The life of many IT professionals revolves around the constant balancing act between working and taking certification tests. It is probably the only thing about working in the industry that people would mention as a downside. However, it also presents opportunities for new jobs, more responsibility and higher pay. So it is not all bad!
Many IT professionals ask how they are supposed to manage the balance. How are they meant to work, live and still find time to study and then pass these exams every couple months? The key is to study in the most intelligent and efficient way.
Purpose of Certification Exams
Before going any further, we should explain certification exams. These are tests that demonstrate whether an IT professional has the required skills to handle a specific type of job. For instance, take the 70-487 Developing Windows Azure and Web Services exam.
If anyone passes the 70-487 and gets the certification, it means they know about the topics of Developing Windows Azure and Web Services. And an IT company that needs someone who has those skills will be more likely to hire that person.
Acing Certification Tests
The hard part for many people is figuring out how they can find that balance between being committed to work, having a fun life and studying. It is not easy, as most IT full time jobs are a 9-5 deal. That means working eight hours a day, five or six days a week. It does not leave a lot of time to study.
Most IT professionals would only have a few hours each week they can devote to studying. It is why figuring out shortcuts and study hacks are so important. And the best hack that we have learned about is explained below.
Using Past Exam Questions
There is no substitute for having questions from past tests. When you are able to access past test questions, such as the ones offered by CertLibrary, life becomes a lot easier. CertLibrary is a premium site where you get paid access to hundreds of real exam questions from past tests such as the 70-487.
By using the site to see those past questions, you can answer them during various stages of your studying. Say you are spending a month preparing. The first weekend, you can do 10 or 20 questions to see how many you got right. Even if you get half right before studying, you are in good shape.
Then you can study the areas where you got questions wrong. Those are the topics that will trip you up during the test. Focus on those and spend less time on topics where you answered the questions correctly. You only have a set number of hours to study, so you must focus on your weaknesses so that you can get a passing grade on your exam.
Another perk of using past questions is that you familiarize yourself with the exam. You will not be thrown off by an odd style of questioning, as you already did hundreds of past questions.
