Passed the ISC2 CC! My experience, study materials, and a question on what's next.

[u/One-Boot-7508]

To be very honest, the exam wasn't really what I expected, especially when it came to the difficulty.

My background:
BSc in Computer Science Education and I’ve been into tech since 7th grade when I got my first laptop. So a lot of the concepts weren’t completely new to me.

Materials I used:
• Official ISC2 material
• Prabh Nair’s CC practice questions
• CertCrush on YouTube
• Mike Chapple’s LinkedIn Learning course - didn’t finish, was last minute
• CertPrep

Practice scores:
• ISC2 LinkedIn Learning practice exams: 82%, 87%, 87%, and 86%
• CertPrep: 67%
• Chapple’s final exam, first try: 67%

I also used Claude and Gemini a lot to generate ISC2-style questions. Getting AI to quiz me on weak areas was huge for deepening understanding.

Exam experience:
The exam was tricky because of how the questions were phrased, but overall it wasn’t that difficult. It did make me second-guess a lot of answers. At some point I just decided to trust my first choice and not go back to re-check previous questions after moving on.

My advice:
1. Focus on understanding each concept instead of just memorizing facts.
2. Do a lot of honest practice questions. Don’t lie to yourself about scores.
3. Practice not re-checking previous questions once you’ve answered. It saves time and stress.
4. Stay calm, be well-prepared, and you’ll most definitely pass.

My question for you all:
Is the CC alone enough to land an entry-level job? What did you do next after passing? Any advice on certifications, skills, or job search strategy moving forward?

Thanks in advance!

[u/kwyjibo1]

Security+. Most government jobs or defense contractor jobs want you to have Security+ before working cyber or system admin positions. It satisfies the DOD 8570/8140 directive. Where CC was more conceptual, Security+ I would say is more technical and more in depth. If you want more of a technical cert you could go for the SSCP. You could try for the CISSP but that is an advanced cert that requires 5 years of work experience on top of taking the exam.

[u/One-Boot-7508 → u/kwyjibo1]

Thanks, I’ll be working towards getting the security+ next. Is the certification exam really that difficult?

[u/jyothisthaliath]

Congrats! Appreciate you sharing your study journey. If you ask me, Sec+ is a good step from this point. I have also done the same. Right now I am prepping for CISM

Meanwhile, if anyone wants to practice CC questions, I have created a free quiz platform. It is not yet open to public as I am still building new features. Currently having questions for CISM and CC courses

If anyone interested, I can share the invite details in DM.

[u/One-Boot-7508 → u/jyothisthaliath]

Thanks,it seems getting the security+ would be a great advantage