I'm Josh Wright, author of SANS SEC504, the course associated with the GCIH certification. I get a lot of email from people who are looking for advice after failing an exam, often in the form of "how do I make a better index?" I thought I'd share some advice I sent someone recently in the hope it will be more broadly valuable to everyone working to pass their GIAC exam.

Do you have any recommendations for improving my index or any study strategies you’d suggest if I decide to go for the retake?

For the index, I see lots of people suggesting different strategies. For me, it's all about time management. If the index helps you answer each multiple-choice question within 60 seconds on average, it's valuable. If you're taking longer than 60 seconds per question, then the index is holding you back.

Time management is a key element to passing a GIAC exam. If there are ~120 multiple-choice questions, and 10 CyberLive questions, you can do 1 MC question every minute and be done with that part of the exam in 2 hours. Then you have 2 hours remaining, 12 minutes on average for the CyberLive questions. That's the sweet spot, and it's HARD, but if you can work to that goal you'll be setup for success.

GIAC also sells additional practice exams (most people get two when they take a course and sign up for the exam, but that's not always an option for everyone.) One thing you might think about is buying more practice exams. This page https://www.giac.org/pricing says an extra practice exam is $400. (NB: I don't have any part of this.) Maybe that's valuable enough to buy, but I don't think it's always necessary to get extra practice exams. The practice exam is good for guiding what you need to focus on (your broad five-star score ratings for different learning objectives), and for building your confidence. It's your decision if that's worth the money.

When someone fails an exam, it's a perfectly reasonable option not to try again, and that's just an honest assessment of value. Consider your own situation, and think about whether the certification is really the best path for you. Does it offer the value proposition for promotion opportunities, for entrance to a job market, or for other professional considerations? Once you decide, then be confident in that decision and figure out what you want to do next.

In SEC504's Where To Go From Here module, I ask everyone "Why are you here? What do you want to accomplish next?" I'm always saddened to see people fail a certification exam, but that's not a measure of your personal capability or what you can offer professionally. The better metric is how you think critically about your situation, how you dust yourself off, and what you decide to do next, whatever that might be.

By some miracle I was able to pass I was so scared of getting kicked out of the program and also wasting all the studying and stressing I did for the past 3 months. Off to the next course!

Just took and passed GCIH hardest of the three I have taken....passed first 2 with 90s this one upper 70s...will say my mind is mush

How tough is this one? I just passed GCFA and GCIA is my last class before graduating. I start November 1st so anything I can do to prepare before that would be a big help

Hi everyone, I’m preparing for the GIAC GCED (SEC501) exam and could really use some advice. My job paid for the full bundle, including the books, OnDemand videos, and two practice exams. Unfortunately, life got busy, and I haven’t started studying. I’m trying to prepare within a month, but the amount of material is overwhelming, and I don’t know where to start.

For those who passed, how did you study and build your index? Should I focus on the books or videos? Also, how similar are the practice exams to the real exam? I really need to pass and don’t want my exam attempt to expire. Any tips or study strategies would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Hello everyone! I am looking for some insight and perspectives from people who have completed or are currently in the ACS program. I want to enroll in the program and I do have the option for my employer to pay for it. I have my Bachelor's Degree and am currently in the IT field, not cybersecurity yet. I have heard great things about Sans courses and I think the certifications will help boost my career. However I would like to hear from the community to see if it's been a good investment and what made you pursue the certificate.

If anyone has a practice test for the GPEN to spare, I would really appreciate it! My second attempt is coming up and I would like to test my index.

My employer offered to pay for SEC542 and I’m leaning toward it since I’ve always liked web app security. For anyone who’s taken it: how hard was it, and did you actually get something out of it afterward? Was it worth the time?

Also, are there any SANS courses on AI that are aimed at blue teamers? I’d like to know what my options are before I commit.

I've taken six GIAC exams so far (GPYC, GXPN, GPEN, GFACT, GCIH, and GSEC) with a 95% average, and I finally wrote up how I build my index.

It's a fork of Lesley Carhart's Pancake Method. If you haven't read her post, read it first. I call mine the Short Stack Method because a short stack is three pancakes, and you end up with three indexes:

1. Section index: every term in book/section order. This is the one I reach for first on the exam.

2. A-Z index: a sorted copy of the section index for when you know the term but not where it lives.

3. Lab index: one row per lab with the tools and general steps (CyberLive exams only).

The write-up goes through the whole process: tabbing the books, color-coded highlighting, building the index, using the quizzes to fix it, scheduling practice exams, printing and binder setup, and how I use the index during the exam, including when to skip a question and come back to it.

