MS:ISA begins June 1

I recently applied to WGU for the MS:ISA program, and barring an issue with the last bit of paperwork, I am all set up to begin the courses on June 1.

I know the program has its goods and bads, but I needed something to take up some of my time while I look for a job. Every time I finish studying for a cert and take the test, I'm bored out of my mind the next week so I start anew. I graduated last December, and since then I've gotten a new cert every month (except for May as I prepare for WGU).

I've also applied to the Georgia Tech OMSCS program, and my goal is to eventually complete both programs.

I know it is still a ways away from June, but I'm looking forward to the journey.

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xeruan

Impressively, I got a grade back for one of my tasks. What I don't understand, however, is that the grade was for the last task I submitted and was 26 in the queue.

So now I have tasks at 5-12 and 25 in the queue, looking forward to getting the grades today.

aspiringsoul

Welcome to the party....

Earned the CEH in April. Sitting the CHFI later this month.

novovictus

xeruan wrote: »

Impressively, I got a grade back for one of my tasks. What I don't understand, however, is that the grade was for the last task I submitted and was 26 in the queue.

Some I submitted are in the 20's now. Are there any revisions you have had to make so far?

xeruan

novovictus wrote: »

Some I submitted are in the 20's now. Are there any revisions you have had to make so far?

My last task that I submitted is now being evaluated. So far, out of the 10 tasks I submitted, I've had 2 in need of revision. All 3 of my LOT2 Hacking Countermeasures and Techniques passed, so that course is complete. Task 4 of TFT2 Cyberlaw was returned, with comments that I should not use personal pronouns and that they were unable to find sections about various people would work with the CISO. Considering I was the CISO in the scenario and I discussed how I would interact with those groups, I'm setting up an appointment with the Course Mentors to see what I can do.

The other task that was returned was LYT2 Current and Emerging Technologies Task 2. I received the comment for not including my sources. Considering it is an annotated bibliography, I was apparently wrong in assuming that I wouldn't need to cite the source in the paragraph.

For the LYT2 Task 2, I'm trying to decide if I should even worry with the Course Mentor, or just submit it again, and contact them if it is returned with necessary revisions again.

I'm currently waiting on TFT2 Task 3, and I'll edit the post once I get a grade for it.
Edit*: I created a new post rather than updating since it was fairly lengthy.

xeruan

I was going to edit the previous post, but decided I would create a new post for the following.

My TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 3 attempt was not evaluated, due to being kicked back for authenticity issues. I received an Academic Authenticity Warning from the University for my submission. TFT2 Task 3 is based on modifying a service level agreement to better protect a fictional company's data and intellectual property. Due to this, course mentors recommend using Microsoft Word tracking to distinguish between the original SLA document and the modifications that I made.

I contacted ecare, and the response I received was "you should just reword the document." It's a legally binding service level agreement... sure, let me paraphrase that for you. $:\$

I contacted the Assessment Security and Academic Authenticity Team Lead who said that my document looked good, and should not have been an issue. She recommended filing a formal appeal, copying her in, and she would speak to the necessary people to get my task re-evaluated.

Overall, it's not a big deal for me, I find it entertaining more than anything.

Since enrolling in courses last Friday, I've now completed 1 course, and only need to revise 2 tasks (presuming this ordeal works out and I don't need to further revise it).

xeruan

I haven't received an email from ECare yet regarding my appeal, but my task was resubmitted at 9:45am this morning. I assume this means my appeal was processed and granted, but I'm not 100% certain. Now I'm just hoping it is a pass, without any need for revision.

I understand that issues such as these will happen, and I have to admit, it was a very easy process to deal with. I made 1 call, and sent 2 emails, and the rest was taken care of for me.

Edit*: I feel like I must have set a new WGU record, for both completing a course and receiving an Academic Authenticity Warning within 3 days after enrollment.

Edit 2*: I received both a call and email just now, confirming that my appeal was granted, and that my task was released for evaluation. Now I just have to wait, and hopefully it'll pass. I've also submitted the revisions for my other 2 tasks, and will hopefully receive passes in the next day or two.

