Best oracle certification guides according to redditors

I got the cert for Java OCA 8. It wasn’t required, but my company paid for it after hiring me out of college as new developer. They let me study for six months around work, which was a hour or two a day. Then for two weeks leading up to the test I studied straight for two weeks.

In my opinion the OCA really gives you a solid foundations in the basics of Java and is worth the time if you are willing. They gave me an option to take the OCP but I didn’t really feel it necessary because I can learn the rest you can learn on the job when you come across specific use cases.

There is Enthuware Practice Exams which are AMAZING. Its $10 for 600+ practice questions. I say they are amazing because the questions are so similar to the actual exam, that some questions that I got on practice tests showed up in the exams but with different values. On top of that they give you very detailed answers as to why you got something wrong.

I don’t know what version you would go for, but 8 has a book here on Amazon couldn’t find one for 11. But those practice tests mixed with the book and you will be good to go. And a lot of google searches probably!

You are right. It won’t hurt. So if you feel confident then ya might as well grab it. I found a real good set of practice tests as an ebook on amazon for like $10. Felt very consistent with the actual test. Might be a good investment to determine quickly how much work you would need to do.

If your classes were just java classes not specifically geared towards the cert test then I would say your about 25-50% there. Test is full of edge cases you will never encounter and questions that are designed to trick you.

Edit: here are the practice tests my friends and I used recently: OCAJP Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer Practice Exams felt like a pretty decent indicator of over all preparedness.

My intention was to direct him to the author:

Same author different book obviously with java 8

OCA Java SE 8 Programmer I Exam Guide (Exams 1Z0-808) (Certification & Career - OMG) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1260011399/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_W5CHzb6XVWQ69

I would go for 8. If nothing else it's new and it won't be outdated that soon.

Study materials and books I have read and used for Java 7:

This book is waste of time. It won't prepare you for test at all. Also it has lots of mistakes

http://www.amazon.com/Oracle-Certified-Associate-Programmer-Study/dp/1849687323

Books from Mala Gupta I recomend a lot. She knows how to write a book + very good examples

http://www.amazon.com/OCP-Java-Programmer-Certification-Guide/dp/161729148X

I really recomend buying mocking tests from Enthuware. I think I wouldn't make it without it. The website looks a bit suspicious but it's legit

http://enthuware.com/

I'd like to preface this by saying that I am certainly not the world's greatest security expert and that there are many people who are more qualified to speak to this matter. Hopefully some of them will see your post and chime in.

In my experience the less complex the product is, the easier it is to both maintain and secure. Therefore, knowing what you're building and how to build it gives you much better control over the security of it. Unless you're apart of an extremely tight-knit team that includes your SysOps and DevOps people or you're developing the product and the product's host environment by yourself, then there will always be aspects of security outside of your control. However, putting time and effort into the security of the product itself is typically a rewarding investment.

Books:

• Threat Modeling: Designing for Security by Adam Shostack
  This book is focused on introducing security considerations into the phases of the SDLC. The information in this book is a bit more advanced than Security Software (included below) but not inaccessible to a beginner. Understanding architectural risk analysis is a valuable skill in any tech environment.
  
• Iron-Clas Java: Building Secure Web Applications by Jim Manico & August Detlefsen
  I would say this book is a must-have if you develop any sort of Java web app or API. The authors manage to cover a lot of territory in a very understandable format.
  
• Software Security: Building Security In by Gary McGraw
  Another book that is primarily aimed at introducing security into each phase of the SDLC. When I first started working in software development I found it extremely helpful at convincing some "old guard" types why red teaming products is extremely valuable. You may want to read this before reading Threat Modeling.
  
• The Practice of Network Security Monitoring: Understanding Incident Detection and Response by Richard Bejtlich
  Networking is definitely not my strongest skill but this book breaks down some concepts of network monitoring and threat detection in ways that are easy to understand.

I'm a big fan of this one for Java. It seems like it's just what you're looking for too. Note that it has some flaws though.

This is also an excellent resource.

there are course on udemy for $10 (if they're not that price now, then just wait a week, they go on sale ALL the time)
https://www.udemy.com/courses/search/?src=ukw&q=1Z0-071

there are lots of books on amazon
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1259585492

For me book by Kathy Sierra helped a lot https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1260011399/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i3

I've gotten all of the back-end work complete for the application(had downtime at work) so now I just need to add in the UI. Java isn't my primary language but it's close enough that it didn't trip me up.

Regarding the code translation: definitely not looking forward to that. I had heard another guy from this forum say the same thing.

I finished the OCA in two weeks. The OCP I studied off an on for most of the term and used a mix of materials, the ucertify stuff and this book

http://www.amazon.com/OCP-Java-Programmer-Certification-Guide/dp/161729148X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1453849255&sr=1-1&keywords=mala+gupta

I suggest that you do the OCA exam, and use this book. You will learn the language fundamentals in great detail.

