-: Congratulations, you made it to the end of the course. 2 2
Now, we have covered a lot of material 3 3
during our time together. 4 4
Throughout this course, 5 5
we have covered over 38 sections 6 6
and more than 350 videos 7 7
in order to provide you with everything you need to know 8 8
to understand all four of the domains 9 9
for the CompTIA CySA+ CS0-003 exam. 10 10
Now, let's review those four domains one more time 11 11
'cause we really haven't talked about them all specifically 12 12
since our very first few lessons together. 13 13
Now, I know we didn't cover these domains in order, 14 14
and that's okay. 15 15
I covered them all throughout the course, 16 16
but I rearranged them 17 17
to make it easier for you to understand 18 18
and learn in the most efficient way possible. 19 19
Now, CompTIA is not known for ordering their domains 20 20
in the most logical or straightforward way sometimes. 21 21
This is because they're not designed 22 22
to be taught in the order they're listed in the PDF. 23 23
Instead, I've rearranged them to make it easier for you. 24 24
And I promise, 25 25
I did cover everything listed in those exam objectives 26 26
and each of their sub-bullets 27 27
as we went through the course together. 28 28
Now, the first domain is called Security Operations, 29 29
and it makes up 33% of the questions on your exam. 30 30
The second domain is known as Vulnerability Management, 31 31
and it makes up 30% of the exam. 32 32
The third domain is Incident Response Management, 33 33
and this makes up 20% of your exam. 34 34
And the fourth and final domain 35 35
is Reporting and Communication, 36 36
and this makes up 17% of the exam. 37 37
So as you can see, this is all stuff that we've covered 38 38
throughout our time together, 39 39
and I hope you enjoyed my approach 40 40
of starting out with the fundamental concepts 41 41
from threat intelligence, 42 42
and then moving into monitoring and configuring things, 43 43
and then into analysis and forensics, 44 44
and finally, into incident response, 45 45
mitigating vulnerabilities, 46 46
and the different technical and non-technical approaches 47 47
to different security measures. 48 48
Now, I know that we have covered 49 49
a lot of information in this course 50 50
and you're probably excited to run off, 51 51
schedule your exam, take that certification test, 52 52
and finally become CompTIA CySA+ certified. 53 53
But before you do, 54 54
I recommend that you stick around 55 55
until the end of this lesson. 56 56
This is because I'm going to give you 57 57
my top five tips and tricks for raising your score 58 58
on the CompTIA CySA+ certification exam 59 59
so you can pass that exam on your first attempt. 60 60
After all the CompTIA CySA+ exam is expensive 61 61
and you probably don't want to have to pay for it twice. 62 62
Speaking of taking the exam, 63 63
how are you going to sign up for it 64 64
and how do you schedule that exam? 65 65
Well, you can take it 66 66
at any Pearson VUE Testing Center worldwide, 67 67
at either a local testing center or online. 68 68
Now, personally, I've taken exams all over the world, 69 69
including North America, South America, over in Asia, 70 70
and even out in the Middle East at local testing centers. 71 71
But starting a few years ago, 72 72
Pearson VUE and CompTIA have created capability 73 73
for you to take your certification exams online 74 74
from the comfort of your own home or office 75 75
using the Pearson VUE OnVUE Testing System. 76 76
To do this, you have to be in a room where you can be alone, 77 77
you have to have a good internet connection, 78 78
and you have to have a webcam 79 79
so that the live person 80 80
who's going to be watching you take the exam 81 81
can make sure there is no cheating going on 82 82
during your exam attempt, 83 83
and this helps protect the integrity of the exam. 84 84
Now, to take this exam, 85 85
you do need to purchase an exam voucher 86 86
and then then you can go and schedule 87 87
the day and time of the exam that you want to take it. 88 88
You can buy your exam voucher 89 89
by going to Pearson VUE directly 90 90
when you're scheduling your exam at pearsonvue.com, 91 91
or you can go to the retail store for CompTIA 92 92
at store.comtia.org to buy it from the CompTIA web store. 93 93
Now, if you do either of these two options though, 94 94
