Studying for 1Z0-052: Oracle Database 11g: Administration I

1Z0-052 is the administration element in the Oracle Database Administrator track. When passed in combination with any of three possible SQL tests, you will be recognized as an Oracle Database 11g Administrator Certified Associate. This is one of the more common Oracle exams taken by OCA/OCP candidates. People with knowledge of Oracle database administration are always in demand. Passing this exam does not guarantee that you have that knowledge and it certainly does not guarantee that an employer will hire you, but it is a step in the right direction on both counts. The key word in the previous sentence, however, is 'passing'. Oracle certification exams are not generally pushovers and they are easy to fail if you take one without being fully prepared. This article is intended to provide some direction towards that preparation.

All of the topics that will be covered in the 1Z0-052 exam are listed on the Oracle Education website. As your first step, you should visit that website and look at the topics. There are literally thousands of things that you should know about Oracle in order to be a good administrator. For the purposes of the test, however, anything that does not fit under an objective listed there will not show up on the test. The topic lists from Oracle Education are always complete. The Administration I exam has fifty objectives in seventeen subject areas. The test itself will have seventy multiple-choice or multiple-answer questions and you'll have ninety minutes to complete it. The passing score is sixty-six percent. For the multiple-answer questions, there is no partial credit. Not answering a question counts against your score as much as answering one incorrectly, so you don't want to leave any question unanswered -- even if that means simply picking a letter at random.

The number of topics on 1Z0-052 is comparable to other Oracle certification tests. However, the range of topics is not. The Administration I test covers an extremely broad range of subject areas. As a general rule, Oracle certification tests have a fairly narrow focus. The SQL Fundamentals exam covers only SQL. The Real Application Clusters exam covers only RAC. Because this test covers subjects in such widely dispersed areas, you should spend extra time preparing for it. If you plan to use the Oracle manuals to study for this test, you will need to download the following titles from the Oracle documentation website:

Oracle Database Concepts
Oracle Database Administrator's Guide
Oracle Database Reference
Performance Tuning Guide
Net Services Administrator's Guide
Backup and Recovery User's Guide
Oracle has a cadre of excellent technical writers and the manuals are very good. They are also free and you can download them at any time. If you are new to Oracle, I highly recommend reading the Oracle Database Concepts manual from cover to cover. It will provide you with a firm grounding in numerous concepts that you really need to understand in order to be a good DBA.

1Z0-052 is an OCA-level test. The tests at this level are designed to cover a wide range of topics to a shallow depth. The exam will not generally require extensive knowledge for any of the objectives. When you are studying, do not try to become an expert on every subject. The goal for this test is to know a little about every topic rather than to know everything about any single topic. As I noted above, be sure that to go to the Oracle Education website and get the list of objectives. Use that as a checklist as you study. Ensure that you are well familiar with all of them before scheduling the exam. Good luck on the test.

Matthew is an experienced DBA an1Z0-052 is the administration element in the Oracle Database Administrator track. When passed in combination with any of three possible SQL tests, you will be recognized as an Oracle Database 11g Administrator Certified Associate. This is one of the more common Oracle exams taken by OCA/OCP candidates. People with knowledge of Oracle database administration are always in demand. Passing this exam does not guarantee that you have that knowledge and it certainly does not guarantee that an employer will hire you, but it is a step in the right direction on both counts. The key word in the previous sentence, however, is 'passing'. Oracle certification exams are not generally pushovers and they are easy to fail if you take one without being fully prepared. This article is intended to provide some direction towards that preparation.

All of the topics that will be covered in the 1Z0-052 exam are listed on the Oracle Education website. As your first step, you should visit that website and look at the topics. There are literally thousands of things that you should know about Oracle in order to be a good administrator. For the purposes of the test, however, anything that does not fit under an objective listed there will not show up on the test. The topic lists from Oracle Education are always complete. The Administration I exam has fifty objectives in seventeen subject areas. The test itself will have seventy multiple-choice or multiple-answer questions and you'll have ninety minutes to complete it. The passing score is sixty-six percent. For the multiple-answer questions, there is no partial credit. Not answering a question counts against your score as much as answering one incorrectly, so you don't want to leave any question unanswered -- even if that means simply picking a letter at random.

The number of topics on 1Z0-052 is comparable to other Oracle certification tests. However, the range of topics is not. The Administration I test covers an extremely broad range of subject areas. As a general rule, Oracle certification tests have a fairly narrow focus. The SQL Fundamentals exam covers only SQL. The Real Application Clusters exam covers only RAC. Because this test covers subjects in such widely dispersed areas, you should spend extra time preparing for it. If you plan to use the Oracle manuals to study for this test, you will need to download the following titles from the Oracle documentation website:

Oracle Database Concepts
Oracle Database Administrator's Guide
Oracle Database Reference
Performance Tuning Guide
Net Services Administrator's Guide
Backup and Recovery User's Guide
Oracle has a cadre of excellent technical writers and the manuals are very good. They are also free and you can download them at any time. If you are new to Oracle, I highly recommend reading the Oracle Database Concepts manual from cover to cover. It will provide you with a firm grounding in numerous concepts that you really need to understand in order to be a good DBA.

1Z0-052 is an OCA-level test. The tests at this level are designed to cover a wide range of topics to a shallow depth. The exam will not generally require extensive knowledge for any of the objectives. When you are studying, do not try to become an expert on every subject. The goal for this test is to know a little about every topic rather than to know everything about any single topic. As I noted above, be sure that to go to the Oracle Education website and get the list of objectives. Use that as a checklist as you study. Ensure that you are well familiar with all of them before scheduling the exam. Good luck on the test.

Matthew is an experienced DBA and developer. He holds Oracle DBA Certifications for releases 7, 8i, 9i, 10G and 11G; Oracle Expert Certifications for SQL and Application Express; and is an Oracle Advanced PL/SQL Developer Certified Professional. He is the author of several Oracle certification guides including one for 1Z0-052. His OracleCertificationPrep web site is dedicd developer. He holds Oracle DBA Certifications for releases 7, 8i, 9i, 10G and 11G; Oracle Expert Certifications for SQL and Application Express; and is an Oracle Advanced PL/SQL Developer Certified Professional. He is the author of several Oracle certification guides including one for 1Z0-052. His OracleCertificationPrep web site is dedic