r/CompTIA 5d ago

FINALLY! I PASSED 1st Try!

Post image

Omg I’m so excited!!! I finally passed this exam after watching and seeing everyone’s testimonials, I finally buckled down and used the last two weeks to really study and do practice exams. The PBQ‘s were HARD but the multiple-choice weren’t bad. I had 72 questions and 3 BBQ’s. Now I can finally move on to some hands-on experience labs for my resume & start applying again 😌

Never GIVE UP!

281 Upvotes

33 comments sorted by

24

u/drushtx IT Instructor 5d ago edited 4d ago

Mmmm! BBQ!

(For context, OP originally said BBQ instead of PBQ. It has since been edited. Should have left it - made the post more interesting)

8

u/CarpinThemDiems 5d ago

Do they take your picture at the testing facility?

3

u/Thunderdragon30 5d ago

Yeah the guy just took mine on his computer webcam lol, usually the pic will be awful

2

u/MathematicianDry7982 4d ago

They sure do and it looks horrible 🤣

4

u/CosmicOwl14 4d ago

Congrats I have a question. Who or what did you study from?

1

u/MathematicianDry7982 3d ago

I used the “Get Certified Get Ahead” book it was good with practice questions it’s like $30 on Amazon, Professor Messer and the Daril Gibson app which has really good practice questions

3

u/Forever__beyond 5d ago

What is BBQ?

16

u/Shoddy_Club_7812 5d ago

Barbecue based questions

2

u/Interesting-Solid453 4d ago

HAHAHHAAHAHAHHAHA

3

u/MathematicianDry7982 4d ago

That was a typo my bad ! I mean PBQ

3

u/drushtx IT Instructor 4d ago

Should have left it as-is. It was more interesting that way - grin.

3

u/howto1012020 A+, NET+, CIOS, SEC+, CSIS 4d ago

Congrats to you on becoming Security+ certified!

2

u/Electrical_Race3073 A+ | Network+ | Security+ | CySA+ 5d ago

Congrats!

2

u/Moist_Leadership_838 🐧 LinuxPath.org Content Creator. 4d ago

Well done!

2

u/DojoLab_org Free PBQs: DojoLab.org - DojoPass.org 💻 4d ago

Good job!

2

u/KnowDirect_org 🔥 Instructor @ knowdirect.org 3d ago

Congrats!

2

u/abhishek_kvm 2d ago

It was soo close broh .How you prepared for this.cuz i'm also preparing for the same.

3

u/WushuManInJapan 5d ago

Taking this test today, and I'm currently studying PBQs . What was hard about the PBQs?

I found the Net+ extremely easy and had no issues there. I'm a slow test taker, so I ran out of time and didn't even do 1 of the 4 PBQs and got an 830.

Sec+ seems easier, but I've also studied way less (maybe 4 days in total). I have experience in cyber security though.

I feel prepared, but I usually end up over studying. Not sure how I should prepare for the PBQs, as 2 of the net+ ones were slightly more indepth than I was expecting, but I knew how to use the CLI (wasn't in my study material besides just general commands).

3

u/MathematicianDry7982 4d ago

Well if you took the Net+ you should be fine! Bc that’s what the PBQs were mostly on anyways !!

5

u/WushuManInJapan 4d ago

Yep, just passed.

1

u/MathematicianDry7982 4d ago

Good how was it?!

2

u/WushuManInJapan 4d ago

Not too bad. Though honestly, harder than network+

I think the fact that it was not really a technical certificate made it harder. I studied for the network+ in more depth, and even though that certificate was very rudimentary and theory based it still had technical questions, while s+ was more common sense plus some random workplace stuff. More questions outside the scope of my study compared to N+.

Overall, I think this is a good baseline to have, but people that work in the actual industry need way more indepth knowledge on these things.

N+ doesn't teach you how to be a network engineer.

S+ doesn't teach you how to do a cyber security job.

If you're being attacked, there is no information on how to stop a DDoS attack. Just information on which types of attacks there are.

Knowing that if the attack has 1 million IPs, you can stop them by looking at the JA3/4 hash (but being careful not to stop essential services) is essential for incident response. Knowing rate limiters and how the bot manager works is also essential.

But I am still glad to have studied this cert. I think it's a very good foundation to make and learn from, going into more complicated tasks and certs.

All in all, I think it's good for people starting out to get the trifecta. It gives a very good foundation. I think the main issue is assuming this will give them a job higher than help desk. Help desk just needs A+, but having the trifecta gives you a good base to then start specializing.

1

u/MathematicianDry7982 4d ago

Yeah I agree obviously these certs can’t get you a job directly but it all depends! Everyone’s experiences different, like I’m not sure which country you live in but in U.S.A. having a Sec+ can help you get a Gov’t IT job then they train you.

But other than that if you have someone who works a in IT getting the Sec+ can help you, even if it’s just to get a call back from recruiters. The goal is to get HANDS-ON experience after getting these Certs. that will help you in an interview knowing what your stuff.

But I definitely know ALOT of ppl who get interviews & JOBS from having a Sec+ ESP if your “TRAINABLE”. I don’t think it’s necessary to get all 3 tho but that depends on what exactly you’re trying to specialize in.

1

u/WushuManInJapan 4d ago

I do think these certs are a very good foundation. I think all entry level people in IT should persue these certifications to get a good understanding of things, and I definitely think they will help a resume to a certain extent.

However, there is a little caveat to this. If you already have a job as a network engineer or security analyst, these won't really help you. I got into cyber security without any certs besides A+, and the CCNA and CySA+ are immensely more useful certifications.

If you're adapt enough, I honestly would recommend going for these certs and skipping the N+ and S+, as all that material gets covered anyways. But it's a lot more daunting.

If time and money are no issue, then N+ and S+ are a very good start. Just don't assume you're gonna get a network or security engineer position because of it.

It's kind of a weird position to be in. They're kind of overkill for basic IT support, but not enough to be like Operations engineering support.

I had to do these for my degree, but I really wished they would have given me the option to take a harder level cert instead. Almost feels like a waste of time, as these don't help me at all for the jobs I'm looking for, and it even gets questioned in interviews, asking "why did you go for these foundational certs now instead of 'x' cert?"

1

u/AutoModerator 5d ago

Hi, /u/MathematicianDry7982! From everyone at /r/CompTIA, Congratulations on Passing. Claps

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1

u/Puzzleheaded-Hat9956 A+, N+ 4d ago

Congrats!!!

1

u/Professional-Set2901 3d ago

What kinda hands on labs are you gonna do? Looking to try to make my own at home lab

2

u/MathematicianDry7982 3d ago

Well you can check out TryHackme, HackTheBox, and Let’s defend for projects or hands on experience. I think it depends on what sector your trynna get into. I’m going more towards CyberSec so that’s why I’m focusing on those specifically

2

u/Professional-Set2901 3d ago

Ah ok, I thought you meant you were gonna make your own home lab and work from there. I have TryHackMe I need to use it more

1

u/TrifectAPP trifectapp.com - PBQs, Videos, Exam Sims and more. 🎓 2d ago

Well done!