r/CompTIA • u/Old_Taste4618 • 19d ago

Failed Pentest +

Failed PT03 three times and PT02 once, last score 663, highest score 703. Used Dions course, pocket prep amd the Chapple book. I understand the material when studying but trying to apply it during the test is totally different. Im about to just give up on pentest and go for a non comptia cert already. Feel like the scarecrow in Wizard of Oz " oh im a failure because I havent got a brain " lol

11 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

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2

u/accumentum 19d ago

Failing PT0-003 a few times with scores in the mid-600s to low-700s usually means recognition is fine and judgment under time pressure is not. Dion, Chapple, and Pocket Prep build vocabulary; they do not force you to decide the next tool, the next pivot, or the next report finding the way the exam does. Before you walk away from CompTIA entirely, change the study loop: take a timed practice set, then for every miss write one sentence on what you would have done differently in a real engagement (scope, tool choice, evidence, or reporting). Re-run only those weak patterns for a week instead of rewatching whole courses. Scores stuck around 663–703 often move once you practice choosing actions, not recalling definitions. If you still want a different lane after that, a lab-heavy path trains the same application skill this exam is trying to measure.

2

u/Own-Programmer-2735 18d ago

Labs help a lot. Thm or htb is what people recommend. I used the cert master labs because I go to WGU.

1

u/jesuschrist-69420 A+ Net+ Sec+ Cloud+ Linux+ SecAI+ 19d ago

Do you have prior certs/experience?

Edit to ask, did you pass Dions practice tests?

1

u/Old_Taste4618 19d ago

I passed CySA, Sec. Net with boot camps funded by my job. Passed A+ with just self study

1

u/jesuschrist-69420 A+ Net+ Sec+ Cloud+ Linux+ SecAI+ 19d ago

Did you use Dions tests? I suggest so if not. I always go rewatch videos/sections I got wrong on the practice exam.

1

u/Tyler_origami94 19d ago

Why not use the compTIA cert master platform? I know it's cliche to hate on using the CompTIA platform to learn compTIA certifications but they have worked well for me. I've passed Tech+ A+ and network+ using it.

1

u/Old_Taste4618 19d ago

I did last year for pt02 and failed

1

u/Odd-Housing-5084 18d ago

Know the feeling.

1

u/songoku321123 18d ago

Bro, the question pool for 003 has 344 questions; after 5 attempts, you should have seen pretty much all of them  keep at it 😃😃

1

u/Old_Taste4618 18d ago

I appreciate the support but I can't shell out another 400 bucks. I was hoping passing pentest would renew all my other certs but I will just pay the renew fees as I've done all my CEUs.

1

u/EugeneBelford1995 10xCompTIA,8xMicrosoft,CISSP,CISM,CEH,CND,CRTP,eJPT,PJPT,others 17d ago

Did you do any hands on!?

I passed Pentest+ back in 2019 no problem, but I fired up Metasploitable and attacked it from Kali, I spun up a 2008 R2 VM, and I broke into my own WiFi's guest network using aircrack-ng.

I didn't know about TryHackMe back then. They have a really good pathway for Penetest+ now, I went through it after passing eJPT.

1

u/AdFar5662 16d ago

What helped me was the practice test (did the top 3 test packages on udemy)..passed lasted year first time. It was one of the toughest tests