About This Study Plan
This 90-day study plan breaks the CYSA (CySA+) exam preparation into 3 focused study sessions with 12 actionable tasks. The plan covers all 4 exam domains — Security Operations, Vulnerability Management, Incident Response and Management, Reporting and Communication — ensuring complete coverage. Comprehensive 90-day plan for CompTIA CySA+ (CS0-003).
Prerequisites
- Basic security knowledge
- 1–2 hours per day
Study Schedule
- Weeks 1–2: SOC operations, SIEM concepts, log management, and alert triage
- Week 3: Threat intelligence, threat hunting, and MITRE ATT&CK
- Week 4: Network monitoring tools, packet analysis, and endpoint detection
- End of month: Security operations quiz
- Week 5: Vulnerability scanning, CVSS, and prioritization
- Week 6: Remediation strategies, application security testing
- Week 7: Incident response lifecycle and containment strategies
- Week 8: Digital forensics, evidence collection, and root cause analysis
- Week 9: Reporting, metrics, compliance, and communication
- Week 10: Hands-on PBQ practice with log and packet analysis
- Week 11: Full practice exam #1 + detailed review
- Week 12: Practice exam #2, flashcards, and final prep
Study Tips
Set up a lab with Security Onion to practice packet and log analysis.
CySA+ expects you to analyze and conclude — not just identify.
Practice scenario questions where you must recommend the BEST action.
Recommended CompTIA Study Resources
Supplement this study plan with the official CompTIA CertMaster labs and practice tests. Download the free exam objectives PDF from CompTIA's website and use it as a checklist — cross off each objective as you master it. Professor Messer's free video series covers every CompTIA exam objective and is widely regarded as one of the best free resources available.
Ready to Practice?
Put your study plan into action with CySA+ practice questions.