you are going to pay the full retail price 95 95
for your exam voucher based on the location 96 96
of where you're going to be taking that exam 97 97
because CompTIA uses different pricing 98 98
based on different countries and locations around the world. 99 99
For example, right now here in the United States, 100 100
the cost of the CySA+ exam is around $400. 101 101
But if you'd like to pre-purchase your exam voucher 102 102
before you schedule your exam, 103 103
you can actually save 10% off the retail price 104 104
by going to our website at diontraining.com/vouchers. 105 105
From here, you can select a voucher you need, 106 106
which is the CySA+ voucher 107 107
and the country you're going to be taking the exam in, 108 108
and then you can purchase that voucher directly from us 109 109
if we carry the voucher for your particular country. 110 110
Currently, we carry vouchers 111 111
for about 50 countries around the world, 112 112
and we're adding new countries all the time. 113 113
So it is worth taking that step 114 114
and going over to diontraining.com/vouchers 115 115
to see if we carry one for where you live. 116 116
As a CompTIA Platinum delivery partner 117 117
who helps tens of thousands of students 118 118
pass their exams every year, 119 119
we receive a special discount rate on these exam vouchers, 120 120
and we pass on those savings to our students 121 121
when they buy their vouchers from us. 122 122
When you order your voucher from our website, 123 123
you're going to receive a unique one-time use code 124 124
to be able to schedule your exam, 125 125
as well as getting free access 126 126
to our fully searchable library of CompTIA videos 127 127
to help you with any last minute studying 128 128
that you may need to do before the exam. 129 129
Now once you have your CySA+ exam voucher 130 130
with your unique one-time use code, 131 131
you're going to go over to pearsonvue.com 132 132
and schedule the exam for any day and time that you prefer, 133 133
and pick whether or not you're going to take it 134 134
at a local testing center or online using the OnVUE system. 135 135
So if you're willing to take that one extra step 136 136
of going to diontraining.com/vouchers first, 137 137
you're going to be able to save 10% or more 138 138
off the cost of your exam voucher 139 139
and get free access to our searchable library 140 140
as a free bonus. 141 141
All right, now as promised, 142 142
here are my top five tips and tricks 143 143
for increasing your score on the exam. 144 144
First, use a cheat sheet. 145 145
Now you're not actually allowed to carry anything 146 146
into the exam with you, 147 147
but if you're at a local testing center, 148 148
they're going to give you a whiteboard or a dry erase sheet 149 149
that's about the size of a normal piece of paper. 150 150
Once the clock starts on the exam, 151 151
you can start brain dumping anything you want on that paper. 152 152
Things like ports and terms, 153 153
or anything else that you might forget 154 154
by the time you get to question 66 and beyond, 155 155
you want to be able to write down on this sheet. 156 156
Personally, I recommend that you use this sheet 157 157
and spend the first one to two minutes 158 158
of your exam time, 159 159
writing down those important things 160 160
that you may forget later on because it will come in handy. 161 161
If you're taking the test at home, 162 162
you're not going to have a physical piece of paper to write on, 163 163
but instead they give you access to a digital whiteboard 164 164
in the exam software, 165 165
and you can use this for that same purpose now. 166 166
Now, remember, you're not allowed 167 167
to write anything down on the whiteboard 168 168
until the clock starts for your exam. 169 169
And at that point, you can brain dump anything you want 170 170
and put it onto that whiteboard. 171 171
Now my second tip is to skip the simulations. 172 172
Now, simulations, or performance-based questions 173 173
as CompTIA likes to call them, 174 174
are usually going to be the first three to five questions 175 175
on your exam. 176 176
Now for most students, they're going to find these 177 177
to be the hardest questions on the exam. 178 178
So my recommendation is that when the exam starts, 179 179
I simply want you to mark those for review, skip them, 180 180
