Hello ... and HELP!!

Discussion in 'New Members Introduction' started by CAWright, Nov 12, 2009.

  1. CAWright

    CAWright New Member

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    Hello,

    where to start? ok
    i am a 35 year old ex army combat medic embarking on a whole new career in IT.. it has always been something i have been interested in but never enough to actually get my hands on a PC and get learning.

    I have been doing some work based and self paced learning for my MCP, it was recommended i try for the 70-620 ts configuring vista client for my first one. i have been reading/studying for about seven weeks and already sat the exam twice both times getting the same score 681 just short of the 700 i require to pass.

    i have the exam booked for two weeks time and could do with some pointers, some dos and donts for the exam..
    is there something i am doing wrong in the exam or is it just a lack of retained knowledge? am i aiming to be sitting the exam too soon? what is the average time it takes someone very new to IT to get passing exams.

    i hear lots of conflicting info such as if you press reset during a simulation you lose marks..
    if you click the wrong button and get a warning you lose marks..

    is there any advice you could give me


    also apologies for the opening of this message... it looks like a lonely hearts post lol

    Kind regards

    Charlie
     
  2. dazza786

    dazza786 Megabyte Poster

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    Hi mate, I'm not sure about losing marks.. I'm sure that wouldnt be the case. Error boxes are part of what you're coming into, so it will obviously have details of the error within the error prompt. If that ever happens, alert a member of staff in the exam suite. With regards to pressing 'Reset', I'm sure it will reset your answer.. so if you don't want the answer reset.. don't press it.

    How long did it take you to go through these exams? It may be that you're not interpreting the questions properly? The Vista (620) exam is very general though in my opinion.

    Do you have more experience with XP? If so, start off with the MCDST
     
    Certifications: MCP (271, 272, 270, 290, 291, 621, 681, 685), MCDST, MCTS, MCITP, MCSA, Security+, CCA(XA6.5)
  3. CAWright

    CAWright New Member

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    Hi

    thanks for your reply

    the error messages within the exam are 'the action is not permitted in the simulation'

    the 620 is what my boss has asked me to do first so that rules out the more familiar xp route...lol

    wouldnt mind knowing how the scoring works too

    charlie
     
  4. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    As someone who creates exams for a living, I must ask: what logical reason is there for counting off points for starting over and changing your answer? After all, they allow you to go back and change your multiple choice and drag-and-drop answers without affecting your score... why would this be any different? It isn't.

    Further, I have seen no evidence of this happening. When I take an exam, it's my job to take note of how the simulators function. As a result, I have reset and redone their simulations many, many, many times to see which functions are available and which paths you can take to the right answer. And it's never seemed to affect my score one bit.
     
    Certifications: CISSP, MCSE+I, MCSE: Security, MCSE: Messaging, MCDST, MCDBA, MCTS, OCP, CCNP, CCDP, CCNA Security, CCNA Voice, CNE, SCSA, Security+, Linux+, Server+, Network+, A+
    WIP: Just about everything!
  5. CAWright

    CAWright New Member

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    BosonMichael,

    That does seem to make much more sense and certainly trust a fellow ex serviceman..

    Thank you for your reply and if you have any advice on study/exam/career paths i would certainly take that on board.

    Charles
     
  6. soundian

    soundian Gigabyte Poster

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    Do your score reports for the two failed exams flag up any weak areas?
    Are you using practice exams? Do they show weak areas?

    By the way, a Vista exam won't get you an MCP, it'll be the new-fangled MCTS.

    As for exam technique, I'd advise this method:
    Answer every question on your first pass through them. Don't spend too long on the answers. If you're not sure mark it for review, take your best guess and move on.
    Once you've answered all the questions go back and review those you marked. More often than not your first guess is your best guess so only change these if you're sure your first guess was wrong.
    If you still have time left, review every question again. This should pick up on any silly errors. I don't think I've done an exam yet where I've not had at least one of those.

    Good luck!
     
    Certifications: A+, N+,MCDST,MCTS(680), MCP(270, 271, 272), ITILv3F, CCENT
    WIP: Knuckling down at my new job
  7. BosonMichael
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    BosonMichael Yottabyte Poster

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    I always recommend starting out with the A+, Network+, and MCDST certifications. You can certainly do 70-620 as well, but most companies are still using XP predominantly, not Vista.
     
    Certifications: CISSP, MCSE+I, MCSE: Security, MCSE: Messaging, MCDST, MCDBA, MCTS, OCP, CCNP, CCDP, CCNA Security, CCNA Voice, CNE, SCSA, Security+, Linux+, Server+, Network+, A+
    WIP: Just about everything!

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