After having used Tableau desktop as well as prep and server now for the better part of 4 months, DS35 had our first run at completing the tableau certified data analyst exam. At first, having done little to no prep for this exam we were all a little worried but the good news is all of us who took the test passed on the day.
Here are some of my thoughts after the exam (Hopefully they can be of some use to you):
- My main takeaway from the exam is that for someone who is well versed in using Tableau Desktop, Prep, Server and has a basic grasp SQL this exam should not be difficult at all. In terms of technical ability this exam is not difficult at all however the main difficulty is trying to grasp what the questions want you to do.
- This is where I would stress - Do at least some of the practice tests (I will link some resources at the end of this blog. Training your comprehension skills to understand what the questions want you to do is the main challenge for this exam. If you can grasp this skill the actual questions themselves should not be an issue.
- The practical portion of the exam is easy marks - the things being asked of you here will be basic formatting or building of graphs. Using sets/ parameters and making use of basic dashboard actions.
- Sometimes in tableau we dont really think about what we're doing we just do it. For this exam it may be useful to really breakdown exactly how you do certain things so that you can instruct someone. This will be useful for questions you have to order exactly what you would do when completing a certain task
- In terms of setting up for the day we did have a couple of peope who had technical difficulties. If your going to be doing this exam online i would suggest making sure you do this exam in a place with a stable wifi connection. Make sure you have a empty room all to yourself where you wont be disturbed and make sure you bring your ID with you.
Those are just some of my immediate thoughts look below for the exam format and some resources you can use to help prepare:
Exam Format:
- Time Limit: 120 minutes (includes 3 minutes for reviewing the NDA and 5 minutes for tutorial).
- Exam Check-in: Check-in begins 30 minutes before the scheduled exam time.
- Question Formats:
-- Knowledge-based: Multiple choice, Multiple selection, and Active screen (includes Build list, Drag and drop, and Hot area)
-- Performance-based: Hands-on lab
- Number of Questions:
-- Scored items: 30 knowledge-based items and 1 hands-on lab with 10-11 tasks.
-- Unscored items: Up to 15 including knowledge-based items and hands-on lab tasks.
- Scoring: Candidates will receive an email when their score report is available (within 48 hours of completing the exam.) To navigate to that score report, log into your certification account. Once you are logged in, click on Schedule My Exam/Schedule or Manage my exam with Pearson then, GO TO PEARSON. In your Pearson VUE account dashboard, click on my Exam History or View Exam Results to download your score report.
- Passing Score: The passing scaled score for the Tableau Certified Data Analyst exam is 750.
- Exam Delivery Method: Testing center and online delivery are both available. Learn more about the check-in process and testing experience for each method here.
Resources:
- If your a fellow data schooler then heres a convo post by jenny which helps summarise all the resources you can use to help yourself prepare: http://links.app.convo.com/v1/acc-26f67bc7-4b15-4825-e053-760e880a4be5/apps/6/messages/Zsj9LLHdAOiNkCp6HilaOgKJeoE1Ar#title=Consolidation%252520of%252520Tableau%252520Data%252520Analyst%252520Resources
For everyone else:
- Exam Guide: https://mkt.tableau.com/files/TableauCertifiedDataAnalyst_ExamGuide.pdf
- Practice Tests: https://learningtableau.com/data-analyst-exam-questions/
Hopefully this blog helps you guys out. Good Luck!