CompTIA Security+ SY0-701 - Series Intro & Exam Prep Strategy

Summary

The 2024 edition of the Security Plus exam cram series aims to guide candidates through the latest CompTIA Security Plus exam, SY0-701. The series, led by an experienced cybersecurity educator and strategist, covers all five domains of the exam, offering a comprehensive yet concise review of key concepts. It emphasizes effective study strategies like spaced repetition, chunking, and understanding concepts before memorization. The recommended resources include the official study guide and practice test manual, with an electronic format preferred for searchability. The series promises a structured approach to exam preparation, aiming to get candidates ready in less than 90 days.

Takeaways

• 📘 The Security Plus certification is highly requested and can help get a CV noticed by automated scanners and human reviewers.
• 🛡️ It provides a broad base of vendor-agnostic cybersecurity knowledge, beneficial for working with different technology stacks.
• 🎓 The 2024 edition of the Security Plus exam cram series aims to help candidates prepare for the latest version of the Security Plus certification.
• 📚 The series will cover all five domains of the Security Plus Sy0-701 exam, with a focus on delivering content in bite-size chunks.
• 👨‍🏫 The instructor is a cybersecurity strategist with practical experience, not just an educator, ensuring the material is relevant and useful.
• 📈 The exam consists of 90 questions, including multiple-choice and performance-based questions, with a passing score of 750 out of 900.
• ⏱ The recommended experience for taking the exam is at least 2 years of work in IT, with a focus on security.
• 📝 The official study guide and practice test manual are the main required resources for exam preparation.
• 🔍 The exam tests knowledge across cybersecurity concepts and technologies, with an expectation of hands-on technical information security experience.
• 📉 The use of spaced repetition, chunking, and understanding concepts before memorization are key techniques for effective exam preparation.
• 📊 Practice exams should be used to identify weak areas and track progress, with the goal of consistently scoring above 90% to ensure readiness for the actual exam.

Q & A

What are the two main reasons Security Plus is considered a foundational cybersecurity certification?

Security Plus is highly requested, which helps candidates' CVs get past automated scanners, and it provides a broad base of vendor-agnostic cybersecurity knowledge useful for various technology stacks.

What does the '2024 edition' refer to in the context of the video?

It refers to the latest series of the Security Plus exam cram that is specifically tailored for the 2024 version of the Security Plus certification exam.

What is the structure of the Security Plus exam cram series for 2024?

The series will cover all five domains of the Security Plus SY0-701 exam, going through every line item in the official syllabus, and is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024.

What is the recommended exam preparation strategy discussed in the video?

The strategy includes using spaced repetition, chunking, understanding concepts before memorizing, and utilizing multiple learning materials and methods such as video content, PowerPoint reviews, live quizzes, and practice exams.

What are the five domains of the Security Plus exam?

The five domains are General Security Concepts, Threats, Vulnerabilities, and Mitigations, Security Architecture, Security Operations, and Security Program Management and Oversight.

What is the format of the Security Plus exam and what is the passing score?

The exam consists of 90 questions, a mix of multiple-choice and performance-based questions, and has a passing score of 750 out of 900.

What experience is recommended for taking the Security Plus exam?

At least 2 years of work experience in IT, specifically in a security or systems administrator role, with a focus on security is recommended.

What are the required study resources for the Security Plus exam preparation?

The required resources include the official study guide from Cybex and the practice test manual, both of which include practice questions and exams.

How can the practice exams be used to identify weak areas in exam preparation?

By taking practice exams and focusing on the questions missed, candidates can identify weak areas and then use targeted reading and additional study to improve understanding and retention of those topics.

What is the recommended approach to using the official study guide and practice test manual?

The recommended approach is to use the electronic versions for searchability, focus on targeted reading for weak areas, and use the practice exams to regularly check progress and understanding of the material.

What is the significance of the acronym list in the official exam syllabus?

