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Anyone that has _passed_ the IBM test?

 
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It is nice for all of us who are preparing for the IBM test to discuss our queries on the two books (Fowler and Larman) as well as the mock exam, but I wonder if there is anyone in the forum that has taken and passed (or failed for that matter) the test that could share his/her experiences with us. When preparing for the SCJP test back in January I have found the experiences of test veterans to be quite useful.
Thanks,
Panagiotis.
 
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I have passed the test. Here are some items I posted on my companies private forum:


OK. Let me give some feedback on the test, and some repeated/new direction.
I passed with a 76%. I was not as prepared as I would have liked. One problem was, I didn't study for about 3 weeks before taking it. I would recommended against that.
Here's my scores:
Section % of Test / Score
Development Process 12%/85%
Requirements Modeling 18%/50%
Architecture 12%/85%
State Modeling 22%/76%
Dynamic Modeling 24%/76%
Design and Implementation Techniques 12%/85%
Total 76%
Even thought the report sais State Modeling, I'm pretty sure it means Static Modeling.
Development Process was difficult. It doesn't just ask you generally what is true, it combines topics and wants details. For instance, instead of asking:
Q. How are teams managed:
A. Scheduled via Use Cases, tasked around packages
All the answer would include the one stated above with added detail, ie:
1. Scheduled via Use Cases, tasked around packages, with one tech lead collaborating accross teams.
2. Scheduled via Use Cases, tasked around packages, where use cases are shared among teams.
3. Scheduled via Use Cases, tasked around packages, where each use case is used by a single team.
Not exactly the questions but you get the idea.
Requirements Modeling sucked. It's very fundamental and relies more on interpretting scenarios then use cases. I basically got 5/10 and don't have a good idea which ones I got right. Some of the most difficult questions had to do with requirements tracing and wierd questions about what artifact something actually came from. Do methods come from Interaction Diagrams or Use Cases? Well both, the responsability is identified from the use case but assigned with interaction diagrams. This was one of my best sections before taking the test, and the one I slacked on the most.
Architecture was fairly cut and dry. It talked about layering, tiers, packaging, and much more. It was fairly straight forward.
Static Modeling was not to bad for the most part. Most of the questions I got weren't what to use when, only a couple of those. Most of them were given the scenario, what diagram describes it.
Dynamic Modeling was very interesting. If you really know this then you'll do well. Given a class diagram and a scenario, which is the appropriate seqeunce diagram is an example of the type of questions. Not many basic questions here, most were situational.
Design and Implementation Techniques. This might have been one of the hardest, and maybe I knew this and spent more time on these questions. All of these were, give the BEST answer. No gimmies.
Guidelines:
1. Overall, the test had a lot of, what is the BEST answer or the answer with MOST applies.
2. You have PLENTY of time, I initially finished with 30 minutes left and felt I rushed it. You'll score better if you take your time.
3. READ the scenarios in detail, don't skim them. Many of the scenarios are repeated, so learning them early will help you later.
4. If you fail, DON'T be discouraged, it isnot an easy test and most people do fail the first time.
5. When given a question, you are not told wether it's conceptual analysis or design, you most look at it and know. The pre-assessment test holds your hand and gives you clues, the real test does not.
6. The diagrams can be VERY big and require lot's of scrolling and switching between multiple diagrams on one question. Stay calm and study each diagram.
The key is to know the following:
Know your UML.
Know when to use what part of UML.
Know when you're dealing with an Requirements vs Analysis vs Design
Know all the HOWs, ie how do demonstrate in UML the modeling of subclasses and their different uses.
Trust the questions. You do not have to be a domain expert on what they are asking. They are clues hidden in the scenarios.

I think this will help a lot. I wish I had this info before taking the test. Let me know if you guys have any questions.




------------------
David Roberts - SCJP2,MCP
 
Panagiotis Varlagas
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Thanks David!
 
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David,
How many questions are there in the actual Test?And how much time do we have?
-- Sandeep
 
Panagiotis Varlagas
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2 hours for 55 questions.
 
David Roberts
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Just so I'm clear, the example questions/answers I posted are no where near accurate to the test. In fact, I derived them from the practice test with modifications. So so everyone knows I understand the rules.
------------------
David Roberts - SCJP2,MCP
 
Desai Sandeep
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Are there any advanced tests apart from UML by any vendor - i.e on XP, OCL, RUP, etc?
Thanks in advance,
Sandeep
[This message has been edited by Desai Sandeep (edited May 23, 2001).]
 
Desai Sandeep
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Can some one inform what is the passing percentage for Test 486.
Thanks,
Sandeep
 
David Roberts
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69%
------------------
David Roberts - SCJP2,MCP
 
Desai Sandeep
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Originally posted by David Roberts:
69%


Thanks,
Sandeep
 
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David,
Does the real exam tell you how many correct answers there are for each question, like the practice exam does?
Thanks,
Joe
 
Panagiotis Varlagas
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Yes.
 
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Rational proposes certifications on RUP (Fundamentals and Implementation), have a look at http://exams.rational.net

Originally posted by Desai Sandeep:
Are there any advanced tests apart from UML by any vendor - i.e on XP, OCL, RUP, etc?
Thanks in advance,
Sandeep
[This message has been edited by Desai Sandeep (edited May 23, 2001).]


 
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