Also, upon speaking to my Student Mentor during our weekly call, whenever the 2nd of my first three courses has been passed, he will allow me to accelerate and enroll in VUT2 Vulnerability Assessment so that I can submit the 3 tasks that I have already completed.

xeruan

I had waited to post until today so that the TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 3 issue could be fully resolved. After waiting 2 days for it to be graded after my appeal was granted, the task was returned needing revision because the Originality/Authenticity department apparently forgot to attach my work to be evaluated. I submitted a ticket, and this morning they resubmitted the task, prioritized my assignment, and I have now finally passed Task 3.

I decided to change up my schedule a bit so I've been watching CBTNuggets CEH videos and working on the CEH iLabs primarily the last two days. I'm finished with the CBTNuggets videos, and have worked my way through the first 5 iLabs.

I have TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 4 (only 2 sections were not passing), and LYT2 Task 3 (3 sections were not passing) remaining. I'm hoping to complete one tonight, and the other tomorrow, so that both can be evaluated before my weekly Student Mentor call next Tuesday. If I have one graded sooner, I hope to have my VUT2 Vulnerability Assessment tasks submitted and (potentially) evaluated before Tuesday as well.

I have to admit, after watching CBTNuggets and doing the CEH iLabs, realizing that the CEH iClass course had 104 videos (even though some are only a few minutes long) has been a bit of a wall. My plan is now to work on at least 2 courses between taking the CEH (June 27) and CHFI (July 25) exams just so I can spread out these resources. I'm not quite sure if I will work on Cryptography and 1 performance assessment course between the exams, or push Cryptography off until later.

TranceSoulBrother

xeruan wrote: »

I contacted ecare, and the response I received was "you should just reword the document." It's a legally binding service level agreement... sure, let me paraphrase that for you. $:\$

1) How is that a legally binding document if it is in essence just a homework document, that all students will work and rework and rephrase as part of the course? I'm not familiar with the program, so maybe I'm missing something?

2) For these kinds of assessments that will have various students rework the same documents along similar lines, why isn't there some caveat in their bloody authenticity checker to allow for these documents to pass, to avoid authenticity or plagiarism accusations?

xeruan

TranceSoulBrother wrote: »

1) How is that a legally binding document if it is in essence just a homework document, that all students will work and rework and rephrase as part of the course? I'm not familiar with the program, so maybe I'm missing something?
2) For these kinds of assessments that will have various students rework the same documents along similar lines, why isn't there some caveat in their bloody authenticity checker to allow for these documents to pass, to avoid authenticity or plagiarism accusations?

To your #1 point - The homework assignment is, in itself, not legally-binding. I meant technically speaking as to what the document is, as this program focuses on competency for real-world application.

To your #2 point - Generally, the evaluators are aware of what the tasks are and the various caveats of the usage of TurnItIn. I was told there is a high turnover rate for assessment evaluators, which would lead to this occasionally happening as a new evaluator is learning the ropes of what is normal and what isn't. TurnItIn is a generic authenticity/originality matching solution, so I can understand that there will also be some areas or instances that it simply won't work correctly.

xeruan

Week 1 in Review
While I've had access to the material for longer than a week, I've only been enrolled in the courses for just over 7 days now. I received my grade for the LYT2 Current and Emerging Technology task revision I submitted, and it passed. I've now passed LYT2 Current and Emerging Technology and LOT2 Hacking Countermeasures and Techniques. I only have TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 4 remaining, and only 2 subsections need revision.

My Student Mentor will be opening up VUT2 Vulnerability Assessment soon, and I'm looking forward to it since I've just been sitting on the completed assignments. Even if they need revisions, it should be a quick turnaround for another passed course.

I've jumped ahead and been working on the FNV2 Ethical Hacking material for the CEH exam, instead of working on other performance assessment courses. I've completed the CBTNuggets CEH videos, only have 1 module of the iLabs remaining, and will begin watching the iClass videos today.

I'm hoping to complete the training material in the next week or so, and since I will not be taking the test until June 27th, I'm hoping I can potentially knock out another performance assessment course before then, or at least get the tasks completed for the initial submission.