The acronym list represents the foundational concepts and technologies that candidates are expected to be familiar with, and many of these will be covered throughout the exam cram series.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Introduction to the 2024 Security Plus Exam Cram Series

The speaker introduces the 2024 edition of the Security Plus exam cram series, emphasizing the value of the Security Plus certification for job seekers due to its high demand and vendor-agnostic knowledge base. The series aims to cover every skill in the exam syllabus, providing an effective exam preparation strategy that has been successful for thousands. The speaker, a cybersecurity strategist, assures that the skills covered are practical and relevant, having helped many achieve certifications like CISSP, CCSP, and Security Plus. The series is structured to cover all five domains of the Security Plus Sy, y701 exam, with a detailed plan for video releases and a focus on delivering valuable content without unnecessary fluff.

05:02

🔍 Exam Details and Preparation Materials

The paragraph delves into the specifics of the Security Plus exam, including the format with 90 questions, a mix of multiple-choice and performance-based questions. It outlines the recommended experience of 2 years in IT with a focus on security, and the passing score of 750 out of 900. The speaker discusses the types of knowledge expected from candidates, such as assessing security posture, implementing solutions, and handling security events. The paragraph also covers the required study resources, emphasizing the importance of the official study guide and practice test manual, and provides advice on how to make the most of these materials for effective exam preparation.

10:05

💻 Utilizing Electronic Study Materials for Exam Preparation

This section highlights the benefits of using electronic versions of study materials, which are searchable and利于combining with various learning techniques. The speaker explains the process of accessing online practice quizzes and exams associated with the study guides, and how they can be used to save study time. The speaker contrasts the practice questions from the study guide with those from the practice test book, emphasizing the latter's advantage in allowing focused study on specific domains. The paragraph also introduces the concept of spaced repetition as a study technique, which involves revisiting material at increasing intervals to enhance long-term retention.

15:05

🧠 Study Techniques and Strategies for Effective Learning

The speaker introduces various study techniques and strategies to enhance learning and retention for the Security Plus exam. These include chunking, where complex topics are broken down into smaller, manageable parts, and the Pareto principle, which suggests focusing on the most critical aspects of study material. The paragraph discusses the importance of understanding concepts before memorization and the benefits of using multiple learning materials and methods. The speaker outlines a comprehensive exam preparation strategy that incorporates video content, PowerPoint reviews, live quizzes, flashcards, practice exams, and targeted reading, tailored to individual learning preferences.

20:07

📈 Tracking Progress and Focusing on Weak Areas

The final paragraph focuses on tracking study progress and identifying weak areas for focused improvement. It emphasizes the importance of taking practice exams to gauge readiness and to pinpoint areas that require more attention. The speaker advises on how to use practice exams effectively, aiming for a consistent score of around 90% to ensure exam readiness. The paragraph also touches on the use of third-party resources like Pocket Prep for additional practice and the value of targeted reading to reinforce weak topics. The speaker concludes by encouraging viewers to start their exam preparation with the provided materials and to reach out with any questions, promising continued support throughout the series.

Keywords

💡Security Plus

Security Plus is a foundational cybersecurity certification offered by CompTIA. It is highly requested and recognized in the industry, which helps candidates' CVs get noticed by automated scanners and human reviewers. In the video, the presenter discusses the importance of this certification and how it provides a broad base of vendor-agnostic cybersecurity knowledge, beneficial for future employment in various technology stacks.

💡Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity refers to the practice of protecting internet-connected systems, including hardware, software, and data, from theft, damage, or unauthorized access. The video script emphasizes the need for a broad understanding of cybersecurity concepts and technologies, as the Security Plus certification covers a wide range of topics relevant to this field.

💡Exam Cram Series

An 'Exam Cram Series' is a collection of focused study materials designed to help candidates quickly prepare for a certification exam. The video script introduces the 2024 edition of the Security Plus exam cram series, which aims to cover every skill measured in the exam syllabus, providing a structured approach to exam preparation.

