CompTIA certification, recommended training suppliers?

[prand]

While I'm between jobs I was thinking of doing some CompTIA courses to help move into Cyber Security with a view at some point, maybe doing the CSSP and CISM certifications.

I'm looking at network+ and security+courses to start off. Can anyone recommend a decent training provider?

I have spoken to a couple of firms who seem like double glazing companies, insisting on long conversations about requirements the purpose feeling more to gauge my ability to pay, and initially coming back with crazy quotes, then offering big discounts if I book then and there. Then after checking online i found terrible reviews.

So I'm a bit loath to just jump in with the first one that seems decent, especially as its a pretty big investment.Thanks!

[75Black]

prand said:

While I'm between jobs I was thinking of doing some CompTIA courses to help move into Cyber Security with a view at some point, maybe doing the CSSP and CISM certifications.

I'm looking at network+ and security+courses to start off. Can anyone recommend a decent training provider?

I have spoken to a couple of firms who seem like double glazing companies, insisting on long conversations about requirements the purpose feeling more to gauge my ability to pay, and initially coming back with crazy quotes, then offering big discounts if I book then and there. Then after checking online i found terrible reviews.

So I'm a bit loath to just jump in with the first one that seems decent, especially as its a pretty big investment.Thanks!

Hi Prand, under no circumstances pay silly money for these so called training providers especially since you can learn it all online. For Network+ and Sec+ look at Jason Dion's courses on Udemy (wait for a sale, they'll be £10), he offers a separate practice exam course as well which if I remember correctly has 6 exams. If you don't want to pay, Professor Messer has both Sec+ and Network+ for free on youtube. Both kept up to date and will likely be recommended by more than just myself.

[prand]

75Black said:

Hi Prand, under no circumstances pay silly money for these so called training providers especially since you can learn it all online. For Network+ and Sec+ look at Jason Dion's courses on Udemy (wait for a sale, they'll be £10), he offers a separate practice exam course as well which if I remember correctly has 6 exams. If you don't want to pay, Professor Messer has both Sec+ and Network+ for free on youtube. Both kept up to date and will likely be recommended by more than just myself.

I'll definitely check them out. Looking at some of the course content, a lot seems like stuff I will already know, so I'm thinking, do I need to me taught the difference between, say a firewall and a load balancer, for instance (simplifying, but you get the point I hope). One of these providers' course breakdowns talks about Windows NT, ISDN and Dial Up internet", so a fair bit out of date, I'd hope the actual course content would be a little more up to date than that
So maybe I can DIY and save a fortune. I'll take a look at these people, thanks!.

[anonymous-user]

Just to say, I also agree. I got the Sybex study guide for both and passed both at the first attempt. Don't go spending money on in-person courses!

[Bebop Beru]

Have done the a+ and network +

Used Professer Messer videos and Mike Meyers book. No background in IT prior.

Do the courses, test yourself on something like exam compass and when you’re ready, book an exam.

[colin79666]

ITPro.tv is what I use.

Expensive if you just want one course but cheap if you are doing a few or already in a job and want to keep your skills updated but dipping in and out. Some plans also include labs and practice exams which is handy. They have a referral scheme so drop me a line if you do go that route as you get 30% off and I get something back too

[prand]

colin79666 said:

ITPro.tv is what I use.

Expensive if you just want one course but cheap if you are doing a few or already in a job and want to keep your skills updated but dipping in and out. Some plans also include labs and practice exams which is handy. They have a referral scheme so drop me a line if you do go that route as you get 30% off and I get something back too

Interesting - you say expensive but still a fraction of the thousands some of these companies are asking for. I'll have a look and see if this works for me.

[CoupeKid]

A couple of years ago I did just what you are trying to do.

I self studied Security+ using a variety of books - study guides, Professor Messer and exam practice books. I passed the exam by the skin of my teeth. It was far more technical than the books had prepared me for. If I was doing Security+ 601 I think I would just buy the CompTIA books and hope that they covered the course.

I did my CISM training through Firebrand. It was expensive for what you get, no doubt about it, but you do get a lot and I passed that too.

If you can afford it and can spare a week away then Firebrand is good as a boot camp to get you through the exam. Obviously at the moment their complex isn't open. My criticism of Firebrand is that there weren't any group exercises to consolidate concepts and practice them. It is purely lectures and tests to prepare you for the exam. Perhaps that's all that is necessary for CISM but when I've done ITIL or ISO27001 courses there has always been group exercises.

QA are very well known as training providers and would be a good alternative if you want to do the courses virtually or in their training centres. IT Governance are an alternative. I have no experience of them but my colleague did one of their Risk Assessment courses and wasn't impressed by the lecturer but that's a sample size of one.

At the moment I am doing a Udemy course in GDPR and privacy. It's useful but personally I wouldn't want to commit to the CIPP exam purely on the basis of a series of videos.

[prand]

CoupeKid said:

A couple of years ago I did just what you are trying to do.

I self studied Security+ using a variety of books - study guides, Professor Messer and exam practice books. I passed the exam by the skin of my teeth. It was far more technical than the books had prepared me for. If I was doing Security+ 601 I think I would just buy the CompTIA books and hope that they covered the course.

I did my CISM training through Firebrand. It was expensive for what you get, no doubt about it, but you do get a lot and I passed that too.

If you can afford it and can spare a week away then Firebrand is good as a boot camp to get you through the exam. Obviously at the moment their complex isn't open. My criticism of Firebrand is that there weren't any group exercises to consolidate concepts and practice them. It is purely lectures and tests to prepare you for the exam. Perhaps that's all that is necessary for CISM but when I've done ITIL or ISO27001 courses there has always been group exercises.

