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Well, today was the big day. I went off and took the 70-294....and didn't pass. I'm not sure if my NDA will allow me to talk about the actual score but I can say that I missed a pass by only 3.2%. Fortunately, I didn't have to pay for the exam or the study materials so that takes some of the sting out of it. In the US, VUE/Microsoft is having a deal where you can retake one blown MS test for free between April and June so I think I'll just go ahead and do it.

I have to keep reminding myself that I'd only been given about three weeks to study for this one so I think I did pretty good under the circumstances. Ryan, for you I think it will be a pretty passable test, given how you're doing on the 294 QOTDs. Your experience with NT and 2000 domains and AD will definiately give you the edge.

I probably can't say how many questions there are or how much time you're given but I can hint. There aren't that many questions relative to the test banks you find in the various text books and it looks like you're given a lot of time (over 2 and a half minutes per question) but I used up literally every minute to just run through the test. Although the study materials did a good prep job, there were still some areas I wasn't very familiar with and had to just guess at. Towards the end of the test, I was running out of time with too many questions left so I just flew through the questions and grab bagged the answers, hoping for the best. When you take this test, you'll be faster if you're really well versed in the subject matter.

When you get your print out, you get a bar graph of how you did in each content area. I can see I completely passed three out of five of the areas and I know the two I need to work on.

Since I still plan to study for the 294, I'll still put up the QOTDs for this test unless anyone really objects. Well...thanks for listening. Remember, if at first you don't pass, knock 'em out in round two (how's that for a mixed metaphor?).

 

Hard luck mate.

Get it next time

 

Thanks, guys. Still licking my wounds.

 

Yeah, chin up, Trip. You've come away from it wiser and more prepared for next time, and as always, you've shared the knowledge on here, so's others can benefit from your experience

Ain't that just our Trip for you, Folks ?

 

Trip, my condolences mate, but a job WELL DONE! grats on the score, even if it was a fail, i think you did great, and i hope i can do as well as you hope i can lol!
to be honest i have had to put studying on hold due to packing and organising stuff but I will get back into it when i get settled stateside and hope to take the exam in a few weeks
not sure what i will move onto after this one

good luck on the re take mate, if u need a study aid ill be 20 mins away as of next wednesday lol

 

Thanks Gav and Ryan. Hey Ryan...once you get settled, blast me and e-mail and maybe we can get together...not particularly for studying...just to say "hi" and such. Welcome (almost) to the neighborhood.

 

Only on CertForums, eh ?

 

Sorry to hear it trip ...

lick your wounds and get back in the ring soon

 

I did some math based on the number of questions, my actual score, what the exam said was the minimum passing score and the two most likely "perfect" scores. As near as I can figure, I probably missed passing by two questions...okay, maybe three. Still, it was close. I'm encouraged. What I'll really need to do is bone up on those scenario type questions to not only improve my accuracy but my speed. Because I took so much time on some of the questions, I really had to fly through others. If I'd been more familiar with the material, I might have been able to puzzle through some of the scenarios faster, finished sooner and even had a chance to review some of the questions before time ran out.

This time, I can give myself a better chance to really go over the study guide and nail down my weak areas. Thanks for all the encouragement.

 

trip

it is good to hear you were not that far off.

I tend to work on gut instinct either you know the answer or not.

I missed my Network Design by 20 points first time round (gutted or what - it makes 216 look like a walk in the park and EVERYBODY should do it!)

Good luck on the retake.

 

Actually, I think the reason I got so many right was kind of a "gut instinct"...sort of. It's the sort of test where memorizing a bunch of stuff is only the beginning. You really have to have a feel for how networks work and how active directory, group policy, OUs and such all work together to form a system. That's why it really helps to have some sort of lab set up to practice in. Just memorizing stuff in a book won't cut it. I remember seeing those different domain/OU diagrams they present you with and comparing those with the scenario question. If you didn't have any idea how the various elements combined, you'd never be able to figure you which diagram would be the correct one.

 

that sounds like a move in the right direction for microsoft exams, the problem with the old ones was you could just memorise a load of stuff out of a book
also is a positive note for me, as my background may help me pass these exams with a little more margin for error
thanks for the updates trip, we understand your giving us as much you can without breaking NDA