I am not certain if I should have waited for two months to write this because I don’t know my results.
The exam was four hours with 120 questions.
I assumed I would not take that long and I saw some that did not take that long.
But I was answering till the last moment.
Understanding was the key, knowing the exact differences between concepts was important.
What made it so time consuming was many questions had answers that were correct but needed the best answer selected.
The fact that it was on a rainy Saturday, early morning test was not a great set up for me. I wonder why ISACA does not allow testing centers where you can schedule and get your score immediately to be set up. I am sure people would pay extra if it were offered.
At this point until I get the score, I have to let it go and continue on with other exams. Will know in 2 months how the CGEIT exam went.
There are three important aspects in studying for the Exam.
1. Being exposed to every aspect of IT Governance as in frameworks, case histories, concepts, common terminology and general corporate governance techniques.
2. Understanding it clearly.
3. Looking at things with the ISACA perspective.
Experience is NOT enough. The questions can be answered in different ways depending on what past experiences you have had and depending on if you think in terms of ”cause”, “effect”, “over all picture” and IT cultures you have been exposed to.
I found everything I did helpful but I think practical exercises help most with “understanding.” Or specific governance stories, reading many of them helps a great deal. But in the end, tests that determine if you understand them would increase the level of understanding and get rid of misunderstandings that lower the score.
The other issue is to understand the ISACA perspective on things and that requires reading the material provided.
If there were no courses available I would have recommended reading the board briefing at least 5 times. And ValIT and then RiskIT. And get exposed to everything on the ISACA site.
But then, courses are available and they help keep you on track.