and then do all your multiple choice questions first. 181 181
Then when you get to the end of the exam, 182 182
I want you to go back 183 183
and do the simulations from the beginning. 184 184
Now, don't even read the simulations 185 185
your first time through the exam. 186 186
Trust me, just skip them and move on. 187 187
By using this technique, 188 188
you're going to be able to give yourself more confidence 189 189
as you're going through the multiple choice questions, 190 190
and that'll help you out 191 191
once you get to the simulations at the end of the exam. 192 192
Now, when you finish going through 193 193
all those multiple choice questions, 194 194
I then want you to go back 195 195
to those first three to five questions on the exam, 196 196
which are the PBQs or simulations. 197 197
Remember, PBQs and simulations can take a lot of time. 198 198
Some of them can take five to 10 minutes each. 199 199
And so what I want you to do 200 200
is save them for the end, 201 201
because otherwise, you can burn up a lot of time 202 202
and then you'll find yourself 203 203
rushing through the multiple choice. 204 204
Trust me, students who do this 205 205
and wait until the end to take those simulations 206 206
do end up increasing their score by at least 5 to 10% 207 207
over my other students 208 208
who do the simulations at the beginning of the exam. 209 209
Trust me, skip the simulations 210 210
your first time through the exam. 211 211
It's really going to help your score, I promise you. 212 212
The third tip is about taking a guess. 213 213
If you're in doubt, 214 214
I want you to take a guess from the possible answer choices. 215 215
Remember, most of these questions 216 216
are going to be multiple choice, 217 217
and there is no penalty for guessing incorrectly 218 218
on the exam. 219 219
Instead, you're only going to be given points 220 220
added to your score anytime you select the right answer. 221 221
So whether you skipped a question or you guessed it wrong, 222 222
it counts exactly the same as zero points. 223 223
So you might as well take a guess. 224 224
If you're in doubt of the right answer, 225 225
try to eliminate as many choices as possible 226 226
and then guess between the remaining answer options. 227 227
Multiple choice questions only have four options. 228 228
So if you can figure out 229 229
that one or two of those simply can't be right, 230 230
you've already exponentially increased your odds 231 231
of guessing the right answer 232 232
from those remaining two or three options. 233 233
Now, the fourth tip is to pick the best time for the exam. 234 234
Are you a morning person or a night person? 235 235
I want you to pick the time of day that works best for you. 236 236
Don't try to squeeze in the exam 237 237
after working a long day at the office either, 238 238
it's going to hurt your score. 239 239
Personally, I like to schedule my exams around 10:00 AM. 240 240
That way, I can take the day off work, 241 241
I don't have to wake up super early, 242 242
and I can avoid rush hour traffic 243 243
on my way to the local testing center 244 244
if I'm taking it in person. 245 245
Also, I want you to schedule your exam 246 246
so you have enough time beforehand 247 247
to be able to relax a little bit 248 248
before the clock starts counting down 249 249
once you hit begin exam. 250 250
There's nothing worse than showing up at a testing center 251 251
at 9:59 when your exam is scheduled to start at 10:00 AM. 252 252
Instead, I want you to be there 253 253
at least 20 to 30 minutes early, 254 254
get comfortable at the facility, 255 255
use the restroom if you need to, 256 256
and then go in and take your exam. 257 257
This will definitely help increase your score, I promise. 258 258
Now my fifth and final tip 259 259
is that you need to be confident. 260 260
You've got this. 261 261
When you're walking into that testing center 262 262
or going into your home office to take your exam, 263 263
you shouldn't be wondering, "Am I going to pass?" 264 264
No. 265 265
Instead, you should already know that you are going to pass. 266 266
You should have already studied 267 267
all the information in this course. 268 268
You've watched the videos, you've taken the quizzes, 269 269
you've studied the downloadable study notes. 270 270
And if you're not confident right now, 271 271
