topic Re: CISSP STUDY TIME in Exam Preparation

CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Mon, 09 Oct 2023 08:55:31 GMT

Hey Guys,

I'm studying to take the CISSP. How much time, conservatively, should I budget? I want to go ahead and schedule the exam in advance for a time I anticipate being 'ready' as a motivator.

I passed the CISA exam, which I studied for about 2.5 months at 2 hours a night/5 days a week. I expect that this exam will be more intensive and as such, I'll probably need to dedicate more time to it.

Any help and advice is super appreciated!

Thanks!

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

darie17 — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 11:37:32 GMT

Hi there,

you did not provide enough Information about your background, so it's hard to estimate how much YOU would need to prepare for the CISSP exam.

Therefore I'll just take myself as an example: I had 5 years full time experience in the security field by the time I took the exam (and passed on the first attempt). I invested approximately 150-160 hours in learning and practicing - at the beginning less (maybe somewhere around 5-8 hours a week), in the last 3-4 weeks up to 25 hours a week (and I was still working full time). I registered the exam 3,5 months in advance, which helped me keep the focus.

No matter how much you invest in learning: do not underestimate the CISSP exam. Expect at least some tricky questions.

Hope this helps.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 12:37:38 GMT

Thanks Darie17. That is helpful!

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

sneakers — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 13:04:47 GMT

Hi, I took the same route - passed CISA on the December (paper-based) exam and then passed CISSP around May the next year. After the CISA review/pass, I studied for CISSP by reading the 11th Hour by Eric Conrad. As tips go, the amount of study will depend on the years and field of experience. So try to gauge how much study is needed based on how well you did on the CISA exam and how well you understand the CISSP domains. There are a lot of new materials now. I suggest you pick one that is not boring for you. And study daily until the planned exam date. 🙂 Best of luck.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 13:49:51 GMT

Thanks Sneakers!! I really appreciate the advice and recommendations! I have 5 years experience in IT Audit, so I anticipate having a harder time with some of the more technical topics. I miss having an online study bank like I did with CISA, but I have purchased the Sybex books as that brand carried me way better than the official guide from ISACA. The Sybex CISSP book is comically large, which makes me nervous, but I'm going to start dedicating as much time to that and the practice question guide as I can.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Cousy14 — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 16:51:15 GMT

Parthenon,

I have a similar background and just know that the CISSP is considerably harder than the CISA. I have 5 years experience in a highly technical IT audit shop and the CISSP still challenged me technically. I scheduled my exam 8 months out so I would have enough time to study. I started studying almost right after I scheduled my exam by reading a chapter a week in the Sybex book and working through the associated practice questions. I built a study plan an stuck to it. Then, one week before my exam I attended a classroom based boot camp with InfoSec Institute (which for me was very helpful). I passed my CISSP exam on my first attempt but it was by no means an easy task. In total, I estimate I studied between 160 - 200 hours before taking my exam. My recommendation: Create a study plan and stick to it. Also, study more than you think you need because when it comes to test time you need to show you have a certain level of mastery over the core material. You got this.....stick to it and its totally worth it in the end!

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Early_Adopter — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 18:01:51 GMT

I’d favour a looser plan for study but I’d milestone out the 8 domains, and try to hit these. Try not to worry about assigning a time, but go the rough the books and make sure you can accurately describe everything in each domain. Right size time spent for each domain, for example in the old ten domain CBK I spent no time on encryption as it was forming such a large part of my day to day( only do this if you are very sure on something if you avoid it, but it it can speed up the process).

I do find little and often is the approach I like, 40mins reading, ten minutes resting, ten minutes sumarising after the rest without the text book. Keep doing it until you understand and can describe everything contained in a domain with minimal/ no prompting and I’d say you’d be on the right track.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Early_Adopter — Mon, 27 Aug 2018 18:02:56 GMT

I do find little and often is the approach I like, 40mins reading, ten minutes resting, ten minutes sumarising after the rest without the text book. Keep doing it until you understand and can describe everything contained in a domain with minimal to no prompting and I’d say you’d be on the right track.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 14:56:34 GMT