If it's a requirement for finishing school, just get ahold of one of the study guides for it and follow the instructions. Something like this.
The topics covered and the practice exams match up with the actual exam very well.

If it actually is a requirement, then your school library should have a copy of it (or something similar).

I've ordered this book on behalf of work. It teaches you both about the SQL exam and the DBA exam you need to get the OCA status.

My background: I'm an Oracle DBA for about 7 years now. Or at least, I see myself as this. At my previous company they did ERP (J.D. Edwards) and they wanted me to focus my studies on that, regardless of the fact that my day to day work was 60% dba and 40% ERP. And I liked the first better. Decided to switch jobs and I am now being encouraged in becoming an Oracle OCP in a year which I think should be pretty doable with my background.

I'm curious myself what online sources people find helpfull in their preparation for this exam. Sorry for stealing your thread a bit.

I am an Oracle Certified Professional DBA. Oracle is a difficult piece of software to work with. It is the most powerful RDBMS around, but also the biggest pain to admin. It is also the best paying. You should really consider whether it is the best target for you. A good DBA needs to have a very wide range of technical skills, an Oracle DBA even more so. Other RDBMS have a somewhat lower barrier to entry, provide fantastic functionality and can be the basis for a great career.

If you are genuinely interested in being and Oracle DBA, start here. I have not used the 12c guide, but the previous editions are the best I know of outside of actually attending Oracle University training. Get that book, read it cover to cover, then read through everything you don't know by heart again. Do all of the practice tests until you think they're too easy, because they're easier than the test. Oracle's certifications are sought after and intentionally difficult.

You can download an installer and begin playing with the RDBMS at home. Try writing some complex reports. Make sure you understand function syntax. Learn the underlying OS of your choice. Once you've got that stuff down, you may be able to get a job as a Jr DBA. Best of luck!

I'd recommend getting this book, and reading it cover-to-cover.

I picked up my textbook on amazon about a month ago. I usually studied about 1-2 hours a day. It was an awesome book and really helped me understand what the certification exam would require.

That said, I felt the exam was more an exercise in determining what trick the exam makers were up to rather than a test of my actual understanding. Luckily, the book helped prepare me for that.

> The questions I am messing up on are the ones where it's asking me to pick 3 or 4 options on what a certain syntax, rule, or table structure can/can't do.

At the risk of sounding like an asshole... if you don't know the answers for these questions, you don't know the material well enough to pass. If there is a particular topic you're having trouble getting down, maybe we can help. I will say usually these types of questions are trying to focus on a particular function or piece of knowledge, so if you can determine what knowledge they are looking for by asking the question and examining the answers, you can sometimes narrow down which answers might be correct.

> all the Oracle "rules"

That would be the Oracle docs.

this book really helped me for this exam I think. It's everything you need to know for this exam condensed into a short book. It doesn't have every detail on all the functions, but tells you which ones you really need to know.

I am studying for the OCA right now, too, and I hope to take it at the end of July. I also started with the MOOC but never finished it as I started getting a bit fed up with the typos and some of the "arbitrary" exercises that didn't really appeal to me. I did other exercises from different websites instead.


Basically, I have been learning Java since January this year, and it is my first programming language (I am entirely new to coding as I am transitioning careers). I thought hey, why not do OCA since I have no prior experience in coding, and this will prove to prospective employers that I at least know SOMETHING about OOP and Java. It has been challenging, but this is what I am using / doing to study.


January, 2019: Start learning Java with Helsinki MOOC

February: Learn that Oracle has a certification for Java and decide I should go for it

March: Order study materials

April: Start learning OCA via books. Make goal to take exam within 4 months

May: Finish all new study topics in books

June: Practice topic-based questions until I can get between 90-100% in all topics

July: Mock exams at home, hope to take OCA exam on July 30th

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The materials that I am using are the study guide and the practice test books written by Jeanne Boyarsky and Scott Selikoff, and I have, so far, found them excellent. The book are generally very conversational in tone, and every single question has an explanation for its answer. I have learned a TON about the way Java (and OOP in many ways) function just by preparing for this exam and despite not finishing the MOOC. Here is a link if curious:


Study Guide

Practice Tests (OCA / OCP)


The cool thing is that both of these books have an online component where the revision questions can be done on your computer, and it keeps track of your scores and allows you to "create" your own quizzes and exam simulations based on the available question bank. I am currently spamming these until I git gud.

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Since I am now at the "I've finished the material, now let's bang it all into my head repeatedly until I can remember it all" stage, here are the tips I have found as I have been learning for the past several months:

1. I read each chapter once over first, just to get a feel for what was in it. Then, I let it sink in for a day or so. It took me about 2 days to read each chapter (between 4-6 hours in total), as I read slowly and carefully. I marked down in notes any concepts that I wanted to remember IN THE FORM OF QUESTIONS that I could ask myself later as revision, and I underlined these ideas in the book.
   