Edit*: Student Mentor approved me to enroll in VUT2 Vulnerability Assessment today, even while I'm working on the revision of TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 4. All 3 tasks for Vulnerability Assessment have been submitted, and the queue is much lower (60 versus 120) than it was the first week of class. I'm hoping that I can get grades tomorrow or Monday, in order to have any potential revisions resubmitted before my Weekly Call next Tuesday. If I can get all of revisions submitted, I'm hoping I can talk my Student Mentor into unlocking another course.

Question for others*: Any recommendations if I should take VLT2 Security Policies and Standards, JIT2 Risk Management, or FXT2 Disaster Recovering, Planning, and Prevention next? I'm not looking at anything specific, just a course I can work on while I wait for evaluations and the CEH exam on the 27th.

xeruan

Weekly Student Mentor Call #2

Finished my second weekly student mentor call a bit ago, and everything is progressing smoothly. TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 4 is currently in the queue, along with my VUT2 Vulnerability Assessment Task 2 and 3 that each required revision in only one subsection.

While I wait for the evaluations, I'm continuing to study for the CEH exam, and on Friday, I will enroll in the FNV2 Ethical Hacking course in order to schedule for the exam. When I enroll in FNV2 Ethical Hacking, my Student Mentor said I can also enroll in another course, and I am currently planning to enroll in one of the three remaining performance assessment courses (I haven't currently decided which one).

novovictus

Seems like TFT2 Task 3 was an interesting ride. Mine was sent back for revisions, but I don't think I attacked it from the right angle. Any pointers to how you completed it?

goatama

novovictus wrote: »

I too would like to complete in one term, but have only heard initially from my mentor Julia Smith as a bulk message last night.

I loved that. You would think with all those degrees and professional experience, she'd know not to include everyone's external email addresses in the CC line. BCC is your friend.

novovictus

goatama wrote: »

I loved that. You would think with all those degrees and professional experience, she'd know not to include everyone's external email addresses in the CC line. BCC is your friend.

So true, is Julia your mentor as well?

goatama

novovictus wrote: »

So true, is Julia your mentor as well?

Yes sir. Not impressed so far. It sounds like she's yelling down the phone as she's driving through a tunnel, and our calls are really rushed. The two mentors I had for my BS were fantastic, but I'm dubious so far. I guess as long as she doesn't hinder my progress I don't really care. We'll see.

What's your impression so far?

novovictus

She seems to be pretty rigid with me, and was almost shocked that I already completed 1 course and was half way through another. I think I will be forced to take them in the order she wants, but we will see how it works out. I honestly wouldn't mind having a completely different mentor.

cyberguypr

<rant>
NO. I understand you may need to prove yourself to the mentor, and that's fine, but after you clear a course there should be zero reason to stick to whatever she wants. It's a two way street. My original mentor was nothing but a glorified cheerleader that was driving me nuts and made me want to chop off my ears. All she could do was tell me how awesome it was that I was advancing quickly. When I let her know in advance that I would be unable to do the weekly meet due to travel she still sent that canned email making me feel like crap because I missed the call. Seriously?

I got sick of her after two months and requested a mentor change. Life was better after that. The new mentor has a complete different system. She has a very hands-off approach that works superb for those of us who need next to zero guidance. I've been unable to meet three times, informed her in advance, and never got the "you irresponsible minion" email. This lady is on of the few positive experiences I've had with WGU.

</rant>

The takeaway is that if you are not comfortable with your mentor you request a different one.

novovictus

cyberguypr wrote: »

The takeaway is that if you are not comfortable with your mentor you request a different one.

May I ask your mentors name and if they were for the MSISA?

cyberguypr

Yes, MSISA. Lavender Boyles.

TR4V1STY

cyberguypr wrote: »

<rant>

I got sick of her after two months and requested a mentor change. Life was better after that. The new mentor has a complete different system.

I also requested a new mentor early on in my program(BS:IT). The first mentor they assigned to me had a bit of an accent, like english is her second language.

The new mentor they assigned to me is GREAT. Like cyberguypr said, the new mentor had a new style/system. Much more laid back, she sounds like a veteran.