💡Vendor Agnostic

Being 'vendor agnostic' means having knowledge or skills that are not tied to a specific brand or product, making them universally applicable. The script mentions that the Security Plus certification helps build a broad base of vendor-agnostic cybersecurity knowledge, which is valuable for working with different technology stacks.

💡Exam Syllabus

An 'exam syllabus' is a document that outlines the topics and areas that will be covered in an examination. The video discusses the Security Plus exam syllabus, which includes five domains that candidates need to study and understand in order to pass the certification exam.

💡Performance-Based Questions

Performance-based questions are a type of exam question that requires candidates to perform a task or solve a problem in a simulated IT environment. The script explains that the Security Plus exam includes these types of questions, which test specific knowledge or skills in a practical context.

💡Spaced Repetition

Spaced repetition is a learning technique that involves revisiting and reviewing information at increasing intervals over time, which helps to move information from short-term to long-term memory. The video script recommends this technique as part of the exam preparation strategy for the Security Plus certification.

💡Chunking

Chunking is a cognitive process that involves breaking down complex information into smaller, more manageable 'chunks' or units. The script suggests using this method to study topics like cryptography by breaking them into smaller subtopics for easier understanding and memorization.

💡Practice Exams

Practice exams are tools used for assessing one's knowledge and readiness for an actual exam. The video script discusses the importance of using practice exams to gauge progress and identify weak areas in preparation for the Security Plus certification exam.

💡Official Study Guide

The 'official study guide' is a resource provided by the exam's governing body, in this case, Cybex, which includes targeted reading material, practice questions, and other study aids. The script emphasizes the importance of this guide as a primary study resource for the Security Plus exam.

💡Pareto Principle

The Pareto Principle, also known as the 80/20 rule, states that roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. In the context of the video, it suggests focusing study efforts on the most impactful areas, such as key topics or weak spots, to achieve the best results in exam preparation.

Highlights

Security Plus is a foundational cybersecurity certification widely requested, aiding in CV selection by automated scanners.

The certification builds a broad base of vendor-agnostic cybersecurity knowledge, beneficial for various technology stacks.

The 2024 edition of the Security Plus exam cram series aims to expedite exam preparation, covering all exam syllabus skills.

The series has a proven exam preparation strategy that has worked for thousands globally, with over 1 million views on the original series.

The Security Plus Sy701 exam cram series will be completed in the second quarter of 2024, starting in early April.

The exam cram series will be delivered in bite-size chunks, covering each subdomain within the exam.

The presenter is a cybersecurity educator and strategist with practical experience in regulated industries.

The exam consists of 90 questions, including multiple-choice and performance-based questions.

Performance-based questions in the exam require candidates to demonstrate knowledge or skills in a simulated IT environment.

The recommended experience for the exam is at least 2 years of work in IT with a focus on security.

The passing score for the exam is 750 out of 900, which is roughly an 83% pass rate.

The exam tests the ability to assess security posture, implement solutions, monitor hybrid environments, and respond to incidents.

The exam cram series will cover over 300 acronyms foundational to cybersecurity concepts.

Required study resources include the official study guide and the practice test manual, both with electronic versions recommended for searchability.

Spaced repetition is a key technique for memorizing and retaining information long-term.

Chunking involves breaking down topics into smaller, manageable pieces for better understanding and retention.

Understanding concepts before memorizing improves retention and the ability to describe topics in one's own words.

A combination of multiple learning materials and methods is recommended over a single learning style.

Practice exams should be used to identify weak areas and track progress, aiming for consistent high scores.

Targeted reading of the official study guide is advised for focused learning on weak topics and likely exam content.

The exam cram series installments will be released every 2 or 3 days until complete.

Engagement with the series through comments and direct outreach is encouraged for support and questions.

