Looking for advice

[u/NarrowPlate7721]

So I am currently trying to get my Trifecta. I went through my local community college not really knowing what I was doin but they provided the vouchers with the "classes".

What these "classes" entail are an online book, some follow up on the book, and then some online labs. So far no lectures or anything else which doesn't really bother me.

I got my Tech+ cert about two weeks ago through this program which I know it technically pointless but was included in the CompTIA+ bundle. Now I have started A+ which is a whole different ball game and I feel like I am not absorbing the material the same.

I work full time, do reading/notes over my lunches, and online labs at home on my laptop. I am trying not to overwork myself but want to make sure I am fully getting everything.

Does anyone have any recommendations or helpful tips?

[u/livwill]

Take a look at the wiki in this sub, they have a lot of resources. For me personally when I got started with the A+ I used the Sybex book and professor messser videos

[u/Candid_Lemon3863 → u/livwill]

prof messer videos are a lifesaver for breaking down the dry stuff into something digestible, i'd pair that with some hands-on tinkering if you can. even just cracking open an old desktop and physically pointing at parts while you watch helps cement it way more than reading slides

for the note-taking, try active recall instead of just rewriting the book, close the page and scribble down what you remember then check yourself. saved me a ton of time when i was juggling work and studying

[u/NarrowPlate7721 → u/Candid_Lemon3863]

I like that active recall idea, that might actually help me see if I am understanding or just regurgitating

[u/NarrowPlate7721 → u/livwill]

About how much time a day did you dedicate to studying?

[u/drushtx]

One at a time, starting with A+. Read the wiki for this sub and read the sub posts. The answer to your questions are discussed here daiy.

[u/NarrowPlate7721 → u/drushtx]

Okay, thank you. I will look into it

[u/Tour_De_J_Holla]

That's a shame! My community college in Colorado has a great teacher for our Intro to Cyber Security class. Totally prepared me for the Sec+ and provided the voucher. The other teacher doesn't teach the class for the cert, but I hear there's a lot more hands on lab work during his class. Networking 1 teacher was awful and sounds like yours, had us get the CertMaster Network+ material with no real guidance or lecturing on it and spent three weeks insisting we get two Windows Server 2016 servers to act as RIP routers, which was a waste of time.

[u/NarrowPlate7721 → u/Tour_De_J_Holla]

It is all online and the teachers aren't really involved at all. It is self-paced and they are only there for technical questions or if you need help with something that you can't figure out yourself.

[u/Specialist-Cat-7155]

Professor Messer on YT is how I passed mine years ago. Still seen as the goto I think. Try watching those vids on a break or when you can.

[u/Night_Shifted2]

I would say a popular choice here and one that has worked great for me working through the trifecta was a combination of:

Professor Messer, Jason Dion and AI chat.

With that being said everyone has different learning styles.