Why I decided to do Security+
Main reasons:
- Market value.
- I had a 30% discount voucher.
- My research showed it is one of the best entry-level certs for cybersecurity.
As a college student, I realized most entry-level cybersecurity jobs required at least Security+, so I made it my goal to get it before I finish college.
How I prepared
My study schedule
I studied all 3 weeks during my attachment (currently still on it). I didnt go straight to the notes , I figured I would just attempt all the practice exams raw and write down notes on every term i didnt understand at the end of each exam. This turns out to be the best way to actually learn , well for me.
Labs and practice strategy
Well I didnt really do labs , the thing is I had been playing ctfs ever since start of 2025 , experimenting with VMs etc so I felt like I had the necessary practical experience
What was challenging
Honestly, knowing what they stood for wasn’t even the hard part. The meanings and how they differ from each other in context , that’s where it got confusing. Within 2nd week of study time I had gotten atleast 90% of them which I felt was enough to pass the exam. Security+ is well known for having a lot of acronyms so it was something I was expecting
What helped me most
1) Professor Messer (8/10)
- I bought his bundle around mid-2024.
- It included notes and practice exams.
- His free YouTube videos are also very helpful.
2) Jason Dion Practice Exams (7.8/10)
- I got them on sale on Udemy during my 3 weeks prep.
- They were harder than the real exam (which is a good thing)
Exam-day reflections
I was very nervous honestly lol , especially when I had to take my photo , it felt unreal. Surprisingly after settling down in the exam room , I relaxed a bit .I couldnt let nerves make me fail , I had saved alot for this exam.
From the advice I got on reddit , I skipped all the pbq’s and went straight to the multiple choice questions and I was cruising nicely with an exception of 3-4 questions. PBQ’s were not really that hard as I was expecting them to be. I had heard people saying that are tough , they just needed you to have some sort of practical security experience. I barely took 10mins on all 4 of them and I managed to finish the exam with an hour and 20minutes to spare . I felt like if I revised all the questions again I was going to second guess my answers lmao.
After submitting my answers , my heart was racing like crazy , I had had never felt like this before. So CompTIA has this thing of making you fill a survey before you get your exam score. I kept thinking each survey’s next page would be my exam score lol, I was shi**ing myself. Low and behold , I got it after finishing the survey , a score of 782 , I let out a biiiig sign of relief yoh. My body just started to relax . Passed on my first Attempt !?
Advice for anyone starting
If you are preparing for Security+, focus on understanding concepts deeply, not memorizing terms only , you quickly realize that they arent really hard to grasp especially when applying them to specific contexts
Secondly , take your time preparing . I dont know why I had the urge to rush the exam lol , well i felt 3 weeks was enough and didnt waste time. And also , if you feel like you are ready to write book exam immediately , that date u specify u want to write the exam on , will motivate you to even study harder as the date gets closer , I tried to avoid re-scheduling the date
Future Goals / Certifications
Uhm , next on my to-do list is def CompTIA CySA+ , I already have the study material , I just have to save the money for the exam voucher (rip) and I think I should be writing it before June 2026