Reddit Reddit reviews OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-808

We found 6 Reddit comments about OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-808. Here are the top ones, ranked by their Reddit score.

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OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-808
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6 Reddit comments about OCA: Oracle Certified Associate Java SE 8 Programmer I Study Guide: Exam 1Z0-808:

u/[deleted] · 10 pointsr/java

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!

u/thank-you-raymond · 2 pointsr/java

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

u/Celos · 2 pointsr/java

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).

u/Allysquad · 1 pointr/java

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

u/a_fat_guy · 1 pointr/DevelEire

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.

u/Thetoeknows · 1 pointr/learnjava

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

​

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!