material so pay attention to all of those little details.

I'm now wrapping up Task 1 of VUT2. My goal is to have this completed by 1/15, when the JIT2 boot camp starts. I'm also working on the CEH material while I knock out both of those performance based courses.

JoJoCal19

Nobylspoon wrote: »

What other courses do you have scheduled for this term?

Today completes my first month working on the MSISA. I passed the updated Cryptography exam yesterday. My studying was primarily focused on uCertify material and the recommended videos. My test score was on par with what I was scoring on the uCertify tests and the pre-assessment. However, the actual exam seems to go more in depth than the practice material so pay attention to all of those little details.

I'm now wrapping up Task 1 of VUT2. My goal is to have this completed by 1/15, when the JIT2 boot camp starts. I'm also working on the CEH material while I knock out both of those performance based courses.

I was supposed to start Jan 1st however it's been slipped to Feb 1st. Is the CEH exam going to be v8?

BGraves

Sorry to hear that JoJo, I'm sure it will work out though! Hang in there!

@Noblyspoon - I've got LOT2, TFT2, and FNV2 this term also. I wanted to break up the objective and performance based classes so I'd have a decent mix.
Sounds good about the Crypto, I've looked through all the material and it seems like a month is an appropriate amount of time to spend on that one.

Thanks!

earonw49

You got it @BGraves! Wishing you nothing but the best!

I will bookmark this thread and pop in from time to time!

Good luck and congrats on taking your education even further!

Nobylspoon

JoJoCal19 wrote: »

I was supposed to start Jan 1st however it's been slipped to Feb 1st. Is the CEH exam going to be v8?

Yes, it will be v8. You will get iLabs and iClass access (CBT and VM labs) along with EC Council Press ebooks. They do not provide the 24GB of tools but they are all available from your VMs on iLabs.

JoJoCal19

Nobylspoon wrote: »

Yes, it will be v8. You will get iLabs and iClass access (CBT and VM labs) along with EC Council Press ebooks. They do not provide the 24GB of tools but they are all available from your VMs on iLabs.

AWESOME!!! So glad to hear it. Since I'm job hunting right now and trying to move from IAM to technical side of security, I am planning on doing the ethical hacking courses first. I got a jump start on studying by starting to read The Basics of Hacking and Penetration Testing 2nd Ed by Patrick Engebretson. I thought it would be a good primer.

njfaisal

Hi guys. I started WGU MSISA on Dec 1st and passed CEH last month. I was going to take CHFI next, but was told /thought that you can't take more than one cert exam per semester, as they have to pay for the vouchers. The performance essays take so much longer to complete with task stream returns. I was also told that I have to finish the first 3 enrolled course first before taking more courses. Is that a new requirement?
Thanks!

ratbuddy

Who told you that? A reliable source? It's news to me, and I'd hate to have to delay my MS for something like that, especially since WGU plays up the 'accelerate' angle.

cookeaj1

One 'Cert' exam per term certainly wasn't the case when I did the BSIT a couple years ago. I hope that hasn't changed.

I'm starting MSISA Feb 1, had planned on CEH and CHFI along with LOT2...

Mike-Mike

I started in November with Cyberlaw and I hated that class, working on Crypto now

BGraves

How are you liking Crypto Mike? I think the text book is pretty silly, hard to follow, numerous spelling errors and grammar errors too. I feel quite thankful I didn't try to pick up a hardcover version of that, not sure where anyone gets off charging $180+ for that crap book. I'm about 3/4's of the way done with the reading and Ucertify stuff, hoping to wrap up everything by the end of next week.

Mike-Mike

BGraves wrote: »

How are you liking Crypto Mike? I think the text book is pretty silly, hard to follow, numerous spelling errors and grammar errors too. I feel quite thankful I didn't try to pick up a hardcover version of that, not sure where anyone gets off charging $180+ for that crap book. I'm about 3/4's of the way done with the reading and Ucertify stuff, hoping to wrap up everything by the end of next week.

so far I've just been doing the Skillports they have for the CISSP

BGraves

Mike-
Just completed the Crypto course. Feel like the textbook was 99% useless, the ucertify was next helpful, and the skillsoft was probably the most helpful even though it was listed as being an optional resource. Wish I could give feedback about the class material specifically but didn't see an opportunity to do so. Hope you do well on the course! Next up, LOT2!

Mike-Mike

BGraves wrote: »

Mike-
Just completed the Crypto course. Feel like the textbook was 99% useless, the ucertify was next helpful, and the skillsoft was probably the most helpful even though it was listed as being an optional resource. Wish I could give feedback about the class material specifically but didn't see an opportunity to do so. Hope you do well on the course! Next up, LOT2!

thanks for the tips, I'll focus on the UCertify and Skillport, I took the practice test without any studying and got a 58%, so I think it shouldn't be too hard

NavyIT

How long do you all expect this program to take you from start to finish?

Good luck!

BGraves

@Mike-Mike
Sounds good! I feel like the final was a bit more challenging than I thought it would be but the WGU Preassessment wasn't too bad. If you score good (80%+) on the WGU pre-assessment then you should be fine.

@NavyIT - I just started at the beginning of this month and honestly I'm not sure how long it should take me start to finish. I think WGU estimates about a year and a half to two years to complete the program. I personally think I'll be looking at a year to a year a half to finish at an estimated 20 hours per week of studying and etc. I could probably get done faster if I was to invest more time but its hard to find any time to spare already. I admit, I could stop playing a game of LoL or two a day....but that Win of the Day compels me!

