After successfully passed Java SE 8 Programmer 1Z0-808 Exam I would like to share my thoughts about the preparation and the exam.
I passed the exam and earn the
badge
on Dec 2015 - so almost half year ago (since writing this post).
Before preparation I was playing already with java 8 a little.
I have written two, maybe three applications which were using some
new hot features like lambda, default methods and streams.
The whole knowledge how to do this I got mainly from oracle
tutorials like
In spite of my experience as a java programmer I decided to spend some
time to learn more about java 8 to ensure that I would really pass the exam.
My journey I have started with the book: OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java Se 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1z0-808.
It took me some time, I think one month, to go through all chapters.
The book I was mainly reading during my way to work in metro, bus or tram.
I can say that I was enjoying reading it though I have already known
most of the knowledge. It is written with a very simple language. I can say
that this book could be understandable by peoples who speak english in an
intermediate level. It covers all the topics which can appear on
an exam. After finishing it I bought the voucher on an exam, taking place
a week later. I had one whole week to play around java 8, make some
tests and review things read in a book. To practice tests I used
sybex platform. In order to
get an access to this platform you only need to own a book.
On a site you can find 345 test questions divided into 3 sets
- Assessment Test (20) - helps you focus your study to specific objectives
- Chapter Tests (145) - taken from the Review Questions at the end of chapters in the book
- Practice Exam (180) - provided to help you prepare for the certification test Platform also provides an access to 2 other study tools
- Flashcards - help to reinforce your learning and provide last-minute test prep before the exam
- Searchable Glossary - an instant access to the key terms you’ll need to know for the exam
The day before the exam I decided to go sleep early. The exam lasted 150 minutes, and I had enough time to answer on all the questions. They weren’t difficult. I can say that the questions in a mockup exam from sybex were much harder. For example if the question was a multiple choice question, in a real exam I was informed how many answers I needed to choose, in a mockup exam I weren’t.
One hour after the exam I received an email that my exam results were available.
My score was 97%. Regarding the response from Oracle
I made mistakes in a questions from the following exam objectives:
- Define the scope of variables
- Manipulate data using the StringBuilder class and methods
It could sound strange that the experienced java developer made mistakes from the such basic topics. But believe me that the real intention of authors of the test is to trick you in an unexpected way. The question could seem to be about let’s say lambda syntax, but in real it tests your knowledge about variable scoping. During taking tests you need to be very careful and stay focused all the time.