I won't say much but if you been following along, you can see the easter eggs. End of the road for me. I've got enough certs.

I haven't taken Network+ yet, but I have been studying daily around 10 minutes a day, to 8 hours a day.

I've really ramped up my study because I just want to get it done. I've gone through all of the content, and I just took my first practice exam.

I may have well taken a Japanese test because nothing from what I did made any sense. I don't know where they came up with these questions, but I feel like the last few months/weeks have been wasted.

I'm a late learner (45yo) and passed A+ without too much difficulty.

I am so lonst and discouraged. Even AI hasn't helped me with analogies and simple explanations. The issue there is that I have no idea what concept/acronym/example/analogy they are talking about!

It seems like everything is talking about the exact same thing.

Oh, and I don't even want to talk about the trauma of the PBQ practice. I have NEVER seen any of those interfaces before, so I don't even know where to begin.

I'm so lost.

Is it a good option to take practice tests for the A+ exams?

Hi guys, I want to get into IT. I know how to build computers. I’ve been building PCs for about 10 years and also do troubleshooting from time to time for friends and family.

I’d say my biggest weakness is configuring the BIOS. I rarely touch it, and I’m kind of scared to mess around with it.

I want to start getting some certifications, but I’m not sure where to start. Based on my research, it seems like I should start with CompTIA A+, even though I already have the basics of building and troubleshooting PCs.

The thing is, there are so many books and videos out there, and some of them have mixed reviews. Some people say they helped them pass, while others say they didn’t help much at all.

So, what books or videos would you recommend for someone with my experience? Also, how do I know when I’m ready to take the test, and where should I take the certification exam?

For now, I want to start with help desk and work my way up from there. I’m not sure if I’m ready to aim for something like a cloud engineer yet, so I’d rather start with the basics and build my experience.

Btw: does this COMPTIA certification expire like you have to renew/retake a test for certain number of years.

Thank you!

I barely passed with 1second to spare on the exam PBQs ate so much time I had a lot of those I was only expecting 3 but got double that, I did 5 practice exams from Dion training got around 75%-95% lowest score was 75 and highest was 95 I watched and took notes on all of prof messers net+ course on YouTube and did some pbq practice on cert master I really thought I was ready for the exam I was so confident but half way through I really thought I was going to fail BUT I ended up passing! I’ll take it a win is a win !

Hello,

Looking to renew my Security+ SY0-701 which expires Jan 31st 2027.

With SY0-801 releasing next month, will that come with a new certmaster for SY0-701 renewal?

Thanks in advance.

Procrastinated for months with zero consistency until I finally decided to lock in and stop being a bum... I grinded nonstop for a week. Used certMaster (NOT good at all IMO), Messer videos for weak spots, quizlet/flashcards, and wrote out notes.

When I saw the PBQs, I thought it was wraps, and started questioning life. Anyways... Left them for the end, cleared the multiple choice in 30-45 mins, and had an hour for PBQs... which ran down to 4 minutes left lmao. Just started guessing at that point.

Thought I failed for sure because I kept seeing posts of "straight A students" failing Core 1, which made me insecure for months. Guess you just gotta believe in yourself. Onto Core 2.

More than willing to spend money. Leaning either Prof. Messer's book (Love his Sec+ Videos) or the Sybex study guide.

Hi Everyone,

Just want to say a big thank you to everyone in this Reddit. Even though I've never posted I've been reading everyone tips, experiences and motivations when it came to passing the Network+ exam. It was so refreshing seeing how helpful everyone was and honestly wouldn't have been able to do it without you guys.

I planned to study for this exam a while however I got made redundant after only 6 months. It especially hurt as I thought that job was going to be my big break. So this exam was a way of proving to myself that I can do it. And now I can't wait to study for the next one, thinking either the Server+ or Linux+.

To anyone who reads this not sure if they're smart enough to pass.. you absolutely can!! Put in the work and it will pay off for you. It took me 4 months of studying an hour after work everyday to feel confident enough to take the exam. And even then I was terrified to fail as I put so much time and money into this. But trust me the pay off is worth it.

Score - 840

Thanks again everyone, see you for the next one :)

For N10-009. Scoring 75-81% on Jason Dion exams; but only scoring 65% - 68% on CertMaster practice, which is making me seriously panic. I did some Mike Meyers practice tests too and got a 72%, but freaked out I'm still nowhere near close. Drilling on my weak areas, and my test is in a little under two weeks. Any advice? I've been studying for about 3 and a half months. The anxiety is killing me. I know I'll never "really know" until I take the exam but any advice appreciated.