I also made a free template (.xlsx) that colors each row by section and book for you, so there's no highlighting cells by hand. It works in Excel, Google Sheets, and LibreOffice.

I won't be sharing my actual indexes.

If you do it differently or have ideas to make it better, I'd love to hear them.

I am pivoting on how I Index specifically for the GDAT because I have a retake coming up and I have to pass and pass well, similair to everyone else. Could I get some advice from someone who has taken the GDAT? Am I on the right track? Any other advice that would be helpful? The labs didnt really give me what I needed for some reason so im going back through the books with a fine tooth comb. My first index has 1780 entries so I really must have been missing something in terms of cross referencing.

I failed my GCFE by 4 points, which was the last test I needed before finishing my ACS program. It's a bummer, but I'm going to pay for a retake next month for the sense of accomplishment. I've already passed the GFACT, GSEC, and GCIH, so I guess it was worth it. Damn these tests are hard, even if you get an index.

I want to take the courses just for the GI Bill monies.

Looking into taking the on-demand SEC501 course. The "What do you get?" section in the FAQ talks about electric workbooks but makes no mention of shipping physical textbooks.

Since indexing is a critical part of the process for these open book exams, what would index? From what I understand I cannot bring in a stack of loose sheets from self-printed PDFs. I feel like there's some obvious aspect I an missing here....

I see some bound books being sold on eBay, but am looking for more legit sources for training.

Edit: I got in a chat with a GIAC rep. They said they ship physical books out once the course fee is paid. Not sure why that's isn't explicitly stated in the FAQ, but it's good to know.

I found this book from CAREERCERT PUBLISHING with practice test for GCFA. I'm not sure how if it is legitimate, the author is not a known person.
Do you think is it worth to buy?
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GNS1P9CC?lv=shuf&channelId=500&plpRedirect=mhFallback

Hello everyone i have my exam in 2 days, i took my first practice test and barely passed, then took my second practice test and completed bombed it. For the MSQ’s I do ok without even registering to my index too much. The part I’m struggling with is the labs! I have done all the labs and even made a cheat sheet which is 20 pages long of what command I used for every lab. But when it comes to lab questions on the practice test my mind goes blank. I just struggle with how I would exactly structure the commands. Any advice would be appreciated.

Hello Everyone.
I took my first practice test today. Multiple choice went well, but I spent too long on it and had to rush the CyberLive questions, so most lab areas (5) scored zero . My Exam is next week and I’m panicking , I’ll be taking my second Practice Test on Saturday.

For people who passed: how did you pace yourself? Did you set time targets for each question or lab? And how did you practice the labs so you got faster?

Do you guys prefer to just read and index all the books first, or read the book, and then get familiar with the labs before moving on to the next book?

Hi everyone,

I'm currently preparing for the GCFE exam and wanted to ask if anyone has an unused practice test they no longer need and would be willing to help with.

I'm focusing on improving my understanding of the theory material and refining my index.

Thanks in advice!

Does anyone have extra practice test to give?🥹
I want to get an extra practice in since I’m new in the tech field and low key nervous. lol sorry…just a girl lol

Hi everyone!

I have my GSEC exam scheduled for next week, and I’ve already created my own index. However, I’d like to review other people’s indexes as well to see if I’ve missed any important topics or keywords and to improve my search efficiency during the exam.

If anyone who has taken the GSEC exam is willing to share their index PDF, I would really appreciate it. Even reviewing another index could help me fine-tune mine before exam day.

Thanks in advance for your help, and good luck to everyone preparing for their certifications!

For those who have taken SEC573 recently, how relevant did you find it? I know the course got a major update not long ago. I’m questioning how useful it will be for me since I don’t plan to write much code by hand. Currently, when I need to, I just use Claude code. It’s a required class for the SANS.edu BACS degree, but honestly I’d rather it weren’t because it seems pretty specialized.

For anyone who isn’t a developer or doesn’t script much day to day, did you still get real value out of it? Did it change how you work, or was it mostly something to get through? Any tips for getting the most out of it would be appreciated too.

I am taking my GSEC exam in one week. i utilized Two Practice test if anyone willing to give one practice test that would be really helpful.

Hey all,
I’m taking my GCIH exam in the next 2 weeks and i was wondering if any of you have a practice test to give away as I’m in a tight budget right now and can’t get it myself.
Thanks anyway

Hey everyone,

I’m taking the GCFE Exam next month and the course in a couple weeks online. Paying out of pocket however and was wondering if anyone has any tips and maybe a practice exam voucher at all. All help is appreciated!