10 Things I’ve Learned From Taking 6 ISC2 Exams

April 14, 2011 By Mitchell Rowton 11 Comments

Things I learned taking ISC2 examsI’ve taken ISC2 exams six times. This includes failing the CISSP the first time I took the exam, then passing on the second attempt. I also committed the ultimate dumb ass mistake of letting my CISSP expire because I didn’t get enough CPE credits. This forced me to take the CISSP exam for the third time (and passed). Next I took the CAP exam. After this I took the CISSP-ISSEP concentration. I was told that I failed this so took it again six months later. Failed again. Then, months later I got the “woops, you really passed both times” e-mail from ISC2. I was one of the lucky folks caught up in the ISC2 erroneous grading debacle. So what did I learn after sitting through six ISC2 exams?

1. Bring food and water

The CISSP exam can last 6 hours. Thats an eternity to sit at a desk reading frustrating questions. You don’t want the added aggravation of being hungry or thirsty. Not only is it distracting but can have a negative effect on your comprehension and patience. I know people that suggest gimmicky food or drinks.

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How I Failed the CISSP

February 27, 2011 By Mitchell Rowton 4 Comments

I took the CISSP in 2004 with two friends from work. I failed and they both passed. Here’s why-

In 2001 I took my first IT certification test- Cisco’s CCNA. I had heard this was a difficult exam but didn’t have an opportunity to actually talk to someone who had taken it. Because it was my first cert, I was very scared and nervous. I had absolutely zero confidence in my ability to pass it. Fortunately, I was also leaving the Marine Corps and was even more scared about being unemployed.

Failed the CISSPI paid a friend cash and he let me use his credit card to order a CCNA book and register or the exam. I studied for about a month, going through what I would describe as an “academic fight or flight” scenario. I was reading the book every chance I got, more than was probably healthy. I could do hexadecimal conversions in my sleep and subnet during breakfast.

When the big day came to take the exam I felt reasonable confident. The exam was schedule to last 90 minutes, I finished in 17. Passed with flying colors. Either the test was much easier than I expected or I simply over studied for it. I assumed the latter and chalked it up as a learning experience.

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