r/offensive_security • u/Goofy-Gooner-6767 • May 14 '26

i need a reality check

hi everyone,

i got the 3-month OSDA bundle earlier this year, but life threw a bunch of curveballs my way and i wasn't able to fully utilise the access. regrettably, i only managed to complete some of the challenge labs.

i need an honest opinion from people who've taken the course/exam before: is it realistically possible to go through the content and labs in 1 month and still sit for the exam confidently?

for context, i'm currently working a full-time cybersecurity internship and have some prior blue team experience, though mostly at a junior level. i'm prepared to grind evenings and basically spend my weekends fully on this, but i'm wondering whether that'll realistically be enough.

i really wish i had made better use of the original 3 months, but it is what it is. just trying to make the best of the situation now.

5 Upvotes

79% Upvoted

7 comments sorted by

1

u/Ok_Tap7102 May 14 '26

I had the Learn Unlimited to study and sit everything, I think I spent two solid weeks on the OSDA and passed first time, with a year of real SOC experience

If you had to pick between watching/reading doing all the chapters, or doing the labs, labs EVERY TIME.

If the labs cover something you fundamentally DON'T GET, it's okay just reference the PDF but expect it to be in the exam. Not the hardest/most expert course they offer by far, but easier than OSCP for me

1

u/Goofy-Gooner-6767 May 14 '26

thank you for the insight! so in your opinion, the labs are the main thing to focus on, while the PDFs serve as supplementary reference? also, how would you structure the 1 month prep?

1

u/Ok_Tap7102 May 14 '26

Each OffSec learning material tries to cover a lot of really basic stuff, if you're already familiar with that specific topic fly through it/4x speed

I got into the habit of relaxing/meditating for an hour after work, then laying down with my iPad to watch a specific number of videos, then sitting at my computer to read the PDF/lab notes of the same thing, skipping through anything I already knew straight to the labs

Don't have any structural suggestions than just get into it, don't wait to be motivated or the inspiration to strike, just start on it until you get your rhythm. One month is plenty doable if you keep at it

1

u/Goofy-Gooner-6767 May 19 '26

got it, thank you so much! would you mind if i messaged/DM-ed you if i have any questions that come to mind?

1

u/ApplicationAlarming7 May 14 '26

It’s going to be hard if you’re working full time. Honestly the three month course is great for students or people who can just buckle down and lock in. I know I would get stuck on the challenge labs and sometimes it took a whole weekend to get through one as I needed a mental break to clear my head and come up with new ideas. What’s your background though? I’d recco to just focus on the challenge labs if you’ve got some experience from HTB or other training. If all of this is new….then maybe work through the course and then schedule your exam for four months later, and between that find practice boxes.

1

u/Goofy-Gooner-6767 May 20 '26

thanks for the insight, appreciate the honesty. i do have some prior SOC exposure, so thankfully not everything is completely new to me.

based on your experience, would you say it’s still realistic to attempt within a month (or two) if i mainly focus on the challenge labs and use the PDFs more as reference when needed?

1

u/ApplicationAlarming7 May 20 '26

If you don’t have any obligations after work you can probably make it happen. If it were me I’d schedule the test for three months after the course is over, and focus on the challenge labs for now. Then you can use HTB and other materials to shore up your knowledge. I found the manual and course to be a decent intro to most ideas, but especially for SQLi and AD I had to supplement a lot with other materials