Mcdst/mcsa Certifications

I am in some classes for these certifications. Any study tips? Any study websites that really help (for free)? I have test anxiety and really want to get this info down pat. Any encouragement will be greatly appreciated and thanks in advance.

 

I took the classes/test for the A+ and Net+ Certs and I found that you need to go through the books with a fine tooth comb and take notes and take'em again.

I did mine all on my own...never went to class, so what I did was took the number of pages of the book and divided it into however many weeks i had to accomplish this, then divided that by however many days of that week I could dedicate to the studies. Mine turned out to be about 50-75 pages a day, depending on how the chapters lined up. Then I studied that bit for the day until I knew it like the back of my hand. Then the week right before the test, I did the whole book again and re-wrote any notes when I came accross something that I felt I had kind of forgotten over the course of my studies.

I don't know how your course is set up but mine came with a practice exam cd which claimed if you got something like 80% several times in a row (it pulled different questions from a pool for every time you retook the test) and I pounded that for a couple days right before I took the test.

As far as the test anxiety...I HATE / SUCK AT / and DESPISE test!!!!!!!!!! I can know the material like a genius but when I take the test I'll miss the dumbest questions!! In my case...I figured out it is because I dwell too much on one question and then while I'm sitting there dwelling...my mind starts to wander into the dark hole of "what if this is another questioned missed" etc., etc. so I found I typically do better if I read/study the question just long enough to do the deed then if I still had a doubt, I would mark the question to come back to later if I still had time. So at least it is answered and you can move on to the next question and get them all done in the allotted time period, and you will find more times than not....you answered the question right to start off with, than if you spent too much time pondering.

Hope that helps, and good luck!!

Roger