Study Material for the MCSE exams?

First of all, a message to all students....don't cheat ! There's no point in having certifications with no value in the IT industry, if you value Microsoft certifications then play by the book. Secondly, if you want good practice exams that are not brandumps then visit:

www.accelerated-ideas.com/aiMExamsChoose.aspx

Enjoy..

Thanks for the reply. I by no means am I looking for cheats like I said in my orginal post.

"I don't want cheats I want to learn the curriculum so I understand it all and can perform well on the job, but I also want to know what I need to know for the exams as well."

There is nothing worse than spending months studying  hard for an exam and then to take it and feel like you don't know or have never seen some of this material.  It's almost like there were chapters left out of the books, classes, study materials or something.

I'm really not looking for practice exams as much as I am looking for books/classes that the exams are based on or vice a versa. When I was in college (electronics) you took a class and at the end of the semester you took your final which directly covered the material we had studied and were quized on in that class over that semester.  If you missed a question  that was on you as the answers were there in the class material, books or resources.

I just took the practice exam from accelerated ideas covering my last exam (70-291) to see how it measured up to the actual exam.  I had no problems and knew answers with ease. That practice exam covered what I had learned to a tee. It would not have been much  help with the actual exam.

If you have any other study materials or books you can recommend for these exams that would be much appreciated. Thanks again for your time and reply

The exams have a bank of questions that are updated and changed ongoing. Having taken many MS exams, 53 passed over the years, I find that the exam objectives online point the general path to what to expect. The MS Press books cover the material well but the questions at sometimes seem not related but they are in deeper way at times or the objectives changed. Some of them are very high level and involved especially after the exam has been out for a long time as these have.

The best bet is to have lots of practical experience and think about the question and yes guess sometimes if you can toss out 2 of 4 answers. My suggestion is to try and work with the more current content, Windows7/Vista and Server 2008. The material has larger banks of questions that may contain less involved questions and the new certifications break out areas of expertise.

Good luck and do not give up. It is process and the more you learn and more practical experience you get the better your chances are on exams. They build on the knowledge base of prior material.

Bob,

It sound to me like you need some practical application or the concepts discussed in you courses.  Most courseware has some element of labs but many of them are either simulation which limit your ability to screw up and to learn or are step by step instructions.  Step by step is a great way to lean how to do it the first time but as repeated just become an exercise in reading and following directions.  

I recommend setting up your own lab and foregoing the instructions.  You will miss importatant steps and things will not work but then you will have to learn how to troubleshoot and I guarantee you will not make that same mistake again.  This approach will really solidify your understanding of the material.

There are several ways to set up your own lab, select the one that makes the most sense for you.

Option 1 - If you have several machines that you can use you could you trial software and build on those boxes.  

Option 2 - If you have just one machine but it has plenty of RAM (at least 2GB and more is better) you could set up virtual machines and build what you need.  Again you can use trial software or Microsoft ha some pre-built VM's that you can use.  You have a few choices for the virtualization engine depending on your OS.

Get Trial Software here

Get Pre-Built VM's here

Option 3 - The simplest solution is to use TechNet Virtual Labs.  They have labs that are free and cover all kinds of topics.  The labs give you 90 minutes to complete and have step by step instructions but you can get through most labs in about 30 minutes giving you about an hour to explore, play around, etc.  You have to register and will need a Windows Live ID but then you have access for something like 3 months and if you need more time you just re-register.  I use them all of the time and recommend them to all of my students and also recommend that you try the labs without the instructions or try something not in the lab.  As virtual machines you can do just about anything and no risk of screwing up something bad.

Go to TechNet Virtual Labs here

I hope that helps.

Thank you all for the replies and advice

Links are not working

As an MCT for 15 years, I have been telling my students since day one that the best way to prpare for the exams is study all of the material BEFORE you take any test.  For example, the 70-270 exam (for XP Pro), you will get questions on group policy but as the preferred client in a Server 2003 environment, you are expected to know this. Truly, the best advice I have for you is to study all material before taking any more exams. 

Get Trial Software technet.microsoft.com/.../default.aspx

Get Pre-Built VM's technet.microsoft.com/.../bb738372.aspx

Go to TechNet Virtual Labs technet.microsoft.com/.../default.aspx

Hi Bob,

As an MCT I get to observe alot of learners and it really helps when you know how you learn best. Some folks do better with visual displays, some with audio and some with hands on. Everyone needs all kinds of stimuli but it really helps when you discover which is best for you and exploit your strengths.

Check out www.Preplogic.com or www.mrd.com for some good audio (I'm an auditory learner)

www.TrainSignal.com have videos for just about everything (even though they tend to be a little dry and very expensive) for the visual learner.

And the links from David above are great for hands on tactile learners.

Have a Great Day

Shaun Archer  (Place Alphabet Here)

Author of  "How to Pass IT Exams Without Trying (Too Hard)