Re: Failed CISSP - big time disappointment - Page 7

seaside · ‎03-06-2018

I read many posts from people who failed the new CISSP adaptive exam. I myself failed it on 3/5/18. I expected to do 250 questions but I was very shocked that I got knocked out after 99/100 questions. I asked the proctor whether I was given the wrong exam. The proctor explained to me that because it is an adaptive exam the so it stopped because I didn't answer a certain number of questions correctly; I was absolutely horrified what I experienced. I could not sleep all night after the exam day, I've been studying for it for over 3 months and I scored between 77% - 85% of dozens of practice tests of over 3,000 questions. I went beyond by reading front to back cover of the Sybex - 7th Edition book and I completed all the chapter tests as well as all of the online practice tests that Sybex offered me and I did well. In addition I also went through all of Cybrary training videos, figuring that with all that studying I was well prepared to take the exam. Not to mention that I have a master degree in IT and in Information Assurance field with the company for over 9 years.

I find the adaptive exam questions and answers are so abstract that I feel my English comprehension isn't good enough for it. I have reached out to ISC2 for their support and advice. I am so sad and disappointed that I am not sure if I ever want to take any test in the adaptive format.

rslade · ‎08-31-2018

> atk (Viewer) posted a new reply in Member Support on 08-30-2018 08:17 PM in the

> I'm in the same boat. Did 150 questions...still failed. I don't know...if we hit
> 150 questions, does that mean we were close? I don't want to lose hope, but I
> also don't want to keep banging my head against a wall. I know the subject
> matter. But it seems that I just need to figure out what ISC2 expects a manager
> to think like. I guess I need help in identifying what "managerial thought" in
> ISC2 parlance means.

Generally:
If you are faced with four "right" answers, and one of them is the "management"
answer, that's the one to choose.

(I've been telling people this in the seminars for almost twenty years. One friend,
after he took the exam, told me he figured it applied to about 10% of the
questions.)

====================== (quote inserted randomly by Pegasus Mailer)
rslade@vcn.bc.ca slade@victoria.tc.ca rslade@computercrime.org
When art critics get together, they talk about form, texture,
movement, meaning. When artists get together, they talk about
where you can get the best turpentine for cheap. - Picasso
victoria.tc.ca/techrev/rms.htm http://www.infosecbc.org/links
http://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/author/p1/
http://twitter.com/rslade

............

Other posts: https://community.isc2.org/t5/forums/recentpostspage/user-id/1324864413

This message may or may not be governed by the terms of
http://www.noticebored.com/html/cisspforumfaq.html#Friday or
https://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/1468

CraginS · ‎09-01-2018

Please see my response to Andrea at

https://community.isc2.org/t5/Certifications/Failed-CISSP-Where-do-I-go-from-here/m-p/14216#M2836

which links back to my longer blog post on

Pass Rates for Professional Exams

Part of the psychology of continuing your effort is to understand that professional competency exams and school exams are different.

Not passing a professional competency exam is a setback, but not a failure.

D. Cragin Shelton, DSc
Dr.Cragin@iCloud.com
My Blog
My LinkeDin Profile
My Community Posts

Bufordtpisser · ‎09-23-2018

I had my CISSP since 2004. Helped a few others study for the exam and proctored an exam once. The issue that I have seen most that have caused people to fail exams is not the format of the exam, but the fact that people second guess their answers.
Would you have been happier if they would have allowed you to waste more time and still failed?
If you were only consistently getting 70 and 80's on the practice exams, then you were not ready. I didn't even consider sitting for the exam until every practice was passed with a 95% or better.
The format did not fail you, you failed you.
I am sorry you failed, and I know it can be difficult, but it was not the test, it was the test taker. If failing one sitting has you so distressed that you are considering not sitting for it again, you may just not be CISSP material. Not trying to be mean, I just call them how I see them.

rslade · ‎09-25-2018

> Bufordtpisser (Viewer) posted a new reply in Member Support on 09-23-2018 06:12

> The issue that I have seen most that have caused people to fail
> exams is not the format of the exam, but the fact that people second guess their
> answers.

Absolutely. I am amazed at how often this is the case. It got to the point where, in my seminars, I would strongly urge people *not* to go back over their answers, but just to start at the beginning, go to the end, and then finish.

(With one proviso. This was back in paper-based test times, and I usually told them to go through and answer every tenth question first. Not that every tenth question was easier or anything, but it was easy, faced with a page of 400 lines of circles, to get "off by one" in your answers ...)

............

Other posts: https://community.isc2.org/t5/forums/recentpostspage/user-id/1324864413

This message may or may not be governed by the terms of
http://www.noticebored.com/html/cisspforumfaq.html#Friday or
https://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/1468

Mark_M · ‎12-20-2018

Hello All,

A little history first about myself. I've worked in telecommunication for 15 yrs, 2 courses away from my MS degree in IT project Management, and fluent in the Sybex (ISC)2 Seventh Edition CISSP study guide. I read the book cover to cover 4 times...and liked it. In fact, my average scores on the text book exams are 95% and above. I've been studying for over a year. I attended 2 different CISSP live boot camps form industry training leaders....Now for my 2 cents.

I sat for the CISSP exam 3 times, the most recent being today (20 Dec 2018) and I failed. Actually, today being the worse I ever did. The questions on the exam were Extremely tough in the sense that there were little variance between answers. The test seem to be heavily driven to test your reading comprehension and constantly uses "Best", "Most", "Least", etc in their questions. This unfortunately is an indicator that there are multiple right answers, and also Most unfortunately, the question and answers are flooded with synonyms from study material. This make it even more difficult to narrow down an answer to the "Best" answer because synonyms don't quite define a learning competency as uniquely as another. Does it sound like I'm reading to far into the question...That's the CAT condition!

