How I passed ISTQB Foundation Level V4.0
Hello! I would like to share my experience of passing the first stage of the ISTQB exam online in Russian. Below I’ll tell you in more detail about my preparation, passing and share life hacks!
A little bit about me
I’ll start with the fact that I’ve been testing for a year, but I started writing in Python in October last year. I’ve been working in my current company since February and hold the position of an autotester.
Testing interested me from the first day, so I try to learn as quickly and efficiently as possible and immediately implement new knowledge into work.
Who is this ISTQB and why take it?
ISTQB is a non-profit organization dedicated to defining various principles for the development of the software testing field, such as the structure and rules of accreditation, certification, etc. (from RSTQB website)
In short, this is an organization that allows you to obtain an international certificate.
Why give it up? Judging by the vacancies, this certification is not very popular in Russia, but for your own development and the opportunity to apply for employment on the international market in the future, it is worth it.
I decided to take this exam in order, firstly, to learn the theory and confirm my knowledge, and secondly, to supplement my resume and perhaps look more attractive to employers.
Preparation
I started preparing for certification 2 months in advance, but only got started thoroughly within a month.
The first month I read the syllabus (you can find it here here ) and at the same time I wrote notes on each topic with points that I don’t understand and looked at the analysis of each topic here Here (the course is good, but it was made for the exam of the previous version). I ended up reading the syllabus 3 times, and the last one the day before taking the exam.
I re-read some topics that were not clear to me here Here. And I also watched a video about white box testing, which seems to be one of the most difficult topics in the exam, here it is channel.
Took a course on steppe, it completely repeats the syllabus (but again from the previous version), but in general, if you take it to get used to the tests, then it’s super! By the way, during the exam I came across one question from this course.
A month before the exam, I started solving tests in simulator. But, the “correct” answers are not always correct, so it is worth questioning them and re-reading the syllabus (helps develop critical thinking and your confidence in the answers).
“Solved” tests from this site, that is, they already have solutions, but the authors often give comments on the answers, and in general, turning to another source will never be a bad idea. It is also worth reading the theory on this site.
Also, I solved tests here Here. The good thing about the site is that you can choose one of 6 topics and solve tests on it or take 8 free exam examples.
I'll attach it in the tips additional links
To summarize the preparation: the more tests you take, re-read the syllabus and study some additional information, the more “in the know” you become and the exam no longer seems so difficult 🙂
Payment and exam reservation
Since the next exam in my city was only in October, and I wanted to take it now, I chose the online version.
On the official website there is chapter with questions about conducting the exam online, there is also a good large instruction about everything that will happen. But briefly: you need a computer/laptop with one screen, a phone or a second device for broadcasting, a quiet room where you will be alone.
For me, everything was as follows – 9 days before the desired date, I filled out the registration form from this section of the site, where I indicated the version of the exam, date, full name and format.
2 days later they sent me a check for payment. Since I don’t have a foreign card, the contractor takes care of all the processing, which means the payment (and therefore the commission). Instead of 150 euros, I paid 21,900 rubles. But, if you have a foreign card, you can pay by official website.
The next day after payment, I received a letter from the official GASQ email about checking the technical characteristics, which must be carried out at least 48 hours in advance. Everything there is as in the instructions – checking the camera, the ability of the phone or tablet to broadcast and, what is important, checking that the computer can share the screen.
Important – if you have applications that block ads or pop-ups, then remove them during the exam as they will cause you to fail the performance test. Also, I would recommend checking again (this is not prohibited) a few hours before the exam to make sure everything is fine.
Day X or change
On the day of the exam, I conducted another technical check and, lo and behold, my browser did not allow me to share the window. Everything was simple, for some reason in the settings my laptop decided to prohibit the demonstration, but I quickly fixed it.
Before the exam begins, the premises and devices are checked in the same way as during the performance check, only there is a person in the chat who controls the whole thing and unsubscribes if something goes wrong.
What is important, for the exam you need a document confirming your identity – a passport. I was faced with the fact that my Russian passport did not work and I was asked to provide a document with my full name in English. I had to follow him out of the room. (I don't know if everyone has this problem)
The phone was broadcast so that the observer could see an overview of the room and the hand. Be sure (!!!) to set your phone to airplane mode and leave Wi-Fi on.
After the exam has started, the observer can also write in the chat about additional questions. check, but you can’t miss it – the application beeps very loudly.
In about 30 minutes, I solved the bulk of the questions that required mathematical calculations or had large texts to read. By the way, I had about 7 problems. Then I moved on to the simplest ones and those that I doubted.
15 minutes before the end of the exam, I still had 10 marked questions that I doubted or where the translation was not entirely correct (I had 2 of these). Therefore, I finally checked everything, which by the way allowed me to correct 2 errors, and answered the remaining questions at random.
Out of 40 questions, I had to answer at least 26 correctly to pass.
Immediately after completing the exam, the result and questions in which I made a mistake were displayed. It was in these 10 questions that I was wrong)) So, I passed the exam with a 75% result.
On the same day, I received a letter where my results were duplicated again, as well as the % ratio of how I coped with each chapter. In the same letter there was a link to the SkillClub platform, where my certificate was already waiting for me!
If you start preparing in advance and have some idea about testing in general, then it is definitely possible to pass, even with such little testing experience as I have.
Lifehacks\tips
1. A logical hack, but in many questions the wording comes directly from the training program. Sometimes it’s even exaggerated to copy and paste from the syllabus, so I highly recommend (again) reading it 3-4 times to get your bearings.
2. Pay attention to the answer options; in the exam, the answers often look like this:
a) ii and iv are the most important
b) i, iii and v are the most important
c) i, ii and v are the most important
d) iii and iv are the most important
This example is from the official exam sample. We can conditionally divide the answers that have options 1 and 2 and, using the process of elimination, choose the “group” that is most suitable for us.
3. Solve all available official exam options.
On the official Russian website ISTQB 2 samples of Level V4.0 in Russian are available. And also, 5 options – of which 2 are in Russian of the previous version (v3.1.1).
It's also worth trying the sample exam with official website. This will greatly reduce your nerves and allow you to get used to the delivery system.
4. If you, like me, have a hard time remembering terms, then on the official website of the glossary there is a mode “check yourself” where you can train and memorize all the terms.
I also made Quizlet for myself, where I collected those that I couldn’t remember at all.
5. Learn the formulas, namely from the Delphi method – three-point estimation and error (all of them are presented in the syllabus, but suddenly you didn’t pay attention)
6. Learn the names of the standards that are given in the training plan, namely – 29 119, 25 010, 20 246, 3100, 9126 and 14 764. I recommend it, because I came across a question where, among many, I had to choose a really existing one.
7. Put a note on the numbers of those questions that you are not sure about, and when you have decided everything, go back and check yourself. It is, of course, worthwhile, in general, at the end to once again go over all the questions and evaluate your adequacy in some of the answers.
And the general “combined” advice is to use logic and common sense!
I wish you all good luck and successful passing of the exam! I hope that my experience will help you and give you confidence!