Transcripts

Security Plus makes for a great

foundational cyber security

certification for two reasons really

first it's perhaps the most requested

security certification out there which

means that even if it doesn't land you

the job it will get your CV past those

automated scanners and into the right

pile for human review second it's going

to help you build a broad base of vendor

agnostic cyber security knowledge which

will serve you well regardless of the

technology stack you're working on with

your future employers and this video

marks the beginning of the 2024 edition

of my Security Plus exam cram series it

will help you get further faster in your

pursuit of the latest edition of the

Security Plus

certification and the series will cover

every skill measured in the exam

syllabus we're going to go through every

line item and in this installment I'm

going to lay out the flow of the series

and give you an exam preparation

strategy that has worked for thousands

around the world the original series

racked up more than 1 million views and

I promise you the sequel It's going to

be even better so let's get

[Music]

started welcome to the 2024 edition of

the Security Plus exam cram series

focused on the latest version of the

Security Plus exam the Sy

[Music]

y701 and in this important introductory

video I'll lay out the flow of the

series tell you what to

expect I'll give you an exam preparation

strategy that has worked for thousands

around the world along with recommended

exam preparation materials I expect

there are a few items in this session

you may want to reference later so I'll

include a PDF copy of the presentation

available for download in the video

description all the topics in this video

should appear on the video timeline

automatically but just in case I have a

clickable table of contents in the video

description so you can move between

topics as you need to and just a quick

word about who I am most importantly I'm

not simply a cyber security educator I

exercise these skills every day as a

cyber security strategist in regulated

Industries and a VC so for a regional

bank and I am confident the skills you

learn in preparing for the Security Plus

exam will serve you well every day of

your cyber security career just as they

have mine more importantly last year I

helped thousands achieve cyber security

certifications like the cissp the

ccsp and the security plus if you look

around here at inside cloud and security

on on YouTube you will see that cyber

security certification education is what

I do and here's how this exam cram

series is going to flow so that we'll

cover all five domains of the Security

Plus Sy

y701 exam it will cover every line item

mentioned in the official exam

syllabus and the full Security Plus exam

cram series should be complete in the

second quarter of

2024 I am launching this series in early

April I expect we'll be all wrapped up

before the end of May and while I'm

going to give you a very complete

resource for exam preparation I'm going

to give it to you in bite-size chunks so

I will create videos for each subdomain

within the exam so four videos for

domain one five videos for domain two

four more for domain 3 nine for domain 4

which is quite a large domain for the

Security Plus disco around

and six more to wrap up domain five so

your time commitment week to week is

going to be very reasonable but it's

designed for use with my proven exam

prep strategy I definitely recommend you

watch that later in this video you won't

be the first to benefit from it but you

may be the next it delivers everything

you need for the exam without the fluff

I tried to be very focused on relevant

exam topics so there is absolutely no

fluff and all without the need for an

expensive boot camp the only required

equipment in my opinion is the official

study guide and the practice test manual

that goes alongside that study guide

I'll point you to exactly what you need

there in just a moment and the five

domains of the Security Plus exam are

General Security

Concepts domain two threats

vulnerabilities and

mitigations domain three security

architecture domain 4 security

operations and domain five security

program management and

oversight so let's talk about the exam

itself so for the 20203 version of the

exam we have a maximum of 90

questions they are a combination of

multiple choice with a few

performance-based questions in there

performance-based questions require a

candidate to perform a task or Sol a

problem with a simulated it environment

to demonstrate specific knowledge or

skills this could be drop down boxes on

a diagram this could be drag and drop or

hotspot type questions but the exam is

ventri agnostic so it's going to be

testing your knowledge of cyber security

Concepts and Technologies in general and

I'll try to offer a bit of guidance on

performance-based questions along the

way in the

series and continuing on the length of

the exam is 90 minutes and the

recommended experience is at least 2

years of work experience in it CIS admin

with a focus on security they're

assuming you do have some Hands-On

technical information security

experience and Broad knowledge of

security

Concepts so when you hear folks say that

Security Plus is an entry-level exam

it's not 100% entry level there is some

expectation of a bit of Hands-On

