NetApp Learning Services Discussions

NSO-506 exam

kev57-atk
11,173 Views

Has anyone tried the NSO-506 exam yet? I have had 2 attempts now and to be honest I thought I had nailed it on the second attempt. Some of the questions are not that clear and are open to bias, so any tips you can offer as I will try again next week?

1 ACCEPTED SOLUTION

GregH
10,751 Views

Hello kev57-atk,

 

I’m Greg Hyman, NetApp Certification and Accreditation Manager. The best way to prepare for the NS0-506 exam is by taking the recommended training (found here). As you’ve already taken the exam twice, you now have two score reports to reference. These score reports identify your scores for specific topics covered in the exam. Focus your studying on the topics where you did not score as well.

 

Regarding your comment about the lack of clarity of the questions, I highly encourage you to use the comments option while in the test to identify if you feel that a question is unclear. NetApp does review these comments and takes any actions (if necessary) to address valid comments. As this exam has been active since May 2015, there should be no issues related to this exam due to the number of attempts since then.

 

Also, if you have specific questions about the test or test questions, please don’t post them in this forum (this forum can have general questions like yours above, but discussion of specific questions violates the NetApp Exam Security Policy). Rather, email any specific questions to ncp@netapp.com and I will be happy to work with you individually on your specific questions.

 

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions and best of luck on your next attempt!

 

Greg Hyman

ncp@netapp.com

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8 REPLIES 8

GregH
10,752 Views

Hello kev57-atk,

 

I’m Greg Hyman, NetApp Certification and Accreditation Manager. The best way to prepare for the NS0-506 exam is by taking the recommended training (found here). As you’ve already taken the exam twice, you now have two score reports to reference. These score reports identify your scores for specific topics covered in the exam. Focus your studying on the topics where you did not score as well.

 

Regarding your comment about the lack of clarity of the questions, I highly encourage you to use the comments option while in the test to identify if you feel that a question is unclear. NetApp does review these comments and takes any actions (if necessary) to address valid comments. As this exam has been active since May 2015, there should be no issues related to this exam due to the number of attempts since then.

 

Also, if you have specific questions about the test or test questions, please don’t post them in this forum (this forum can have general questions like yours above, but discussion of specific questions violates the NetApp Exam Security Policy). Rather, email any specific questions to ncp@netapp.com and I will be happy to work with you individually on your specific questions.

 

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions and best of luck on your next attempt!

 

Greg Hyman

ncp@netapp.com

kev57-atk
10,701 Views

Hi Greg,

 

Many thanks for getting back to me. Well all I can say is that I have done a lot of preparation for this exam and I did post comments in the exam during my last attempt. I wish I could see for sure which questions had tripped me up because some of what was asked is not found in the recommended reading lists that NetApp University publish. I appreciate that the exam is meant to test real life scenarios and I get that, but when you get questions that don't exactly paint the full story then thats when its hard. I will take the exam again next week and I can bet the same questions that threw me ( I actually thought I had passed this time and was shocked when the score said 56%!). I will email you privately with a few examples from what I can remember where I think more could be said or shown in the actual question. Regards, Kevin

MK-NCIE-DA
8,914 Views

For my NCIE, I just had to rely on the ILT, Admin guide. Smiley Very Happy

bobshouseofcards
10,730 Views

Hi Kev57-atk:

 

I haven't taken the current form of the NS0-506 test - I certified just as the 8.2 version was coming out, though I will be renewing later this year.  Without going into specifics in the forum, I can say that there are a number of key concepts that you just have to know.  If you don't really know those concepts or pretty much know them but not some of the edge cases or nuances, then yes the questions as they are written will certainly trip you up.  I found that the questions really weren't open to interpretation, but tie directly to those concepts and capabilities that you must know.  The wording is careful to point you in the right direction but also make it easy to pick an answer that is close but not fully complete.  In short - the test was a fair judge of knowledge given the level of cert being earned.

 

For background, I've been doing NetApp on Cisco and Brocade SANs since 2007 or so, cDot only in the last year and a half.  All my experience wouldn't have been enough to pass the test without careful review of documentation and TRs as well as a couple of direct training opportunities.

 

 

I hope this helps you.

 

Bob Greenwald

Lead Storage Engineer | Consilio LLC

NCIE SAN Clustered, Data Protection

 

kev57-atk
10,702 Views

Hi Bob, thanks for getting back to me. Well all I can say is that I feel total frustration because I thought I had nailed it on the second attempt because I have done the work on it. I was activley working with CDOT 8.2 for the last couple of years too, so I wish I could know for sure which questions had sunk me because I won't be surprised if I trip up again, but less of the negative thoughts there! I will re sit next week, I just hope I don't face any more tricky ones! Regards, Kevin

bobshouseofcards
10,682 Views

Kevin -

 

One thing I'll add...if you can wait, and if you can swing a trip to the NetApp Insight conference this fall, then do so.  I've taken all my certs at Insight since they opened the conference to the general user community.  At Insight 2014 it was first test free, all others half price.  At Insight 2015 it was all tests free, and you could repeat a failed test after one day wait.  Not sure if that will hold again this year but in case you need a repeat it certainly helps - also lets you take a chance on other certs.  

 

I tried the FlexPod cert (one of them anyway) at Insight 2015 hoping I could draw on general and direct experience with UCS and such to get through any rough spots.  Um - no.  Not a good showing at all, but I have a much larger appreciation for what is needed to pass next time.  Not that I couldn't configure a FlexPod appropriately given best practice docs, nor would someone like you likely have any difficulty either.  I just don't know the docs like the back of my hand, which is where the test leads.

 

The other really cool thing they've had at Insight both years is test prep sessions with the test writers.  None of the prep sessions would get you enough to pass the test, but they can help to clear up a gray area, or an area you didn't even realize was a little gray.  It;s like the quick sample tests they have posted on the NetApp site, but more and with live discussion.

 

The one piece of advice I think is safe to give is what the prep session guys gave us:  read the questions simply for what they say.  Don't try to extend the question or put it in a different context.  They are trying, by design, to get you to choose an answer that is close but depends on additional context that wasn't in the question.

 

Best of luck the next time you sit for the test.

 

 

I hope this helps you.

 

Bob Greenwald

Lead Storage Engineer | Consilio LLC

NCIE SAN Clustered, Data Protection

 

 

 

kev57-atk
10,650 Views

Hi Bob,

 

I was hoping to have gone to Insight in Berlin last November, but unbeknown to me at the time my Company were planning a job reduction scheme and I got the bullet after being with them over 26 years! So I am looking for a new role at the moment, and using my "spare" time doing NetApp resits! I passed the NSO-157 last year with not too much trouble, and I already have NCIE on 7 mode, so I was thinking the NSO-506 would be of a similar standard....not so! LOL! So all I have to go on is my simulator, and what I can recall from my actual experience of the product whilst I was employed. I will keep you posted of my success or not when I resit in about 10 days from now, as I had to wait 2 weeks for being allowed to re sit.

 

Regards,

Kevin

ex Thomson Reuters Lead Storage Engineer.

kev57-atk
10,494 Views

Well folks I finally passed this exam last Thursday and all I can say is wow what a relief! Smiley Very Happy

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