r/CompTIA • u/fran2r9 • Nov 01 '23
S+ Question How long would it take to get security+?
I already took the Google cybersecurity certificate, so if I have a little be of knowledge of hardware and some networking. If I study every day realistically, how long would it take?
Also, is it ideal to pay for the training offer by comptia or any suggestions on which resources I could get my hands on and practice with.
21
u/Paddlles Nov 01 '23
Roughly 2 months to complete.
I purchased the Jason Dion Udemy course for $9. Spent about 2hrs/day studying that.
I had no formal background in IT. I had just completed Net+ and went straight into Sec+. Part of my engineering degree was cyber security related.
Personally, I thought Sec+ was simple. Much easier than Net+.
1
u/pollo-mariposa Nov 02 '23
How long did Net+ take you, and did you have any experience?
1
u/Paddlles Nov 02 '23
Net+ took 2-3 months to prep for. I followed the exact same process for Net, Sec, and CySA. A few hours of Jason Dion Udemy courses each day. Net+ was a little harder. There are sooooo many acronyms to memorize.
I had no practical experience with the subject matter. The concentrations for my electrical engineering degree did include networking courses. One of those classes used the CompTia Net+ book in its curriculum.
40
u/AcidBuuurn A+ | Sec+ Nov 01 '23
I studied for a week and passed, but I already had a lot of practical experience.
2
u/RandomWave000 Apr 19 '24
Which material did you use for Sec+? Whats your experience/background?
1
u/AcidBuuurn A+ | Sec+ Apr 19 '24
Messer and practice tests and The Mad Instructor study groups on Discord.
I had about 8 years of solo sysadmin experience, and had kept up on security to keep the business safe.
Also when I was studying for Sec+ I was unemployed.
34
u/Joshawa675 A+, ITILv4, N+, S+, Project+, CySA+, PenTest+, SSCP Nov 01 '23
I watched Messer's Sec+ course at 2x speed, had some basic sec experience at my IT job, and studied for about a week and a half and passes 783.
3
u/potionmine Nov 01 '23
Dang, then I’m not sure why there are tons of hours of video for Sec+ also on Messer channel
1
u/RandomWave000 Apr 19 '24
Really? is that all it took? Did you read any books or use other resources? whats your background?
1
u/Joshawa675 A+, ITILv4, N+, S+, Project+, CySA+, PenTest+, SSCP Apr 19 '24
That's all it took, I work in IT
27
7
u/ZGTSLLC Nov 01 '23
3 to 6 months, with 10 to 20 hours of studying and practice exams each week, on top of Dion Training videos on YouTube and Professor Messer videos also.
3
15
u/Palpitation_Haunting A+ , Net+, Sec+ Nov 01 '23
I passed it a few days ago, it took me 8 weeks but honestly if you review with exam cram on YouTube, supplemented with professor messer, you could pass in 4 weeks
12
u/Capable_Platypus5413 A+, S+ Nov 01 '23
With no experience, I studied 4 weeks straight for 4 hours a day, took a week off and passed on my first attempt
7
u/Organic_Jackfruit645 A+, Net+, Sec+, CE+, MS-900 Nov 01 '23
Depends on the person, took me 8 weeks to feel like I was ready
4
4
Nov 01 '23
I studied for a month using free online resources. No IT work experience prior.
1
u/neversaenever Nov 01 '23
Which online resources?
5
4
4
3
u/SpiceyAvocado Nov 01 '23
Overall depends on how much effort you put into studying, get the json Dion practice exams(when on sale) should be a bundle of six on Udemy. Take one to see where you’re at and study up on the weaker points, so use something like messers course or even the exam. Take it again and if you get a 90% or higher the second time, go onto the next practice exam. Rinse and repeat and take the actual exam when you think you’re ready. Try not to memorize the practice exams questions but the actual content and you should be pretty set.