I'm sure others that are farther along in the program could comment on their progress!

njlogix

Hi everyone. I need some help from the WGU students regarding course selection. I enrolled for 9 CUs and knocked them out in 2 months. Now I am on accelerated mode, and finished 12 credits in under 3 months. I would like to complete MSISA in 2 terms. My mentor tells me that I can only enroll up to 9-10 CUs each term. Is this true? I do not want to drive myself crazy to finish 20 credits in 1 term. If I can take 13 CUs at the same time next term (including a 4 credit capstone), I will have the entire 6 months to work on the capstone. I do not want to pay for one additional term just to do the capstone. How do I make the case to take 13 Units at the same time, rather than having to finish all 9 units, and then "accelerate" into the capstone, and thus avoid losing precious time?

Thanks for your help!

da_vato

That doesn't sound right at all, My term ends here on March 1st and I completed 15 cu. I am aiming to finish in two terms as well. I would bring this issue up higher if I were you.

srabiee

You should be permitted to complete as many CU's per term as you can handle. You should never be sitting around doing nothing, or sitting and waiting for the term to end before you begin more classes. I completed 47 CU's my first term. BS degree shouldn't be any different than MS degree in that regard.

Definitely escalate this issue through the proper channels if necessary to get it resolved.

bherbie

I think he will only allow 9 CUs to register to start the term to help prevent someone from enrolling into too many courses and not meeting SAP. That is why he will only allow 9 until you complete those and then will allow you to register for your capstone further into the term. Need to find out if this is standard or just your mentor's way of doing things. So I think this is your question.

TomkoTech

I'm pretty sure limiting you to 9 isn't standard practice. A full time status for non VA/GI Bill students is 12 CUs per term. Limiting you to 9 messes up your financial aid. As for VA/GI BIll students the minimum for full time is 18 CUs. If you are being limited to 9 I would suggest talking to someone else, or requesting a new mentor.

BGraves

@njlogix
Take a few deep breathes, sounds like you're wound tight! =D
Regarding your concerns, I'd say you are stressing yourself out when you should be asking these questions to the college.
I doubt they would charge you for a full term if you only have a capstone and knock it out in a month or two. They probably prorate (charge you for the time you did spend completing the capstone) but it would be good to ask them and find out.
As for the enrollment of classes, I think bherbie above makes a good point about them starting out with the typical amount and then allowing you to accelerate from there. I don't really know how much "precious time" you would lose accelerating, did you lose a lot of time when you accelerated a class this term?

@tomkotech/Srabiee
Generally graduate programs require 9 hours per term to be considered "Full time". So 9-10 hours enrolled would be pretty normal, vs the 12 minimum for a BS program. I myself am taking 10 this term and receiving full GIbill benefits.

colemic

Full-time graduate load is 8 CUs... and yes, they will prorate the tuition based on how many CUs you have left for the final semester (if it's just capstone, it will be 4 hours, ~800 if I remember correctly.)

coty24

Gents,

I just passed DGC2(Crypto) one month ago. All you need is The CISSP AIO; I used 5th edition. THIS is the book to get!! I also like many of you studied all the other courseware and it kinda sucks. The only thing was good was Khan Academy. If you want to really understand the material and be prepared for the best, CISSP AIO is all you need! I don't have CISSP btw; I leaned everything from that book. Hope this helps someone

JoJoCal19

coty24 wrote: »

Gents,

I just passed DGC2(Crypto) one month ago. All you need is The CISSP AIO; I used 5th edition. THIS is the book to get!! I also like many of you studied all the other courseware and it kinda sucks. The only thing was good was Khan Academy. If you want to really understand the material and be prepared for the best, CISSP AIO is all you need! I don't have CISSP btw; I leaned everything from that book. Hope this helps someone

Thanks for for the info. I start the MSISA on March 1st. Did you just read the Crypto section of the AIO? I have mine still around so that's good to hear I can use it for the course.

njlogix

I talked to the program manager and enrolled in the rest of the courses in one shot, completing 26 units in 3 months. Now I have 2 more months to finish the capstone. Takes a lot of stress out.

I did ask about acceleration through proper channels before, and about pro-rating for capstone. Even with pro-rating, you pay about $1500 for extending to another term for capstone, so I will try to finish everything this term.

Bgraves, lots of assumptions there. I talked to my mentor several times about these before I posted it here. She told me that I can't take Cryptography this term because most people fail. I have been a CISSP for over 10 years and crypto was a piece of cake. Taking the advice to talk to program manager helped.

njlogix

BGraves, Just realized you have been in the program since January. I started in December and will be graduating in May, so thanks for the pointers, but they were not applicable in my situation, as things work a little differently in their graduate program. I only wanted to accelerate because I accepted a CISO position to start on April 1st, and had a month off to work on the courses. Otherwise, I would not have time to finish this course. It worked out great.

njlogix

BGraves , obviously I tried the normal channels before I posted the question here. Since then I got the remaining courses approved and just finished my capstone, thus finishing the degree in one term. I needed to accelerate because I had a month off in March before I start a job as CISO of a media company on April 1st. And yes, I do value my time a lot, as I have a full-time job, business and family.

My mentor did not have the answers I needed, and she learned as we went through the approval process for acceleration. She also advised me not to take Crypto exam this term because most people fail-- I passed within one day of enrollment, without any studying. She might have preferred an one size fits all model of traditional school, but I am overall impressed with customer service at WGU. I am going back to WGU for MBA.