Passed C960 Discrete Math II

       Took 13 days on C960 and I think it can be shorter with some better strategy. There are 6 chapters in the course, and the most challenging part for me is the pseudocode questions. 

       Ch1: Algorithms, Ch2: Number Theory and Cryptography, Ch3: Recursion and Induction, Ch4: Counting, Ch5: Probability, Ch6: Modeling Computation

     Zybook is still a good source and I used Ch1, 2, and 6. The pre-assessment and the OA are aligned and slightly easier than the Zybook and the exercise questions you can find. You can find tons of resources for learning these topics on Youtube so just learn what you need to know by the pre-assessment questions. 

      If I could start over, I would go for the pre-assessment right away, and I would know to focus on Ch1 and 2 for me and learn Ch6 at a much faster pace.

      

Passed C836 Fundamentals of Information Security

     I passed C836 in 1 day, while my C172 was transferred and I hold a Google IT support certificate with one security course included. The assessment is theoretical and the terminology is the key part of passing the exam. 

     I watched the webinars in the "course tips" column which include 12 videos with 2 hours of total length. These videos are extremely boring and just putting the words on the Powerpoint, but included most important concepts. Took some notes during the videos, and my pre-assessment score was 1 question away from passing.

    The flashcards recommended might be also helpful but I didn't use it because I found the contents are quite the same as those webinars. After all, with the CIA triad and memorizing some names of acts, you are almost there.

       Flashcards: https://quizlet.com/408767074/c836-wgu-complete-flash-cards/

Passed C949 Data Structures and Algorithms I

    Data structure and algorithms are undoubtedly the most important part of learning computer science. I like the material provided and I chose and I don't like the design of the assessments.

    The Zybook contains two major parts, one is teaching some core concepts of coding by introducing python, and another is the academic part of different data structures and algorithms. They are both important and you will have to learn them sometime somewhere after all. Zybook is not a bad choice and they are detailed enough. I also used Pluralsight videos (Data Structures and Algorithms Part I & II) as my main learning materials.

    The assessments are aligned with each other and not aligned with the book. I had a call with a CI and got some study tips including 2 mistakes in the pre-assessment questions. I think the pseudocode and Java multiple-choice questions are not efficient for our learning and test our ability in computer science, but in WGU just shut up and deal with it for a couple of hours and you'll be fine. The algorithms part is more reasonable, the Zybook and Pluralsight should cover all the things you need to know. 

   I spent 11 days on this course. These are knowledge that we will learn and review by ourselves throughout the career, so don't bother with it just figure out how to pass will be a smarter choice.

Passed C867 Scripting and Programming - Applications

         I happen to see many posts about this course. Maybe it is the normal pattern that many students start in August and about to take this course as our third or fourth course. It took me 16 days to pass and it is unnecessary if you want to save more time. 

        I watched the Linkedin Learning videos on some introduction to C++ and started the project after I finished one course on Linkedin. My mentor told me that C867 was a "big" project and people spend 8 weeks on it in average, which made me overestimate the difficulty before I started. Don't be afraid of coding and it's not that hard after all.

       Watch the youtube video about the project, and learning by doing would be a more efficient way to learn if you want to be fast.  I may probably be more familiar with C++ after I watched the Linkedin video, but I could pass C867 faster and learn it in my free time in the future, too! It's up to you. 

      My next course plan is C836, C949, and C482.