u/Fine_Perspective5854

I really thought I was going to be stuck in this cycle forever. Failing twice (Sept and Dec) was a huge hit to my ego and my bank account. I just passed last weekend and wanted to share what actually worked, because honestly, most of the study materials out there for this cert are trash.

1st attempt: ISACA Official QAE & Review Manual This route is pricey. The QAE is $249 for members ($349 for non-members) and the Review Manual is another $89 ($105 for non-members). The manual is fine for basic concepts, but it isn't enough to pass on its own. As for the QAE, it helps you get a feel for the exam format, but there are only ~220 questions. Since the pool is so small, I ended up just memorizing the answers instead of actually understanding the logic.

2nd attempt: Udemy An okay, cheaper option ($14/month), but the questions weren't great for actual prep. The answers are very obvious—the long answers were correct most of the time. While it’s cheap, it didn’t challenge me and the explanations were kind of whack.

3rd attempt: DailyDebits AAIA Prep This was the turning point. It was $12 for a month, which was the cheapest option I found (there’s a $36 lifetime one, but honestly just get the sub and cancel after you pass). This had 5 practice exams with 450 questions total. It actually covers the mathematics and scenario-based questions that you don’t really see in the official QAE. The explanations for every choice were actually helpful and way more similar to what I saw on the actual exam today.

My biggest takeaway: If you're struggling with the technical side, don't sleep on the math. That's what killed me the first two times!

Good luck to everyone still in the trenches. You've got this!

I really thought I was going to be stuck in this cycle forever. Failed twice (Sept and Dec), and it was a huge hit to the ego and my bank account. Just passed this morning and wanted to share what actually worked because honestly, most of the study materials out there for this cert are trash. 

Here is the breakdown of what I used:

• 1st attempt: ISACA Official QAE & Review Manual This route is expensive. The QAE is $249 for members ($349 for non-members) and the Review Manual is another $89 ($105 for non-members). The manual is good for learning the basic concepts, but in my opinion, it isn't enough to pass on its own. As for the QAE, while it helps you get a feel for the exam format, there are only 220 questions. Since the pool is so small, I ended up just memorizing the answers instead of actually understanding why something was right or wrong. 
• 2nd attempt: Udemy This was an okay, cheaper option ($14/month) but the questions weren't great for actual prep. The answers are very obvious. The long answers were correct most of the time. Although cheap, it didn’t really challenge me and the explanations were kind of whack. 
• 3rd attempt: DailyDebits This is worth every buck. $12 per month is the cheapest option I could find (there is a $36 one-time option, but the sub is better if you just cancel after you pass). This has 5 practice exams with 450 questions total. It teaches the mathematics concepts and many scenario-based questions that you don’t really see in the official QAE. The answers are explained for every choice and the scenario-based questions were actually helpful. This is very similar to what you see in the exam. 
  • Link: https://www.dailydebits.com/aaia

Good luck to everyone still in the trenches. If you're struggling with the technical side, don't sleep on the math. That's what killed me the first two times!