   
2. The second read-through I did all the code pieces, even the examples, and I played with them a bit by changing variables, scope, modifiers, etc., just to get a feel for it. My IDE has now about 3 bazillion classes saved in it lol.... However, I would recommend also using a text editor for typing out code. The exam itself, as you know, makes you be a "human compiler", so you have to get used to reading unhighlighted code. I usually typed my code into a text editor first, looked at it, tried to imagine what it was going to do, whether it would compile, etc., then checked my answer via IDE, THEN I checked the book's explanation. It was slow, sure, but I learned a lot. For code pieces that I just could not wrap my head around the first, second, or even third time, I used Pastebin to paste my code with comments in it, explaining what each line did, so now I have a record of it.
   
   
3. After the second read-through, I asked myself all of the questions that I had previously wrote to see if I could remember them. Some of the things, yeah, just take simple memorisation, like order of initialisation with static / non-static variables and non-static methods in the same code piece, certain methods that go only with certain classes, how String and StringBuilder use .equals and ==, etc., so I found this technique helpful.
   
   
4. After the second read-through, I attempted the chapter review questions. I typed them into my text editor, thought about them, dumped them into my IDE, then I checked all the answers in the back of the book, even for the questions I got right. I forced myself to say, out lout, like literally talking to myself, the justification / rationale for the answer. I found this oral strategy pretty helpful, too.
   
   
5. Now, I am working my way through each topic-based chapter exercises online on the book publisher's website / practice portal, and once I can consistently get 90% on each topic, I will start doing mock exams. The study guide comes with one free mock exam, and the practice tests book comes with a TON of very targeted topic-based questions as well as 3 mock exams. I have also purchased a Udemy pack of 4 mock exams for 10 euro and I will also get the Enthuware mock exams for 10 dollars (I believe it is 8 mock exams).
   
   
   Yeah, I hear you that, as a new Java learner, there is a LOT to remember and there are some intricacies that more experienced coders will think are trivial and silly, but for us newbs, it is a challenge. My BIGGEST recommendation is this, though: Even if you do none of what I did, make sure you do SOMETHING every single day. I took about 2 weeks off in May and it set me back big time. I had to go back and revise 2 chapters because I forgot stupid little things. STUPID little things are the killer for me on this, and the more often you practice, the more you will remember as it all soaks in.
   
   ​
   
   I hope this was helpful, and if you want to chat about the exam or anything else, message me!

You can buy an Oracle Press Study Guide from Amazon for pretty cheap - this, along with some practice and access to the Oracle Docs is all you need.

You can find the list of materials that the 1Z0-071 requires you to know here, under Review Exam Topics. My suggestion would be to print this out, stick it on a wall or something above your computer - and go through each of the exam topics to make sure you know them inside and out. To the point that you could explain to other people what the exam is going to test under a given topic.

OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-808 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1118957407/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_F0.OzbFGQAH9N

OCP: Oracle Certified Professional Java Se 8 Programmer II Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-809 https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1119067901/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_o1.OzbXN53C24

This one if you're doing Java 8:

https://www.amazon.com/OCA-Certified-Associate-Programmer-1Z0-808/dp/1118957407

And whatever the equivalent is for Java 7 if you're doing that one instead.

For Java, I'd highly recommend Khalid Mughal's books. For instance, https://www.amazon.com/Programmers-Guide-Oracle-Certified-Associate/dp/0132930218 is for Java 8. Disclaimer: I learnt Java from his book way back in the day when Java was still in version 1.4. However, I find his style unobtrusive and pithy without being dry.

For C++, forget about Stroustrup and Meyers for some time. Stanley Lippman's book, https://www.amazon.com/Primer-5th-Stanley-B-Lippman/dp/0321714113, is pretty good.

I don't know this subreddit's policies, but in case you want to try out the ebooks first, gen.lib.rus.ec is a good site to find the books.

I'm assuming you're talking about the OCA 1Z0-808 exam? There is a study guide for around 30 bucks.

I have been reading a lot of java books, at the beginning was like a hobby, finally I recommend you OCA & OCP for java 8, good books, well explained, it teach you java in deep parts plus I can help you to certificate yourself, I read them 2 times, last week I bought and I read them again, here is the link:

https://www.amazon.com.mx/OCA-OCP-Java-Programmer-Certification/dp/1119272092/ref=sr_1_1?__mk_es_MX=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&keywords=ocp+java&qid=1558450747&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Yup, this is an important one to understand.


Usually I suggest preparing for the SCJP test (doesn't matter if you get the cert or not if you know enough to pass the test). The study guides are great resources for all of the little details.



http://www.amazon.com/SCJP-Certified-Programmer-Java-310-065/dp/0071591060/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377447672&sr=8-1&keywords=scjp+guide

or I guess now that these losers run it:

http://www.amazon.com/Certified-Professional-Programmer-1Z0-804-1Z0-805/dp/1430247649/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1377447699&sr=8-1&keywords=oracle+certified+java