Hi everyone Im trying to my comptia a+ certification, only issue is im not sure how to go about this. My plan is to use jasion dions practice exam (which is around 60 bucks) and professor messiers videos on YouTube would this be enough for me to pass both core 1 and core 2. Any advice is helpful thanks

I'm a 20 year old university student studying in computer engineering. I already got the ISC2 CC back in July, so I realized that the next step for me was Security+. I'm usually very lazy so I can't study for long durations and I rely on like sudden bursts of energy and the thought of obtaining Security+ to motivate myself. After around 2-3 weeks of studying, I got it. The weird thing is that I started the exam quite confident but mid-way through I thought I was failing. Thankfully, I didn't.

Best of luck to everyone. :)

anyone have any good recommendations for good study tools for network+ PBQ’s? i keep hearing how dion’s weren’t great and after just passing A+ im not sure if i should stick with the same study materials (i.e messers videos/exams, dions exams, andrew ramdayal videos)

Hello everyone ✌️ I'm embarking on the IT Credential journey and I'm starting with A+. I came across Professor Messer and his over ten hours of content. From what I can tell this is a good resource but I'm wondering how it holds up in 2026? People from past years reviewed it highly. Also, if not Professor Messer is there any other resources you'd recommend? I'm willing to pay a bit if the resources are quality. Thank you!

4 weeks total. Could’ve done it in less, but took weekends off. No IT experience, just a hobbyist.

Resources used:
CertMaster Learn
CertMaster Practice
Udemy- Andrew Ramdayal
Messer practice exams
Dion practice exams

Right now I’m feeling a bit defeated and discouraged if I should even continue to dive deeper in the tech world. I made my first attempt taking Security+ exam in June and failed with score of 669. Yesterday, I failed again with a score of 687. Honestly I wish I had rescheduled because I didn’t feel confident before doing the retake but I was under the assumption that I could use the same voucher for 3rd attempt so I thought I had a another chance. (You live and you learn, right?)

However, I don’t know what my next steps are or what they should be. I’ve been working as an IT Helpdesk for about 3 years now and I’m ready to move onto something else, especially in cybersecurity. It seems like I can’t without getting this certificate. I thought my master’s degree would help give me some leverage but I know now it’s not enough.

There’s the new version of the exam coming out next month and I don’t know if I should wait for that one. Or if I should just try to do the 701 version again while it still available. It sucks they raised the price from what I paid last year. I wonder if I wait much longer they will raise it again.

Does anyone have any advice or recommendations? I would really appreciate it!

Smashed my core 2 with an 853 today and I want to say a big thanks to the community out here, followed your advices and got it done. I used: Messer’s Videos, Ramdayal practice questions from YouTube , Jason Dion’s practice questions from Udemy. Ps. When do I actually get certified

So glad to have this one done. Now for the Security+!

I recently graduated college, and passed my Sec+ exam earlier this summer. Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be many entry-level jobs in the cybersecurity space. I've heard the best way to break into that area now is to move up the ladder from a help desk role, many of which require the A+ cert. I'm debating on taking the A+ exam because it's pretty much the only way for my resume to pass an ATS.

Any suggestions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

A+ certified here, Security+ next, WGU cybersecurity in progress — and I work shifts, so my study time is whatever I can protect between work and family.

What actually worked for A+ wasn't a marathon resource list. It was a boring loop: learn one objective, try to explain it out loud in plain language, do a practice question set, write down the exact mistake I kept making, then repeat that objective the next day before moving on.

The "stuck log" helped more than anything. Every error, what I expected, what actually happened, and the fix. By exam week that log WAS my review sheet — and it's now interview material, because troubleshooting is literally the job.

For anyone starting from zero: did the practice-exam loop work for you too, or did labs/hands-on click first? Trying to decide how to split my Security+ time between questions and labs.

Hi,

I'm currently studying for Security+ and I've noticed a lot of people recommending Jason Dion's practice tests.

I'm already using his Udemy video course, but I'm a bit confused. When people recommend his practice exams, are they referring to the ones on Udemy or the practice exams on the Dion Training website?

Which ones would you recommend?

Cheers

PBQ’s were weird as always but much easier than 1201’s. I studied significantly less for 1202 but it felt a lot easier to me? Net+ or CCNA next whichever one calls my name first

Resources used:

Professor Messers Videos+Exams

Dions Exams (feel out of scope but nice to have unlimited attempts)

Shelnet

Andrew Ramdayal videos

I'm looking to get into IT and was told the first major step would be the A+ Core certifications. I have ADD and struggle with long lecture-type lessons, but learn better hands on or when something is short and simple.

I've heard about Techvault Academy and Professor Messer on youtube, but I'm not sure which would be better suited for me. Or if they is another better option. I've also heard about Udemy being a good place for resources such as practice tests.

Really, any tips, tricks, advice, help, etc. would be greatly appreciated. 🙏 Thanks in advance!