Thanks Cousy! That's super helpful! I am working with a mentor to strategize a study plan. I'm afraid I do not have a highly technical background. When I studied the CISA I was able to hone in on the IT chapters and kinda skim the more audit practice sections, but I realize I'm more handicapped on this exam. I've been seeing more of my coworkers go after it, so I'm hoping within an attempt or two I can get there. I appreciate the advice on time allotment - I am taking that to heart, and will try to see if I can schedule it out further than I initially planned on to allow myself enough time to grasp the material.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Tue, 28 Aug 2018 14:58:35 GMT

Thank you! Yeah - I think I have 'some' background for about half the material, but for the other 4 domains I am definitely already struggling. I'm trying to study in 40 minute increments and split between reading, flashcards, and questions.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

jasonmedhurst — Wed, 29 Aug 2018 11:51:24 GMT

Hi there,

I followed the process below to pass the exam last year. It might not work for you, but it worked for me:

3 months before the exam I bought CISSP Study Guide by Eric Conrad and started reading it. At the same time I bought an official cissp app for my phone which had flashcards and test questions. After I read a section in the book, I looked at the equivalent flashcards and took the short test for those questions.Then about a month before I bought another cissp app for my phone which just had questions and I just practised like hell on this.

Then before the exam I took a week boot camp with Firebrand. This started on the Sunday and I took my exam the following Sunday. Not sure if you have been on one of these before, they are great but hard work. Most days had approx. 10 hours of class plus minimum of 2 to 3 hours study after that in groups or on your own.

Then I took the test with Firebrand and I passed first time.

I don't think I would have passed if I hadn't read the book or took the boot camp. Reading the book gave me a lot of base knowledge and allowed me to listen more on the course rather than just spend a lot of time trying to scribble down notes. Also it was useful having the tutor there to ask questions on stuff I didn't understand from the book.

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

TankerT — Wed, 29 Aug 2018 20:15:20 GMT

Really, this is a hard to answer question as everyone's situation is fairly different.

Since we are talking about a few different certifications, I'll compare. Some folks are saying that the CISSP is harder than the CISA. Some folks are saying they studied one area and less on another.

It's all based on individual experience, and how you learn. And, how well you can determine where your weak points are and brush up there.

In my case, I studied for the CISSP exam for a week, and then took the test on the weekend, finishing in just under three hours. Now, that makes it sound easy. Mind you, I had been working in the field with a wide variety of positions and experience for about 17 years when I sat for that exam. So, while I won't say the CISSP exam was easy, I just knew the material from my prior education and experience.

When I took the CISA, I thought that exam was a bit harder. But, my time around the audit world was not nearly as extensive as the topics covered for the CISSP. I studied for several hours a week for about three months.

Each person is different, and each person's journey may not be the same.

The Sybex book is big. But, it is good. Also, I second the Eric Conrad suggestion. I also really like his 11th hour book.

Take a look at where you are weak, then take a look at how many pages you need to study, figure out how long it would take you, add a buffer because "life happens" and then go from there.

That is my suggestion. YMMV.

Good luck!

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

Parthenon — Fri, 28 Sep 2018 17:01:41 GMT

Thank you for thoughtful response! I am taking this to heart. I have been going through my Sybex book resource and find that about half aligns with my job experience but the other half is quite challenging. I got lucky and found someone at work who happens to have taken it recently and is mentoring me through and passing along some of his resources.

I initially thought I'd be on a 3-4 month study plan, but, as you suggested, I reassessed my pages and I'm going to give myself a little more time (hey- it's an expensive test I'd rather not take twice).

Thank you SO MUCH for the advice!

Re: CISSP STUDY TIME

saikatroy — Thu, 04 Oct 2018 07:16:15 GMT

This is an expensive test specially when you convert it to Indian Rupee like in my case. So I had to pass at the first attempt. I studied the Sybex book, for around 2 months (around 20 hrs a week) then solved that Sybex Questions to have pretty good idea in which domains I was lagging, revised the book again, I knew which portions to study more.

I took some of the Seniors' advice from here and just relaxed from the day before exam-day, even tried to meditate. This was probably the best advice I can pass on, as when I was giving the exam, my cool head and my experience mattered much more than the last three months' study.

Then when the Exam coordinator was passing me the single page document, I knew I passed.