In today’s competitive world, where everyone wants to be successful, it is the need of the hour to keep oneself updated with the right skill. Technological advancements have led to an increased inclination towards IT courses and a skilled workforce. Considering the current scenario, CompTIA certifications are the most appropriate solution for individuals seeking a bright future in the IT sector.
What are the different certifications provided by CompTIA?
CompTIA certification program can be categorised as Core, Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, and Professional. Out of these, three technical certifications are observed as a progression for the IT professionals starting with core to infrastructure and then cybersecurity. The certificates are further segregated on the levels of expertise, starting with entry-level to expert, and designed accordingly.
- CompTIA Core certifications
These core certifications are recommended for beginners and entry-level IT professionals.
- CompTIA IT Fundamentals+
This certification is most appropriate for individuals who have just started their careers in the IT sector and even for marketing professionals. This requires an individual to pass one exam, CompTIA IT Fundamentals+ (FC0-U61).
- CompTIA A+
Individuals who want to build their career in IT support and operations can opt for this certificate. To earn this certification, the candidate must pass two examinations: CompTIA A+ 220-1001 and CompTIA A+ 220-1002.
- CompTIA Network+
The Network+ certification allows the individual to progress to the next step into network administration. To get this certification, an examinee needs to clear one exam, CompTIA Network+ (N10-007).
- CompTIA Security+
CompTIA Security plus certification is designed to help individuals acquire cybersecurity skills. It has no prerequisites to be fulfilled, and to earn this certification, one must pass the CompTIA Security+ (SY0-501) exam.
- CompTIA Infrastructure certifications
As the name suggests, these certifications help learn more about infrastructure technologies, including cloud computing, open-source operating systems, and servers. There are three infrastructure certificates at this level: CompTIA Cloud+, CompTIA Linux+, and CompTIA Server+.
- CompTIA Cybersecurity certifications
These certifications comprise the final step in someone’s technical certification path. It contains CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+), CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+), and CompTIA PenTest+.
One thing worth noting here is that both CompTIA CySA+ and CompTIA CASP+ are DoD 8570.01-M-approved certifications. DoD is the US Department of Defence, where DoD 8570.01-m explains how to assess the DoD’s cybersecurity workforce.
- Professional CompTIA certifications
These certifications are designed for non-technical professionals viz. CompTIA Project+ for project managers, CompTIA CTT+ for technical trainers, and CompTIA Cloud Essentials for business, sales, and marketing personnel.
CompTIA Training
The training offered by CompTIA is bifurcated based on certifications, self-study tools, and instructor-led training.
- Based on certifications: It provides training based on the certification you choose.
- Based on self-study tools: This includes e-learning material, CompTIA books, video training, and virtual labs. The highlight of this method is that it’s self-paced.
- Instructor-led training: This allows the exam taker to customise the training as per their requirement.
10 Ways to Prepare for CompTIA’s Certification Exam
- Familiarity with the course content: First and foremost, get familiar with the entire syllabus for the exam you are about to take.
- Understand the exam pattern and its objectives: It is of utmost importance to understand the exam’s objectives and outcome. Diligently traverse the exam pattern you are about to appear for. This will help decrease anxiety while appearing for the final exam.
- Create a study plan and prioritise the topics: One needs to be well aware of the important topics and thoroughly study them.
- Design your learning based on the different learning modalities: Some individuals are comfortable with auditory, while others prefer the visual mode of learning. Depending on your comfort, design the study plan in a manner that allows you to absorb maximum content efficiently.
- Join an online community or discussion forum: With the innumerable online options, go ahead and join a course. Skim through a few online communities and understand the shared questions and anecdotes.
- Practice mock tests: Since the certifications are costly, one cannot risk reappearing frequently. Therefore, it becomes pretty important for the exam taker to invest time in practising. This will help you understand your weak areas or areas of improvement. Consequently, you can double your efforts where your performance is relatively low.
- Access free exam-prep resources to gain maximum knowledge: The internet offers innumerable study material for free. Accessing it will only help you fetch some more brownie points and ace your exam.
- If possible, prepare virtual labs at your place or build a network to get hands-on exposure: This aspect plays a crucial role for the CompTIA A+ exam and the Network+ exam. The CompTIA A+ 901 exam is related to the hardware aspect, whereas 902 covers software.
- Prepare yourself for performance-based questions: Performance-based questions, also known as PBA’s, are the ones that need to be solved in simulation. These might be complex but not impossible. Take your time while answering them.
- Take an adequate amount of sleep and relax: Good amount of rest and a stress-free environment will only magnify your performance.
Conclusion
One could choose from a plethora of options for the courses provided by CompTIA. Most of the CompTIA courses do not need any prerequisites to be achieved and can be easily enrolled in.
As far as the best method to crack the exam is concerned, there is no one specific or best way for that. It entirely depends on what works the best for you, and undoubtedly you need to give your best. It all revolves around the fact that you need to thoroughly engage yourself and retain maximum from all the available resources to excel.