knowledge and the passing

score is 750 on a scale of 1 to 900 so

we're talking about 1 minute per

question roughly 83% to pass give or

take so let's unpack what type of

knowledge they expect you have going

into this exam so they assume you're

able to assess the security posture of

an Enterprise environment and recommend

and Implement appropriate Security

Solutions Monitor and secure hybrid

environments including Cloud mobile and

iot

operate with an awareness of applicable

laws and policies including principles

of governance risk and

compliance and identify analyze and

respond to security events and incidents

so what we see here really maps to the

exam syllabus I see a lot of security

operations in here which is the very

large domain 4 we see some GRC in here

which is domain five and a bit of

architecture domain three in that first

first line item so they say across these

this is equivalent to 2 years of

hands-on experience working in a

security or systems administrator job

roll so could you spin up a small lab

environment maybe get a cloud trial

subscription and simulate some of this

experience in the process of preparing

for this exam of course you

could bottom line we all start in a

different place so prepare for the

Security Plus at a pace that's right for

you I would say most folks are ready for

this exam in less than 90 days and as we

walk through the exam prep strategy I'll

show you how to measure your Readiness

to schedule that

exam when you look at the official exam

syllabus you'll also see a long list of

acronyms you're expected to be familiar

with in fact if I just switch over and

look at the syllabus document what

you'll find are a little over 300

basically four pages of acronyms many of

these we're going to cover in the course

of this series many of these are

foundational Concepts the reality is in

an exam of 90 questions you're going to

see most of these acronyms one time at

most and some maybe not at all but I'll

definitely call out the important

acronyms as we're preparing for the exam

working our way through the domains in

the series and I'll leave a link to this

syllabus that includes the acronyms in

the video description so let's talk

about required study resources so I try

to keep this system Bare Bones when it

comes to exam prep strategy but required

resources include the official study

guide from Cybex which is more than just

a book it includes 500 practice

questions 100 flashcards two practice

exams so it gives us number one a place

to do some targeted reading and number

two it gives us a place to go take some

practice quizzes as a checkpoint of our

onboarding of the knowledge something I

want you to remember with Crystal

Clarity there is no practice exam you

can go by that simulates the real exam

all that precisely so you should use

practice quizzes to ensure you have

command of the knowledge of the

technologies that are going to be on the

exam so the official study guide is one

way to do that the other companion to

this is the practice test for Security

Plus

and there are a thousand practice

questions and two practice exams in this

book and you really want to make sure

you buy the electronic copy of these two

books the reason being it is then

searchable my exam prep strategy

involves using multiple methodologies

multiple learning techniques multiple

resources it does not involve sitting

down and reading either of these books

cover to cover not the most effective

use of your time so to get the

electronic copy of these two you need to

buy them individually they don't have a

bundle for the ebooks they only have a

bundle for the paperback if that changes

I'll let you know but if you just check

the links in the video description I'll

ensure that always points to the latest

and least expensive option for you and

to further reduce the cost of this

resource look inside the book and you

will find a 10% off discount for

scheduling your exam that's going to

save you 35 bucks give or take which is

a little more than half of what you'll

spend on that pair of books so I

mentioned the practice quizzes that come

in these books which are actually

available online are one of the keys to

preparing for the exam in a time

efficient way they can save you weeks of

study time if you use them right so

we're going to switch over to a browser

and here I'm logged into wy's efficient

learning platform where I have

registered my books for the online

resources so here you see I have the

Security Plus study guide 500 practice

question

now what you'll notice about the study

guide they give you a short little

assessment you can take at the beginning

but the quizzes are largely Broken Out

by chapters which means it's tackling

subjects not specific domains because

your domain subject matter is spread

across these chapters so you have some

ability to get into some specific topics

but your ability to drill down on the

specific domain is somewhat limited and

they give you a couple of practice exams

at the end and they're 90 questions each

just like the real thing and these are

generally going to be all multiple

choice you're not going to

see performance-based questions in here

now I want to just juxtapose or compare

this to the practice questions that come

in the practice testbook so here I've

registered for those online resources

