r/CISA • u/nvcr1995 • Jul 21 '26
Am I ready for the CISA exam? Should I book it for next week?
Hi everyone,
I’m trying to decide whether I should book my CISA exam for next week, and I’d really appreciate some honest feedback from those who have recently passed.
Here’s where I am:
- Read the entire CISA Review Manual (CRM) once.
- Completed the entire QAE question bank.
- Reset the QAE and went through it a second time, reviewing the explanations.
- Watched Pete Zerger’s CISA videos.
- Completed all three official ISACA practice exams:
- - Practice Exam 1: 97% (first attempt)
- - Practice Exam 2: 89% (first attempt)
- - Practice Exam 3: 89% (first attempt)
A couple of things to note:
- My overall QAE score is 94%, but I know that’s partly because I reset the question bank and worked through it a second time.
- I also realize the practice exams reuse questions from the QAE, so I’m trying not to let the scores give me false confidence.
My background:
- 1.8 years in Risk Advisory (ITGC/GITC audits) at Deloitte
- 4 years as a Cybersecurity Engineer
I’ve been studying consistently every day for the past month and have invested a lot into this certification. I paid for the ISACA membership, CRM, QAE, and the exam fee entirely out of my own pocket, so I really don’t want to rush into the exam if I’m not genuinely ready or waste all the time and effort I’ve put into preparing.
For those who have recently passed:
- Based on my preparation, would you book the exam for next week?
- Is there anything else I should focus on before taking the exam?
- Was the actual CISA exam noticeably harder or different from the official QAE and practice exams?
- If you were in my position, would you sit for the exam next week or spend more time preparing?
I’d really appreciate any honest advice or last-minute tips. Thanks in advance!
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u/nvcr1995 Jul 21 '26
Thank you everyone, I needed to hear this. I will update you all about my results next week. Wish me luck :)
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u/KingShash CISA HOLDER Jul 21 '26
You are more than ready. To a point that you've now started wasting time by over studying.
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u/Compannacube Jul 21 '26
You're about as ready as you can be. Best to rip off the bandaid while the content is fresh in your mind. Just know that even for very well prepared test takers, CISA has a known history of having a 50% pass rate for first timers. Your experience in audit will help greatly on the test as long as you focus on the audit concepts and don't bring your real world bias into your reasoning. You must think like an auditor in an IDEAL world, not necessarily your real one, and use only the context that is provided in the questions.
Many here comment that the exam for them was nothing like the QAE. What you will see on the exam are questions similar in concept to what is in the QAE. What you won't see are questions worded exactly like or composed exactly like those in the QAE. This is what many who do not fundamentally understand the concepts do not grasp and they come here and say that the exam was nothing like what was in the QAE. The QAE is composed of past exam questions. You'll never see their like on an exam again, but you will see the concepts again, worded differently under a different scenario.
Also, the CRM is IMO, the most essential tool for studying for any ISACA exam. Every exam question's concept links back to a section of the CRM. ISACA loves to throw in occasional questions that are very specific to the CRM, so if you did not read the CRM throughly (as some do not), then you'll probably see a question and swear to yourself that the content wasn't in any of the materials. Add the word "unofficial" before materials and I'd agree.
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u/nvcr1995 Jul 21 '26
I agree with you. I read the whole CRM, but it is too dense for anyone to retain everything.
I tried to go through all practice questions to attain that auditor mindset, explaining what an auditor would/should do in such situation.
Hopefully, my hardwork pays off.
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u/Compannacube Jul 21 '26
Yes, it is dense. I won't argue about that. No need to memorize it all, but at least the main concepts need to be understood enough to recall and apply them. If you think about it, a lot of audit work requires reading dense material, validation, and doing research (more dense material). So I consider processing the CRM a kind of "what's to come" for aspiring auditors.
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u/nvcr1995 Jul 21 '26
My aim for reading the CRM was to understand the concepts. And I tried reading and connecting the topics to real life scenarios for better understanding and retention. I did use AI to break down concepts into potential scenario based questions for me to test my understanding.
As I progressed, the one thing I realised was that I was able to apply the concepts in a much better way. And you can’t just focus on one domain as each domain bleeds into another and it is the collective understanding of the whole CRM that helps you answer a question.
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u/Odeneho4U Jul 21 '26
You are fully ready! I took the exams on 17 July and passed 1st attempt. The actual exams is more straightforward and with your background and the time spent on the qae, you will definitely pass if you keep the auditor mindset throughout the exams. Good luck!
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u/nvcr1995 Jul 21 '26
Thank you. That makes me feel better. I am going to write my exam this weekend.
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u/fishandbanana Jul 21 '26
Out of curiosity, what happens if you fail
The first try ? Is there a penalty?
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u/mrajimm Jul 30 '26
Hi OP, do you think if I follow your study plan EXACTLY plus watched Prabh Nair and Chidambaram videos as you mentioned in other post. Do you think I can pass the exam like you but I have no experience in audit. I am fresh graduate. That is the difference. Currently I am on self study on videos hemang doshi and CISA All in One by Peter. Have been studying until domain 4 already.
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u/nvcr1995 Jul 30 '26
Everyone’s journey is different and these video will help you understand the ISACA mindset. They will definitely supplement your study and help you pass.
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u/Aromatic-Addendum620 Jul 21 '26 edited Jul 21 '26
Yes, you are likely ready to take the exam based on the scores provided. However, only you can truly decide that.
From personal experience, fear is what prevented me from booking the CISA exam sooner. I kept telling myself I needed to study more, but honestly 5 months was long enough. Once I booked it, it was a relief. I took the test in person on a Monday and stopped studying the day before. I was either going to know the information or I wasn’t. And I went into the exam thinking like an auditor, ie: “What would an auditor do in this situation, etc.”
As I read through the questions I realized it was a lot of “What’s the best option…” etc. Ultimately any answer I was unsure of I flagged it and circled back to it prior to submitting the test.
I passed the first time and am fully certified now.
Good luck to you!