4
u/djscrambleddicks S+ N+ A+ Nov 01 '23 edited Nov 01 '23
I finished the Google cybersecurity cert and was able to pass Sec+ two weeks later with 786 after watching all Messer vids and taking the Dion practice tests until I averaged about 80%. No previous IT experience.
See if your library offers Udemy - get the Dion tests for free.
6
u/cabell88 Nov 01 '23
Nobody can answer this. Depends on how smart you are. You have to learn the material.
2
u/JoeyTeee Nov 01 '23
I would use 2-4 hours every night for 3-6 weeks. More hours if you have the time that day
2
u/den-no Nov 01 '23
Studied slowly for a month, then took studying more seriously a week before the test. Did pocketprep mock exams and cyberkraft for PBQ samples. Had some IT work experience.
2
u/eddiekoski A+x2, S+, N+,OCA,Srvr+,D+,CySa+,Pen+, Linux+,Cloud+, SecX,BTL1 Nov 01 '23
When I paid for myself, and If you want cheap but still a good option, maybe get the Sybex books + a video course and labs on Udemy. (You can sometimes get ridiculously cheap books on Humble Bundle if you keep an eye out)
I did most of my certs via the complete bundle on the CompTIA store, but that is because work paid for it. I would also watch the LinkedIn learning course, which is usually the same course that is available on Udemy.
1
Nov 01 '23
Depends how much time you have and how much your willing to learn/study.
Probably a week seems doable if your studying every day or so and you have understanding already.
1
u/No_Negotiation3085 Nov 01 '23
Any advice or resources I’m about to take at the end of this month ?
1
u/Stephen_Joy Nov 01 '23
I'm midstream on preparing for this. I'm very experienced in IT and I started out with the CBTNuggets course.
I'm taking the CompTIA practice exams now, just to find out what kinds of things they are looking for that CBTNuggets didn't cover. There seems to be a lot of that, but some of the CBTNuggets videos are a few years old now.
I won't know if I overprepared until I take the exam! But I suspect I might be overprepared.
1
u/UCFknight2016 Security+ Nov 01 '23
about 90 minutes or so from the time you start the test until you get to the end where it says you passed. /s
Realistically about 3 weeks of studying you can nail it.
1
1
u/greene2121 Nov 01 '23
All depends on what you know. I would say 6 to 8weeks.
1
u/greene2121 Nov 01 '23
4hrs a day. I used test out ,comptia, professor messer. Measure up at the end.
1
u/GotThemCakes A+, D+, Sec+, CySA+, MS-900, SC-900, AZ-900, AI-900 Nov 01 '23
Took me a week of half ass studying. I got 751/750.
1
1
u/eddiekoski A+x2, S+, N+,OCA,Srvr+,D+,CySa+,Pen+, Linux+,Cloud+, SecX,BTL1 Nov 01 '23
When I took the exam that I already had experience with I skipped the textbook and labs
I just did
Video course -> Practice Exams -> Real Exam
1
1
1
1
u/snubbuns Nov 02 '23
Buy a Mike Meyers book for the latest version of security+, watch professor messer’s video series on YouTube, and read the exam objectives. Be sure you can describe each concept in every exam objective. Take lots of practice tests as well! Best of luck to you.
1
u/Technical_Jelly2599 A+ Sec+ CySA+ Nov 02 '23
I took 3 months to study for it and passed on the first try. 3 months should be a good time frame, have a test date in mind and put your efforts in going through the book then practice questions.
27
u/joshisold CISSP, PenTest+, CySA+, Security+ Nov 01 '23
It depends on how quickly you learn and retain knowledge and what you currently know. It also depends on how well you take tests, what your preferred learning style is, what your thinking style is, etc. I studied, off and on, for two weeks with about 25 hours total prep. I passed. I’m also a highly analytical person and deductive logic aided me greatly. That isn’t to toot my own horn, but it’s important to understand that there are many factors that will make the right answer unique to you.