The first mentor was competent and I would have just stuck it out, but I read these forums. Saw that other people had no problem switching mentors. JUST DO IT.

xeruan

I feel like I must be extremely lucky or something in my experiences so far with WGU. I feel like I had an easy time with enrolling, financial aid, and I got placed with a quality student mentor who is willing to take my opinion into consideration with my degree plan.

xeruan

After sitting in the queue at #3 for about 12 hours, another task has been graded. Since I enrolled just under 2 weeks ago, I've now passed 3 of my first 4 courses. I only have 1 task remaining, currently in the queue, and I'm hoping that it'll make 4 of 4.

I've been preparing for the CEH exam, and was planning to take the test as soon as possible. Unfortunately, my truck is in the shop with (what I hope are easy to repair) electrical issues, so while I continue to study for the CEH, I'm also going to begin working on my next performance assessment course, VLT2 Security Policies and Standards.

novovictus

xeruan wrote: »

After sitting in the queue at #3 for about 12 hours, another task has been graded. Since I enrolled just under 2 weeks ago, I've now passed 3 of my first 4 courses. I only have 1 task remaining, currently in the queue, and I'm hoping that it'll make 4 of 4.

Awesome job man, I completed the first course two days ago, and am on the last task for TFT2. The third task is pending evaluation, so hopefully I can knock TFT2 out this week, and begin on LOT next week.

xeruan

Now that everything is submitted or completed, and my certification plans have been postponed, I'm looking toward my next two courses. While I haven't enrolled in them yet, I'm currently working to finish Task 1 of VLT2 Security Policies and Standards, and hope to complete Task 2 tomorrow or Saturday. I'll be having a call with my Student Mentor tomorrow to discuss my situation and plans, and after I enroll in the two courses, I'll be able to work on them simultaneously as I have thus far.

I've changed my original goal of passing the first four courses and obtaining the CEH certification by the end of June - to now wanting to complete all of the performance assessment-based courses by the end of June. While I'm not certain I'll be able to, and the evaluation time may push me over-schedule, this will give me the slight push to see how much I can get done in the next two weeks.

If I'm able to get all of those courses done, and since I have almost completed my studying for the CEH exam, I'll be able to brainstorm ideas for my capstone project while I work on the three remaining objective assessments during July and, potentially August. At this pace, I would still have a full three months to complete my capstone to complete my degree within the first term.

novovictus wrote: »

I completed the first course two days ago, and am on the last task for TFT2. The third task is pending evaluation, so hopefully I can knock TFT2 out this week, and begin on LOT next week.

Very nice, you seem quite ahead of schedule.

goatama

I'd appreciate it if y'all could slow down a bit. It'd be better for my ego. Kthx.

Seriously, you guys are rockstars!

xeruan

goatama wrote: »

I'd appreciate it if y'all could slow down a bit. It'd be better for my ego. Kthx. Seriously, you guys are rockstars!

lol, thanks.

Finally received my task evaluation for TFT2 Cyberlaw Task 4 after 3 days, and passed. Took me 3 submissions, but they were fairly easy and straightforward revisions. Overall, I wasn't too worried as I felt confident with the progress I made with each revision that was needed. Now that TFT2 Cyberlaw is completed, since beginning the MS:ISA program on June 1 (enrolling on June 5), I've completed 10 competency units of the 30 required for the program.

Now that the first four courses are all passed, and I do not currently have a vehicle due to my truck being put into the shop, I talked to my Student Mentor and we instead decided to enroll me in VLT2 Security Policies and Standards and JIT2 Risk Management until I have a more stable plan for transportation. I've currently completed the first task for VLT2 Security Policies, and plan to start working on Task 2 tonight and tomorrow.

Once I have my truck back, my plan is to complete one of the courses, or at least the majority of tasks for one of the courses, before enrolling for the Certified Ethical Hacker exam. My Student Mentor won't really mind enrolling to schedule the exam since I've completed 90% of the material for the FNV2 Ethical Hacking course.

Edit*: Though I'd make an easier to read progress table after passing a few courses.

