Could not clear SCJP1.5

[Pradeep Kumar]

Hi,
I had got the voucher some 8 months back and have read K&B two times. I thought the qustions from the Threads chapter would be tough so skipped some part which included synchronization and dead lock from the chapters and went through the two minute drill for all the chapters. But still could not clear the test. I dint prepare for the mock exams. Can somebody help me to get throguh the exam. I dont know how much more should i prepare for the exam. I am a good developer at work. But since the exam questions will be tricky and we will not be using these in our daily work we cannot answer them untill we know them. Can somebody help me with their serious comments on how to clear with good percentage will be appriciated.

Thanks in advance
Pradeep

[Marc Wentink]

These two minutes drill summaries are not enough. You have to know much more. I made a summary of about a hundred pages, partly handwritten ok, and memorized these.

Also do the practice exams and for every mistake, write down and memorize why you did it wrong: What stupid trick you fell for. These tricks I found really a dumb way of testing your skills, but still if you want to pass, you have to be aware of the trick questions.

And yes, the exam is though. But the certificate then also means something.
[ July 07, 2008: Message edited by: Marc Wentink ]

[Nicole Schmidt]

My experience is that is very important to read the SCJP book very faithfully. Then do the mock exam. Perhaps you can meet with somebody who wants to pass the exam, too. So you can talk about the solutions of the mock exams. That worked very good for me.
Good luck.

[Sujan Surendran]

Pradeep,

Please don't lose hope. You find Threads difficult probably because you have been avoiding it most of the time in your career. Some of my friends during college also have faced this kind of problems. My suggestion is, don't be scared of any subject under Core Java, because Java was intended to be simple. Outside Core Java it's Ok, if you are scared of certain things (I'm scared of a commonly used XML parser API) . Mere reading through SCJP books (no matter how many times) may not do much help; you need to assimilate the ideas and concepts expressed in the books. When you understand and begin to appreciate what the book is talking about, you will not have to put any extra effort to memorize most things. K&B is an excellent book but it is not for reading in haste. Work diligently and clear the exam. I wish you Good Luck.

Regards,
Sujan

[Ralph Jaus]

I'm sorry for you, Pradeep.

To prepare, do as many mock exams as possible (and, how Marc explained, analyse and learn from the mistakes). If you learned K&B and have solved a lot of mock exams you'll pass!
[ July 07, 2008: Message edited by: Ralph Jaus ]

[Pradeep Kumar]

thanks for all your suggestions. will soon post here with positive results next time.
Cheers!!!