r/CompTIA

Currently preparing for the CySA+ exam (D483). The CerMaster Final Assessment and those Practice questions and Practice test on the separate website seem to be extremely flawed. The thing is you need 90% on both the Final Assessment and that 'Practice Test' to get your voucher.

These 'practice exams' seem to contain lots of questions meant to gaslight, misinform, and sabotage you instead of preparing you. They not only contradict the material but often contradict other questions within the exams! The only way to get 90% on these is to memorize the answers and retake. Can't believe WGU is gatekeeping your voucher behind these.

The actual practice is through third party redources like Mike Chappel's Sybex and Jason Dion's questions/exams.

I am trying to complete my MSCSIA in 6 months and WASTED SO MUCH OF MY PRECIOUS TIME ON THOSE STUPID PRACTICE QUESTIONS.

Taking A+ today and super nervous!!!! please wish me luck!!

https://preview.redd.it/6uwa3tejphwg1.png?width=677&format=png&auto=webp&s=13f6d4c3cd7c9f0ca83922466209efcc715b183f

Hi everyone as the title states just passed and moving onto Core 2 soon.

I wanted to share the resources i used since i dont see sybex talked about alot and after using it for my A+ & Sec+ i get why (it is often too in depth for what compTIA tests on) although it provides a very good foundation. I'm not saying to read the whole book (trust me i did that for my sec+ 3-Week sprint & i hated my life) but the practice exams are good.

Although be warned they are harder and more detailed, i would argue harder than Dion's although i only took 1 of his so i'm not too sure. I would not recommend sprinting an exam, I have 2 years of exp in the field, but here's how i did it.

Study Resources: Dion's A+ Core 1 video series & Sybex Study Guide + Practice Exams

Dion: 26 hours video time, 1 90 Question 90min practice exam (83%)

Sybex: 13 chapter quizzes, 643 Questions, 2 100-75 Question 90min practice exams (76%&78%)

I started off doing 40~ questions a day with GPT review along with dion's video sections on 1.25x-1.5x speed and as i got to the end of the week i was doing easily over 100~ questions a day. The day before the exam i was just doing practice exams & GPT review.

Ngl passing the Sec+ was easier for me than the A+ core 1 ;-; but i think its because sec+ is more concept based.
-Edited to block out my info, its 3am and im tired sorry lol

After 2 years of inconsistent studying I booked my exam 2 weeks ago and stopped procrastinating. I completed the Google cybersecurity professional cert last year. I have binged Professor Messer’s study groups and the training course for atleast a year on and off. I did Jason Dion’s course last week and did his first set of practice exams. I also bought Messers exams. Last night I found Cyber James and watched his all practice exam videos. I looked at a couple of Cyber Kraft videos for PBQs. I also used the prepia Comptia practice exams app did over 200+ quizzes/exams. In total I had done over 2000 questions I think the exposure to many different styles/formats of questions helped. I passed with a 774 and can finally take a breather.

I'm considering studying for and taking my Security+ exam in the next few months but I've noticed that the V7 will be replaced at some point this year. Is the change to V8 going to be so drastic that I should wait or just go for it as it would still be a valid certificate?

Thanks!

Hello, I am from Toronto and was considering going down the IT Path but I am just not sure if its going to be worth it. Can someone let me know if you think I should do it or not?

Thanks

Hey All!

Long time no post. I am the original creator of CertNova (not linking since I do not want this post to get removed), and its back up and running after life happening. I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about better ways to help people study and actually get certified, and I wanted to ask the community something directly.

Aside from PBQs, what do you still feel is missing from most CompTIA study tools? I want to add meaningful features that will actually help everyone, but I am kind of at a loss of where to go now, now that the core are there.

My goal is to build things that are actually useful for people trying to pass. I’d really appreciate honest feedback on what helps, what does not, and what you wish existing tools did better.

P.S. - PBQs are in the works. I want to develop a system that does them justice, not just drag and drops

I'm planning to take the 003 version within this year, just read that it will expire this year (June 2026). If i bought a voucher before that month is the voucher or exam still valid for 12 months?

For context, I have 20 years of experience in Information Security across domains such as VA-PT, GRC, network security, and security operations. I already hold CISSP, ISSAP, and CGRC certifications from ISC2. I only pursued the CompTIA Security+ because my HR believed I had fewer certifications compared to others who had multiple CompTIA or EC-Council certifications.

I wasn’t particularly happy about preparing for this certification, as I felt I had more valuable things to focus on. However, in a workplace setting, you sometimes have to do things not for yourself, but to satisfy those running the show. My plan was simple: attempt practice questions for a week and then take the exam.

When I started with the initial set of practice questions, I performed well. However, there were areas where I needed to revisit the study guide. A significant portion of the questions relied on understanding how CompTIA defines and uses specific terminology.

I used Jason Dion’s SY0-701 Practice Exams Set 1 (my rating - 4/5) and Andrew Ramdayal’s SY0-701 Practice Exams (my rating - 3/5). I was able to complete each test within 45 minutes and consistently scored above 80 percent. Some questions and their explanations didn’t sit well with me, but for any new or unfamiliar concepts, I referred back to the study guide. I followed this approach over two weeks. By the end, I felt I had encountered several technical concepts that are only briefly touched upon in CISSP, making Security+ a reasonably good refresher.

Then came exam day. As a non-native English speaker, I was granted an additional 30 minutes, which I initially thought I wouldn’t need. However, the very first question made me nervous, it was a PBQ on network design, and I ended up spending too much time on it. After 15 minutes, still unsure, I decided to move on. There were four other PBQs, and while I won’t go into details, they consumed a considerable amount of time. At that point, I realized that the extra 30 minutes might actually be crucial. I knew PBQs would be part of the exam, but I didn’t expect to feel so unprepared for them.

The MCQs, on the other hand, were much easier. I moved through them quickly, with only a few uncertainties. In the end, I finished the exam with about 20 minutes remaining and passed with a scaled score of 795. That said, the PBQs made it a far more stressful experience than I had anticipated.

Big takeaway: Even with strong experience, don’t underestimate the PBQs. They can easily disrupt your time management if you’re not prepared for the format.