Current Progress - WGU MS:ISA (began June 1, 2015) 5 months remaining

Course Code - Competency Credits/Assessment Type - Course Name
Completed
LYT2 - 3/P - Current and Emerging Technology
TFT2 - 3/P - Cyberlaw, Regulations, and Compliance
LOT2 - 2/P - Hacking Countermeasures and Techniques
VUT2 - 2/P - Vulnerability Assessment

In-Progress
VLT2 - 3/P - Security Policies and Standards (1 task of 4 submitted)
JIT2 - 2/P - Risk Management (0 tasks submitted)

Remaining
FNV2 - 3/O - Ethical Hacking (95% of material has been completed)
FMV2 - 3/O - Forensics and Network Intrusion
UVC2 - 3/O - Cryptography
FXT2 - 2/P - Disaster Recovery Planning, Prevention, and Response
LQT2 - 4/P - Information Security and Assurance Capstone

xeruan

Been working on my VLT2 Security Policies and Standards tasks the last couple of days. I submitted Task 1 last night, and have almost completed Task 2 with just another page or two to write up before I submit it as well.

I got bored with the VLT2 Task 2 for a bit, so I jumped over to JIT2 Risk Management and realized that it only had 1 "task", but that the task required (more or less) three tasks within the single submission. I developed the risk register for Task 1a and have started to type up the additional information and risk response for the first three risks, but am planning to take a break before I finish the other five.

I'm not sure yet how I feel about the massive task for JIT2 Risk Management, while I understand they're all related, I feel like it'll lead to more hassle with the grading/resubmission due to the fact that any of the 14 subsections could require revision. Also, it slows down my pace a bit because I'm required to finish all 3 sections of the task before I'll be able to submit it, rather than submitting for each individual section.

Either way, I'm hoping to have one of the two courses completed by the end of June. I'm also hoping to have my truck back before the end of June so I can take the Certified Ethical Hacker exam for FNV2 Ethical Hacking credit the first week of July. My current goal is to have every course (minus the capstone) completed by the end of July which will leave me just over 3.5 months to complete my capstone.

novovictus

I just resubmitted task 4 for TFT2, the 3 others are completed. I just did the webinar for LOT2, and plan to start on that tomorrow. The diagrams and powerpoints seem straight forward so hopefully I can pound that out in a week.

I am not burning it up like xeruan, but I am definitely making good progress. Working full time, having busy evenings with all my kids off school for the summer, and weekend projects makes it tough but its nice to be able to submit tasks and see progress. Unlike studying for certs, all that reading, labbing, videos, and practice tests make it hard to keep going for that one big exam at the end.

A complete paper every day is just not doable for me, but I have been close to a course a week. I at least make it a goal to write or revise a paper every week day. That way there is always something in taskstream and I can start on the next till it gets kicked back lol.

xeruan

I submitted VLT2 Security Policies and Standards Task 2 today, and am almost done with JIT2 Risk Management Task 1a, but I won't be able to submit until I finish the other 2 sub-tasks. My plan is to finish JIT2 Task 1b and 1c over the course of the week, and submit them by Friday, before moving back to VLT2 Security Policies Task 3 and 4 over the weekend.

I'll also have my weekly call tomorrow with my Student Mentor, but there shouldn't be much to talk about so I expect it to go by quickly.

novovictus wrote:

working full time, having busy evenings, and weekend projects makes it tough

I will admit, I have far more time than the average student to work on courses and tasks during the week. I only graduated with my BS degrees last December (2014), and I don't currently have a job or outside responsibilities.

I've held off on my job search until I obtain my C|EH, then I'll begin looking again. Once I start looking, I should have at least 2-3 months to finish the rest of the program without any other obligations (and that's presuming that I get a job quickly). If I don't, I'll begin working on my next Masters degree while I continue searching for jobs.

novovictus

xeruan wrote: »

I've held off on my job search until I obtain my C|EH, then I'll begin looking again.

Too bad you don't live near the MD side of DC, my company is always scooping cert holders up for contracts. A CEH and Sec+ is the 8570 requirement for a lot of what we do, and then you need a computing environment cert like MCP, Linux+, A+, etc. If you ever move this way let me know!