QA are very well known as training providers and would be a good alternative if you want to do the courses virtually or in their training centres. IT Governance are an alternative. I have no experience of them but my colleague did one of their Risk Assessment courses and wasn't impressed by the lecturer but that's a sample size of one.

At the moment I am doing a Udemy course in GDPR and privacy. It's useful but personally I wouldn't want to commit to the CIPP exam purely on the basis of a series of videos.

Thanks - I have been speaking to Firebrand. They seem ok, but still with elements of cowboyism, they came out with "what sort of budget did you have in mind"? when discussing pricing (subsequently dropped the price by 50% after speaking to her manager) then chased me endlessly to confirm when I would want to proceed as their offer would expire if I didn't book then and there. Just not the approach that endears me to a company really.

QA look good, maybe flexible on pricing as £2.2k +VAT is a lot for a 3 day course

[CoupeKid]

prand said:

Thanks - I have been speaking to Firebrand. They seem ok, but still with elements of cowboyism, they came out with "what sort of budget did you have in mind"? when discussing pricing (subsequently dropped the price by 50% after speaking to her manager) then chased me endlessly to confirm when I would want to proceed as their offer would expire if I didn't book then and there. Just not the approach that endears me to a company really.

QA look good, maybe flexible on pricing as £2.2k +VAT is a lot for a 3 day course

Which course are you thinking of doing through QA? If it's Security+ then I wouldn't say it was worth it. For CISM or CISSP I'd be surprised if they can fit in the syllabus and an exam into that time frame.

I expect Firebrand are suffering at the moment as they can't have people staying over on their site. Perhaps I should have negotiated when I bought the course! It did annoy me that the price isn't transparent. When I did my course there were people there from the Army, Civil Service, RS Components and other large legit organisations so it must have some reputation.

[Taita]

Genuinely, you need your head reading if you are considering shelling out that amount of cash for CompTIA stuff.

There are plenty of Udemy / Amazon books for them, they are fairly introductory so absolutely studyable without instruction.

[prand]

Taita said:

Genuinely, you need your head reading if you are considering shelling out that amount of cash for CompTIA stuff.

There are plenty of Udemy / Amazon books for them, they are fairly introductory so absolutely studyable without instruction.

Well, discussing it on here certainly has helped make my mind up that these intro courses are very do-able without formal tuition!

I was originally looking at suppliers as it's comforting to have their "guarantee" that after a few days of intense training you can walk away with a bit of learning, but also a recognised certificate. Not for that sort of money though.

I

[acd80]

CoupeKid said:

When I did my course there were people there from the Army, Civil Service, RS Components and other large legit organisations so it must have some reputation.

They're on the framework to provide training - they are good but they're expensive.

There are pros and cons to every provider. I'm an accredited trainer of some of the courses mentioned above and charge nowhere near what some of the big vendors charge - a lot of times, I, along with a number of others, provide the training on behalf of the big vendors.

There is another provider that hasn't been mentioned who I would stay well clear of for a number of reasons. I won't mention them here but they're easy enough to find online as they have shocking reviews - no idea how they stay in business tbh.

I would say to the OP to not pay an excessive amount for Net+ or Sec+ as they are foundation courses. Another useful course to look at is the BCS CISMP course. It is basic but it provides a solid foundation in Infosec Management.

[prand]

acd80 said:

They're on the framework to provide training - they are good but they're expensive.

There are pros and cons to every provider. I'm an accredited trainer of some of the courses mentioned above and charge nowhere near what some of the big vendors charge - a lot of times, I, along with a number of others, provide the training on behalf of the big vendors.

There is another provider that hasn't been mentioned who I would stay well clear of for a number of reasons. I won't mention them here but they're easy enough to find online as they have shocking reviews - no idea how they stay in business tbh.

I would say to the OP to not pay an excessive amount for Net+ or Sec+ as they are foundation courses. Another useful course to look at is the BCS CISMP course. It is basic but it provides a solid foundation in Infosec Management.

Brilliant thanks acd80. Your post (and everyone else) is extremely helpful. The idea was to get some foundation certification to help cement a move into a Cyber related role (with my experience, had already landed a couple of Cyber related programme manager interviews) and get some formal undertstanding of the detail then see if I could get an employer to fund the practitioner qualifications. I had seen the CISMP course too, which does suit me (being a hands off non technical manager type), so I will definitely look at this.

[anonymous-user]

Firebrand Training...just no, and really NO if you are paying yourself. You can pass CompTIA certifications using free or very cheap resources, Udemy, Cybary.it, YouTube etc.

What kind of role are you looking for and where are you based?

[prand]

1TurboTom said:

Firebrand Training...just no, and really NO if you are paying yourself. You can pass CompTIA certifications using free or very cheap resources, Udemy, Cybary.it, YouTube etc.

What kind of role are you looking for and where are you based?

Certainly looks that way! I'm interested in Senior PM/Programme roles, which is my background - infrastructure and transformation largely, but also got Service Delivery/Ops experience. Based SE/Thames Valley. Happy to DM you with more detail if you need it.

[anonymous-user]

Can't help much with Project Management; SOC Analyst, IR, Threat Intelligence/Counter Intel, Forensics roles are my areas of expertise.

[acd80]

prand said:

Brilliant thanks acd80. Your post (and everyone else) is extremely helpful. The idea was to get some foundation certification to help cement a move into a Cyber related role (with my experience, had already landed a couple of Cyber related programme manager interviews) and get some formal undertstanding of the detail then see if I could get an employer to fund the practitioner qualifications. I had seen the CISMP course too, which does suit me (being a hands off non technical manager type), so I will definitely look at this.

I'm happy to have a chat offline if required about it.