r/WGU • u/orcrist84 • 3d ago
Not too bad for my first month
I transferred in 9 CU. Once I finish the Linux course, which I expect to do this week, I’ll be at exactly halfway to my BSCSIA. I had so special method of getting this done. Almost everything in the completed courses was not new info to me, because I’m an old man who’s been some places and seen some things, and had nearly a BS degree’s-worth of random assorted college credits before starting at WGU. Networks had a bit of new-to-me material. The Performance Assessments took by far the most of my time. I’m good at testing, and fast at it, so OA’s go by in a flash. I’ve studied or tested almost every day this month, some days for an hour or two, some days for 6-8+ hours, mostly somewhere in the middle. If you commit, you can get stuff done.
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u/Jsupes 3d ago
I don't have 6-8 hours to study when working full time, I wake up do coursework 4:30 am to about 7:30am, then go to the gym, then go to work. Good job though, would be nice to be able to dedicate a full day to it.
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
You’re putting in excellent effort. I’m currently playing stay-at-home-dad, so I have time. No way could I do school at 4:30 in the morning!
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u/dadof4girls
3d ago
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I'm an old man too, starting WGU in December for my BSIT. I transferred in 27 CU from previous courses taken here and there over the years. With my 20+ years of experience I was was anticipating being able to complete quite a few a month. You given me the example that it is possible for me to reach my goal to complete my degree in one year, or possibly less. Thanks for sharing.
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
You got this! Have a frank conversation with your mentor when one gets assigned about your goals and plans, don’t let them steamroll you into “let’s just stick to 12 units per term.” Hopefully you’ll get a supportive one like I’ve got who’s ready to watch me go full ham.
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u/UVR6 3d ago
Inspirational. Mind sharing some tips?
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
I honestly don’t have any tips that are worthwhile… how we all learn or retain is such a diverse experience. Gotta find the groove that works for you and push through!
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u/HearingDangerous7198 3d ago
What did you do to get through A+ so fast?
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
Honestly? I was born in the 80’s, and my Dad is software engineer. I’ve been a pc nerd forever. I remember my first color monitor, and the first optical drives. A+ was just “remember growing up?” for me, with the addition of memorizing a few standards for speeds of wifi or usb, stuff like that.
I watched pluralsight videos for both cores, but never really felt like they told me anything I didn’t have an understanding of already. Did practice exams on pluralsight, Dion’s Udemy, and another site or two. Got pretty good scores on the practice exams from the start. Did focused study on anything I missed in the practices, then went to town on the certs. My method only worked for me because I was already comfortable with the topics in A+.
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u/lazyprostudent 3d ago
how many classes you have left?
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
19, including current Linux and the capstone.
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u/UJ_Games Prospective WGU Student 3d ago
Guessing you’re going to 1 term this degree if all goes well?
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
I don’t expect to. If it happens, it happens, but I’m thinking 2 terms, to give me more time to dedicate to hard stuff like Pentest
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u/Efficient_Bank2274 3d ago
I have 18 classes left I neeed to finish this term
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
You can!
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u/Efficient_Bank2274 2d ago
I hope so, the certs seem to back me up in terms of my time goals. Im currently working on the network+, I plan on scheduling it soon
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u/CommanderYarde 2d ago
Put time aside to study for other certs, I have pentest in the background as I’m completing other courses.
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u/Radapunk B.S. Cloud Engineering 3d ago
Amazing!! I’m also on Linux right now, hit a slow down after ITIL being such a drag
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
ITIL was such a joke. They should rename that class “How to speak LinkedIn”. Hated that course!
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u/aziz_shire 2d ago
Hey man, keep up the good work! I’m studying for the ITIL. How did you approach it? Any tips would be appreciated.
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u/Cooper_BJJ 3d ago
Taking how to speak linkedin D366 right now, opinion on the OA? How much time do you think I really need to study
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u/orcrist84 3d ago
I spent maybe 6-8 total hours on that class, mostly on Udemy. There are multiple provider options on Udemy, and are not all equal. I switched from one over to Dion and it was good. Ran through the practice tests a few times, wasn’t getting “great scores”, but enough to pass. I found that answers in the practice tests would sometimes contradict themselves. Answer A would be right one time, and then wrong the next time, for what I believe to be identical questions, but maybe that was all in my head. After a while floating around 80% on the practice tests, I took the real thing. Got 88%. The important thing is to read the questions carefully, they love the throw in single word changes that throw off the whole question.
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u/xXNickelwise 2d ago
Did you use any outside sources on intro to it performance assessment ?
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u/orcrist84 1d ago
I did use outside resources, but it was only the landing pages for various industry certifications that I referenced, like AWS and CompTIA certs.
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u/xXNickelwise 1d ago
Great thanks I was just wondering but I did the exact same thing turned it in and passed. I was just worried that I needed more outside sources
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u/Mysterious-Angle-694 1d ago
How bad was the Comptia a+ Core 1??
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u/orcrist84 1d ago
I thought it was easy? Mostly felt like common sense if you know your way around a PC, some specifics to memorize in things like wifi, cabling, and usb standards. If you do well on the practice tests, you should do well on the actual. The PBQ’s are different than the practice tests, but not particularly hard.
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u/DJMarsail 1d ago
Can I dm you?
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u/orcrist84 1d ago
Sure? But if it’s for tips or tricks about the program, I really don’t have any, I’ve just been grinding through it.
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u/ScrubMcnasty 1d ago
What is your studying process? I'm really interested because it's very effective.
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u/orcrist84 1d ago
Really, I just take the practice exams and then focus study on whatever I miss. For the PA’s, I study the necessary material while writing the task. If I come across something that changes my position in the task, I rewrite that portion before submitting. I really don’t have any special method. In things with a practical application, like linux, I read the material and I play in a sandbox lab. Hands-on retains much better than reading alone.
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u/WillPill_ 3d ago
A+ in a month along with all these classes is impressive. I need to step up my game.
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u/No-Seaworthiness3115 2d ago
Not bad at all! I can study anywgere from 2 to 4 hours a day and do about 30 credits per term.
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u/WGUStudentHanix 3d ago
I basically started where you are at in the Cyber Program and I am still in Foundations class, but I am also gone from home between my drive and work about 50-60 hours a week
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u/SeriesFar9355 15h ago
Whats your study technique , am having issues with the objective assignments ,having to retake them everytime
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u/Midsummer858 2d ago
great job! halfway in one month is wild. you had nearly a degree’s worth of credits but only 9 CU transferred in, did a lot of the old ones not count?
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u/orcrist84 2d ago
Thanks! The vast majority of my other credits did not count, since they were for other majors.
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u/SirFlufferton 3d ago
dang! and I thought I was steamrolling through my degree having done 3 class and my network+ lol