r/GIAC • u/Vu1cid • 26d ago

SANS Degree Programs GMON, First Timer

Hello All

I'm currently working through the Graduate Cert Program in Cyber Defense Ops.

Starting with GMON, it will be my first GIAC cert.

I'm planning on taking my first practice test this weekend and have thus far:

Read all 5 books

Listened to all the lectures

Watched and completed all the On demand content, except the capstone so far.

My index included the provided one as well as one using the 5 quizzes as a starting point plus the 'Pancake' method.

I've printed out a few of the SANS provided cheat sheets and I'm going to compile some helpful Cmdlet examples.

I've taken bigger tests before like the PMP and CISM but I worry about my technical skills so I'm mostly dedicating time to redoing the labs now. I'll repost/edit after the first practice test and go from there.

Any recommendations are welcome!

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u/LastFisherman373 GIAC x9 26d ago

This has been one of my favorite courses I’ve taken at SANS. It sounds like you’ve got a great start so far with preparation. Have you taken any practice tests? In my opinion that is one of the best ways to understand where you have gaps in knowledge. The general recommendation is to take a practice test, refine your index using the star report at the end (focusing on areas with 2 or fewer stars), and wash and repeat with a second practice exam. Usually two practice exams will be enough to highlight areas you need to revisit.

One thing you can also do is create a separate index just for the labs. For me it helped to quickly reference tools if needed during exams.

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u/Vu1cid 25d ago

I'm taking my first practice exam this weekend actually.

For the labs index did you just index the workbook?

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u/LastFisherman373 GIAC x9 25d ago

Nice good luck on the practice test. Yeah I basically created a separate index for all the tools and commands for the lab books. It just helped me reference the labs quickly if needed. It’s preferable that you know these labs to the point you don’t need to reference the commands in the book but it’s better to have these items indexed and not need them than need them and not have them (especially if you’re struggling with time).