I don't think my issue is a failure to translate the content learned into the context tested... I believe my issue is CISSP Exam anxiety...specifically reading anxiety. My recommendation... to all pursuing the CISSP exam is Do Not Quit!! I'll be taking the exam again in a few months and decided to take the weekend off from studying. But come Monday, I'll start reading the book again with a smile, knowing that I'm going to laugh one day when I get that print out stating "Congrats, you passed"... or what ever the text says, I don't know anyone who passed. I guess they'll use a synonym for "Congrats, you passed"..." Hence forth with thy Felicitations".

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that Study hard, in fact study endlessly. Focus on breaking down attack types to various ports and network architectures, know the definition for every word/phrase in the Index, every elemental security operation, developmental software process, and assessment approach. Once you got it, learn with some distractions... like taking a 150 questions in an hour, with the TV on and music playing in the background. Nothing should distract you... not even failure. Just don't quit....don't quit.

Lastly, what good would a motivation speech be without a quote. We'll this isn't a quote because I'm just a normal guy. Anyways...

By Mark_M: "The future is your's... just give it a second, it'll give it back in as it passes."

d46j48fx · ‎12-20-2018

I've PMd you.

@Mark_M wrote:

Hello All,

A little history first about myself. I've worked in telecommunication for 15 yrs, 2 courses away from my MS degree in IT project Management, and fluent in the Sybex (ISC)2 Seventh Edition CISSP study guide. I read the book cover to cover 4 times...and liked it. In fact, my average scores on the text book exams are 95% and above. I've been studying for over a year. I attended 2 different CISSP live boot camps form industry training leaders....Now for my 2 cents.

I sat for the CISSP exam 3 times, the most recent being today (20 Dec 2018) and I failed. Actually, today being the worse I ever did. The questions on the exam were Extremely tough in the sense that there were little variance between answers. The test seem to be heavily driven to test your reading comprehension and constantly uses "Best", "Most", "Least", etc in their questions. This unfortunately is an indicator that there are multiple right answers, and also Most unfortunately, the question and answers are flooded with synonyms from study material. This make it even more difficult to narrow down an answer to the "Best" answer because synonyms don't quite define a learning competency as uniquely as another. Does it sound like I'm reading to far into the question...That's the CAT condition!

I don't think my issue is a failure to translate the content learned into the context tested... I believe my issue is CISSP Exam anxiety...specifically reading anxiety. My recommendation... to all pursuing the CISSP exam is Do Not Quit!! I'll be taking the exam again in a few months and decided to take the weekend off from studying. But come Monday, I'll start reading the book again with a smile, knowing that I'm going to laugh one day when I get that print out stating "Congrats, you passed"... or what ever the text says, I don't know anyone who passed. I guess they'll use a synonym for "Congrats, you passed"..." Hence forth with thy Felicitations".

I guess the point I'm trying to make is that Study hard, in fact study endlessly. Focus on breaking down attack types to various ports and network architectures, know the definition for every word/phrase in the Index, every elemental security operation, developmental software process, and assessment approach. Once you got it, learn with some distractions... like taking a 150 questions in an hour, with the TV on and music playing in the background. Nothing should distract you... not even failure. Just don't quit....don't quit.

Lastly, what good would a motivation speech be without a quote. We'll this isn't a quote because I'm just a normal guy. Anyways...

By Mark_M: "The future is your's... just give it a second, it'll give it back in as it passes."

Mark_M · ‎12-20-2018

That said; My first test was Feb 2018, 2nd in June and my third today 20 Dec 2018.

When am I eligible to retake the exam again?
(1 calendar year meaning Feb 2109, or must I wait 30/90/180 days?)

amandavanceISC2 · ‎12-20-2018

@Mark_M Thank you for the inquiry. If you sat 3 times already this year, you cannot sit again in 2018; however, you must also adhere to the 30/90/180 policy. Since your third attempt was today, you will need to wait 180 days before you can sit again. You can still schedule the next exam, just be sure it's at least 180 days from today's date.

Best Regards,

Amanda Vance

rslade · ‎12-20-2018

> Mark_M (Viewer) posted a new reply in Member Support on 12-20-2018 02:57 PM in

> My
> recommendation... to all pursuing the CISSP exam is Do Not Quit!! I'll be taking
> the exam again in a few months and decided to take the weekend off from
> studying. But come Monday, I'll start reading the book again with a smile,
> knowing that I'm going to laugh one day when I get that print out stating
> "Congrats, you passed"... or what ever the text says, I don't know anyone who
> passed.

A bunch of us did.

Good choice. Keep going. But enough with the Sybex book, already. Read
"Security Engineering" by Ross Anderson. Or have a look at some of the stuff on
http://victoria.tc.ca/int-grps/books/techrev/mnbksccd.htm

====================== (quote inserted randomly by Pegasus Mailer)
rslade@vcn.bc.ca slade@victoria.tc.ca rslade@computercrime.org
Twitter: the bumper sticker of the Information Age - rms
victoria.tc.ca/techrev/rms.htm http://twitter.com/rslade
http://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/author/p1/
https://is.gd/RotlWB

............

Other posts: https://community.isc2.org/t5/forums/recentpostspage/user-id/1324864413

This message may or may not be governed by the terms of
http://www.noticebored.com/html/cisspforumfaq.html#Friday or
https://blogs.securiteam.com/index.php/archives/1468

AlecTrevelyan · ‎12-20-2018

That's a great attitude you have, Mark_M!

Sadly, I was thinking you may fall foul of the retake policy. Does that mean you need to wait 180 days between each retake now? If so, it's just more motivation to pass next time around.

Completely agree you should use some different study material for your next attempt. Isn't that the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results.

Best of luck to you!