and what you'll notice is that when I

look at the chapters here each chapter

maps to a domain and there are a bunch

of questions for each of these there's a

thousand questions a little more this

book so if I need to assess my knowledge

of domain one I can deselect all the

chapters and pick just chapter one which

maps to domain one and if I scroll down

you'll notice here I can pick a specific

number of questions and it'll tell me

how long it thinks it will take me to

get through that so if I only have 20

minutes to study I come grab 10

questions if I have an hour I grab 30

but by having that practice testbook I

get not only more questions but the

ability to carve out my study time

focused on a specific domain and this

becomes important when we talk about our

exam preparation strategy which we're

going to do right

now and if you've studied with my

materials before you've heard this if

not you may be hearing it for the first

time but there is no award for the

longest study time I'm going to share an

exam prep strategy backed by science and

proven through the results of thousands

the first technique I'm going going to

share with you is repetition space

repetition in particular because there

is power in repeating our study of

specific topics over repeated intervals

and those intervals will tell us if

we're focused on memorizing for the

short term memorizing quickly through

repetitions that happen a few minutes to

a few hours apart or if we're looking

for long-term retention in which case

we'll continue that memorization but

we'll also come back to that material

after a day after a couple of weeks

after months even in some cases but for

short-term retention by the time I hit

the third fourth fifth repetition my

retention is pretty high at least for a

few weeks and in the long term if I come

back every couple of weeks two or three

months I'm locking information in that

may stay with me for months years or for

my life and what's happening here really

in spaced repetition is your first

session is going to stick with you for a

bit but you're going to forget some of

that material over time we call that the

forgetting curve you go back and study a

second time your forgetting curve gets a

little longer and a little shallower

each time each time you remember a

little more for a little longer that's

spaced repetition and that's absolutely

part of the strategy another technique I

use frequently and strongly recommend is

called chunking that's where we take a

topic and we break it down so let's take

cryptography for example there's

asymmetric cryptography asymmetric

encryption algorithms symmetric

algorithms we may need to look at

hashing as well and there are block

ciphers there are stream ciphers I'm

breaking the topic into chunks based on

a unique property I'm breaking the topic

into bite-sized pieces eating the

elephant one bite at a time as they say

one more concept before we talk about

how we bring all the materials and

techniques together in a strategy and

that's around understanding concepts

studies show that understanding the

material before you memorize greatly

improves retention we don't want to

focus on memorizing answers just

memorizing words we need to understand

the concept so we can Des describe it

back in our own words so let's bring all

these materials and Concepts together in

a strategy and let me just say the idea

that we're all primarily either an

auditory learner a visual learner or a

tactile learner as they told us in

primary school is a Lie the science

shows that everyone benefits from

multiple learning materials and methods

so we'll talk through the options and

you're going to work with these and then

combine them in a way that feels feels

right to you we'll look at targeted

reading practice exams live quizzes

PowerPoint review video content multiple

modality space repetition chunking and

the Paro principle the 8020 rule as it's

often

called but this is really about what to

use as well as how to use them they're

equally important here so let's start

with video content video will give you a

broad sense of exam content and and help

you understand what you already know and

I expect for many people it will make up

the majority of your study time in fact

video content is my preferred starting

point I lean very heavily on video

PowerPoint review is great getting a PDF

copy allows you to just review quietly

off in the corner you can pause and

linger where you need to it makes

setting the pace very easy and we can

use that PDF as part of live quiz this

is an effective substitute for flash

cards if you have a partner to help you

because a Live partner can change up the

questions which is very helpful I

remember studying for the cissp exam

which I did in about 12 hours over the

course of a couple of weeks and I did

some live quiz sessions with my wife who

would ask the question one way and then

change it up to see if I really knew the

topic well but if you don't have a

partner flash cards are a great way to

go solo with this you get a about 100

flash cards with the official study

guide they're fairly simple cards but

today you do have options for flashcards

in fact I'll be releasing a flash card

set to my own flash card app for the

Security Plus exam I already have

flashcards for the CSP and ccsp exam but

I'll drop a note somewhere in the series

