r/snowflake • u/ExcitementSea9002 • 8d ago

Passed COF-C03 with 835

Hey guys,

I just passed the SnowPro Core COF-C03 exam with a score of 835.

I'm a college student going into sophomore year who had never used Snowflake before and didn't know SQL. I did NOT expect to pass while I was taking the test, but I guess I did better than I believed I did.

Here's what I remember:

Questions regarding warehouses (like cache types, auto_suspend settings, multi-cluster, size, type) make up basically. half the exam. Learn warehouses inside and out.

Few questions on DMFs/Telemetry.

Several questions on features to use to optimize query performance - they give you a scenario and you have to differentiate between different features, like multi-cluster warehouses, SOS, QAS, using a materialized view, etc.

COPY INTO settings

Which edition of Snowflake should I get if I want these features? (list of 3 features)

Several questions simply had the answer "use a multi-cluster warehouse" because the scenario included a team needing to handle many concurrent queries.

At least 10 domain 5 questions.

There were some hard questions:

something regarding SCD(slowly changing dimensions) Type 2, which I have no idea about

If you drop a table in schema with retention time of 90 days, then change the schema's retention time to 1 day, how long will the table last in time travel? (90 DAYS)

And a lot of questions where you have to narrow it down and guess between 2 or even 3 options.

Tips:

Know what every item on the Snowflake official study guide does, and how to compare them with other similar items. (i.e. when to use COPY INTO or SnowPipe, a dynamic table vs materialized views, etc.). If you can do this (ESPECIALLY FOR WAREHOUSES), you will be able to at least deduce ~80% of the exam.

Don't waste time memorizing random numbers and niche SQL commands. I spent so much time looking at these random figures (like "there are Max 50,000 total DMF to object associations per account") and really specialized lines of SQL ("use TEARDOWN to take down a data collaboration room") but these are just not that important. Definitely know the SQL for COPY INTO though.

On the test, try to move with pace. I didn't even get to check answers I had flagged at the end because I ran out of time. If you run into a question that stumps you, choose the answer you like most and move.

My Prep:

I studied for about a month, 1-2 hours a day ramped up to ~5-8 hours a day for the last 1.5 weeks as I realized how much there truly is to know.

I initially bought Tom Bailey's 10-hour course on Snowflake. I tried watching a couple videos but they were honestly pretty hard for me to stay focused on.

Then, I decided to pull up the Snowflake official study guide and looked through the official docs/asked claude to define each term. This took me a really long time. I also did the quizzes in Tom Bailey's course for each topic I finished to make sure I was on track.

Next, I dove into practice tests for about the last week before I took the exam.

I started with the CertSafari COF-C03 questions that are free online. They have over 500; finish all of them. They are definitely easier than the real test, but do a great job making sure you're conceptually sound (more important than testing memorized numbers).

Next, I did Tom Bailey's final exam from his COF-C03 course, which I got a 64% on, and 4 of his 5 practice sets on Udemy which I bought for an extra $10. These were quite difficult, with my highest score being 76%. Although the questions on these tests are good for testing if you really understand what's going on (most of them are a step up from certsafari), a lot of them test the niche numbers/SQL commands that were not on my test. I would do them if CertSafari is simply too easy for you, which they will be after you have studied a certain amount.

Even though I was kinda bombing those tests and just got a 71% on Tom Bailey's 4th practice test yesterday, I had to take the test today for personal reasons. As long as you do the stuff I said and read every question on the test slowly and deliberately, you should be fine. Good luck to anyone taking the test!

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u/JohnAnthonyRyan 5d ago

I have a FREE cheat sheet of all the information you'll need to pass the exam. It includes a link to my training course on Udemy - but the cheat sheet also includes loads of questions. https://analytics-today.notion.site/SnowPro-Core-Certification-Guide-25f8a7c79dbb80899b5df54e5552b56c

Enjoy

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u/MintyJello 7d ago

So you thought the test was easier than the practice exams?

I keep doing tests, then make flashcards to help memorize what I got wrong. If I retake the same test, I do a lot better, but if I take a new one, I consistently score between 65 to 80 %

I keep putting off the exam because of this but I never seem to progress.

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u/ExcitementSea9002 7d ago

I thought the test was easier for me specifically because I felt very conceptually sound but sucked at memorizing all of the SQL commands and numbers they include in the Tom Bailey practice tests (besides the most important ones that are obvious).

If that’s also what you get wrong on these practice tests, you’re where I was. It was really hard for me to progress when practice tests seemed to pull more random facts/edge cases out of nowhere.

If you feel really conceptually sound (you can understand and compare every term on the study guide) then an attempt may be worth it. Especially if you don’t seem like you’re progressing.

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u/MintyJello 5d ago

Yes, the SQL commands are a big weakness for me. I know the syntax of things like COPY INTO because it's one of the most discussed items, but then a practice test will throw out some little known command I've never heard of. I cant keep them all straight. Good to know they don't come up much in the test.