then I want you to wait a few days to schedule your exam. 272 272
In the meantime, 273 273
I want you to go and take a bunch of practice exams 274 274
and build up your confidence. 275 275
Now, in this course, 276 276
I've included a free full-length practice exam as a bonus 277 277
to help determine if you're ready 278 278
for the real certification exam. 279 279
I want you to take that practice exam. 280 280
And if you're not scoring high enough, 281 281
restudy the areas you missed 282 282
by rewatching the corresponding lessons, 283 283
then take that exam again. 284 284
If you're still not confident, 285 285
go and take some more practice exams 286 286
from a good authorized source or textbook. 287 287
Now, Udemy does limit the number of practice exams 288 288
I'm allowed to include in a video course like this one, 289 289
but I do have a separate practice exam-only course 290 290
here on Udemy that contains 291 291
six additional full-length practice exams 292 292
that you can use for additional practice 293 293
as you're getting ready for your certification. 294 294
If you'd like to get that course, 295 295
you can go over to diontraining.com/udemy, 296 296
and use the link there to purchase the practice exams 297 297
for the lowest price currently available. 298 298
Now, when you take a practice exam, 299 299
your goal is not to memorize the answer key. 300 300
After all, my team and I wrote all these questions 301 301
that you're going to be taking 302 302
and CompTIA writes the official exam questions, 303 303
so they're not going to be the same word for word. 304 304
But the same concepts are going to be covered by the exam 305 305
and our practice exams. 306 306
And my team and I try our best 307 307
to mimic the way that the real exam writes their questions 308 308
so that you'll be well prepared on exam day. 309 309
So please, do yourself a favor. 310 310
Don't try to memorize my answer key 311 311
and expect to pass the real exam. 312 312
Instead, you need to take the time 313 313
to understand why the right answer was right 314 314
and the wrong answers are wrong. 315 315
If you can do that, 316 316
you're going to be able to pass the real exam 317 317
with no problem at all come test day. 318 318
Now, when you're reviewing your practice exam results, 319 319
I've provide you with detailed explanations 320 320
for every single question in our practice exams. 321 321
Please take the time to read the explanation 322 322
so you can understand why you missed a certain question 323 323
and why the right answer was right. 324 324
If you do this, 325 325
you're going to do really well on the real certification exam. 326 326
So keep taking those practice exams until you're confident. 327 327
Then go off, schedule your exam, 328 328
walk into that testing center, and know you are going to pass. 329 329
All right, if you follow my five tips, 330 330
you are going to be ready to take and pass 331 331
your CompTIA CySA+ exam on your first attempt. 332 332
Now, I know you're going to do great on the exam, 333 333
so keep studying, take the exam, 334 334
and let me know when you pass. 335 335
Notice, I said when you pass and not if you pass. 336 336
I am so confident in your ability to conquer this exam, 337 337
that when you do, I want to hear about it. 338 338
Post about it on Facebook. 339 339
Go and post about it on LinkedIn 340 340
and tag me in your post. 341 341
Share your success story in our Facebook group. 342 342
Or even go ahead and post it in the Q&A for this course. 343 343
Your fellow students and I want to hear about your success 344 344
and what worked for you 345 345
as you were studying for the CySA+ exam. 346 346
Now, I know you're going to be super excited when you receive 347 347
your CompTIA CySA+ certification in the mail, 348 348
and you're going to want to be celebrating that 349 349
with everybody else. 350 350
So take the time and make sure you post about it. 351 351
All right, once again, 352 352
congratulations for making it to the end of the course. 353 353
Now, let's go ahead 354 354
and put all your newfound knowledge to work 355 355
in our practice exams. 356 356
Good luck and I hope to see you again in a future course 357 357
as you continue upwards in your cybersecurity career 358 358
and continue to climb the CompTIA certification ladder 359 359
into PenTest+ and CASP+.