when my flash cards are available for

you to have a look

at and I recommend curated Flash cards

over making your own just because making

your own flash cards takes time away

from focusing on the material so

wherever you wind up you want to find a

fairly complete set of flashcards that

has additional reading to back up the

terms and explanations the questions and

answers Etc so you can go deeper in fact

my flashcards have additional reading

reference to the official study guide

video

links Etc so let's talk about those

practice exams we had a look at those

together these should really be small

recurring sessions that are a measure of

your progress so after you've watched

some video content you've maybe looked

over a PowerPoint use a practice exam as

a checkpoint to see how well you're

retaining the material I would keep

these checkpoints to less than an hour

for best result if you make every

practice exam a fulllength exam you're

going to wear yourself out personally I

think picking out enough questions to

run through them in half an hour is the

way to do it and because you only have a

minute to answer questions on the exam

it doesn't hurt to grab 30 questions and

see if you can knock through them in

half an hour a minute a question I want

to answer one frequently Asked question

and then I want to show you how we use

these practice exams to drill down on

our weak areas with surgical

Precision so pretty often I get the

question which practice exams will best

prepare me for the Security Plus exam so

which practice exams you use are much

less important than how you use them

tracking your progress on a per doain

basis is absolutely key narrowing your

focus to a subset of domains Narrows the

topics you need to focus on remember I

mentioned the Paro principle the 8020

rule so no practice exam engine

replicates the live exam all that well

so use practice exams to master exam

topics and because you need 83% give or

take to pass this exam you better be

hitting these practice exams at about

90% scores consistently if you're going

to be ready on exam day so I want you to

think about your exam study like this so

we have all the exam content and study

materials and we have a limited amount

of exam prep time and we need to get to

what we have to focus on our weak spots

the areas we don't know so we use

practice exams flashcards Etc to filter

down to our week areas we watch videos

we review flashcards we review PDFs we

take a practice quiz and we see where we

come up short on that quiz and that's

going to help us find what we need to

focus on and if you keep these practice

exams short then you should be able to

take a couple of practice exams a week

for sure and remember your official

study guide exams are generally enough

and if you get 90% consistently that's a

pretty good sign that you're ready and

when you feel you're ready then go take

the full practice exams that you have in

those two sets you know take a 90

question sit down and see how you do if

you're not totally happy with the

official study guide if you wanted to go

a third party you could look at pocket

prep that's the one I prefer because

they they have a good feature set and

they have a good mobile experience so

you can take your quizzes anywhere they

have a little quick 10 where you can

drop into a 10 question quiz timed quiz

they help you identify your weakest

subject they have a mock exam format and

they have a build your own option so you

can go in and customize to a fair degree

but I don't recommend you start there

see how how you're progressing using the

official study guide materials I think

the right answer is to get to game day

spending as little money as you actually

need to spend if you find you're not

progressing then maybe go look at a

different tool to help and that brings

us to our final resource targeted

reading so I use the official study

guide when I'm studying for exams for

two primary purposes number one learning

more about my week

topics and number

two identifying the most likely exam

topics so the practice exam is going to

show me my week topics I can take away

the questions I missed and go read more

on those topics but what you'll also

find in the official study guide at the

end of each chapter they're going to

give you a hint as to likely exam topics

in other words what's most probably

going to

appear but use it for targeted reading

don't spend your time reading the

official study guide cover to cover it

will add months to your prep time

necessarily and that's the game plan so

as I said the series will be complete in

Q2 2024 but I already have at least the

first installment for you out there and

I'll be dropping new installments in

this series until it's complete every 2

or 3 days so if you haven't already I

suggest you order your copy of the

official study guide get the practice

test and get started on domain 1.1 which

is already posted here on inside cloud

and security and congratulations you've

made it to the the end of part one you

have a game plan I hope you get value

out of this series if you have questions

along the way drop me a comment in the

comments below the video here on YouTube

Reach Out directly on LinkedIn and I'll

look forward to congratulating you when

you cross the finish line and until next

time take care and stay safe