Certified System Administrator (CSA)

[joewarren]

Preparing for the ServiceNow Certified System Administrator (CSA) exam was one of the most challenging experiences in my IT journey. I had heard stories about how tricky the exam questions could be and how easily candidates failed because they relied on scattered resources. At first, I made the same mistake — jumping between random YouTube videos, unofficial notes, and outdated blogs. I was studying for hours but not improving, and I started to question whether I could really pass?

[nishant3101]

I haven’t taken the CSA exam yet, but I’m in the middle of my preparation and honestly… the journey has already taught me a lot. The beginning was rough. I was bouncing between random YouTube videos, old notes, and outdated blogs, and it felt like I was studying a lot without actually improving.

But once I shifted to proper, structured resources — the official docs, Now Learning courses, and regular hands-on practice in my PDI — things finally started clicking. Now I’m actually acing my practice tests, which has boosted my confidence big time.

I know the real exam can be tricky, but seeing my practice scores improve has made me feel that I’m moving in the right direction. I’m still nervous, but much more hopeful than when I started.

If anyone has tips for the final week before the exam or things to watch out for in the real test, I’d love to hear them!

[kaushal_snow]

@joewarren ,

I totally get you, I had the same doubts when I started because the exam questions for CSA go well beyond basic navigation, and although the UI feels intuitive at first, true success comes only when you deeply understand the core platform....complete the official basics path on Now Learning and systematically go through the exam blueprint covering all key domains (navigation, database, self service, collaboration, reporting, security etc.), do hands on labs over and over, and use practice tests and flash cards to identify weak spots....once you build that foundation, the exam becomes manageable though still challenging.....

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