Study Schedule & Exam Readiness | CyberDefenders Help Center

Welcome to your Study Schedule, your roadmap to get the most from your CyberDefenders course and ace your exam.

Over the next 12 weeks, leading up to your first attempt, scheduled three months after enrollment, this plan outlines weekly study goals and helps you track your progress through your Exam Readiness score.

Follow the weekly goals, complete the investigations, and watch your readiness score grow.

How the Study Plan Works

Both courses are organized into modules spread across 11 weeks, with the 12th week reserved for review. The total time commitment is approximately 60 hours for CCDL1 and 75 hours for CCDL2. Expect to dedicate 6–9 hours per week, depending on your experience and familiarity with the content.

Your weeks are calculated in 7-day intervals from your enrollment date. For example, if you start on a Sunday, each new week begins on Sunday. This schedule ensures you maintain steady progress while balancing your learning with other responsibilities.

Understanding Your Exam Readiness Score

Regardless of which course you're taking, the Exam Readiness score on your dashboard shows how prepared you are for the exam. It is weighted as follows:

Investigations contribute 45%
Labs contribute 35%
Lessons and quizzes contribute 20%

This weighting emphasizes hands-on, practical learning, with investigations having the greatest impact because they best reflect the skills and scenarios you will encounter in the exam.

Your readiness score updates automatically as you complete content, and you can monitor your progress through your dashboard and Study Schedule.

Why Investigations Matter

Module Investigations are capstone exercises that bring together everything you've learned. They mirror the final exam's structure and challenge, making them the most effective way to prepare.

Our metrics show a 30% improvement in exam performance among students who complete all capstone investigations.

Weekly Goals

Each week comes with a target Exam Readiness score, representing the progress you should achieve to stay on track.

Your dashboard widget uses colors to show your status:

Green: On track or ahead of your weekly goal
Yellow: 1–2 weeks behind
Red: More than 2 weeks behind

Weeks behind means your current score is below the goal for recent weeks. Staying green ensures you are on track, and if you fall behind, it's a signal to focus on catching up before moving on to new content.

Taking the Exam Early

You don't need to wait the full three months. If you finish the course early and feel confident, you can attempt the exam at any time.

For full access periods and attempt policies, see the Course and Certification Access Policy.

CCDL1 — Week-by-Week Breakdown

Week	Topics	Goal
1	Module 1: SOC & Threat Intelligence Foundations Topic 1.1: Threat Intelligence Essentials Topic 1.2: Threat Landscape & Actors Investigation Lab 1: OpenCTI & OSINT	12%
2	Module 2: Network & Endpoint Essentials Topic 2.1: Endpoint Monitoring & Hardening Topic 2.2: Network Fundamentals and Threat Detection	18%
3	Module 2: Network & Endpoint Essentials Topic 2.3: Active Directory Security & Monitoring Investigation Lab 2: Network & AD Basics	29%
4	Module 3: SIEM Basics - Splunk & Sentinel Topic 3.1: SIEM Fundamentals Topic 3.2: Splunk Essentials	37%
5	Module 3: SIEM Basics - Splunk & Sentinel Topic 3.3: Microsoft Sentinel Essentials Topic 3.4: Alert Triage & Investigation Investigation Lab 3: SIEM Basics	49%
6	Module 4: Phishing & Email Security Topic 4.1: Building Blocks of Email Security Topic 4.2: Common Email Attacks & How They Work Topic 4.3: Email Threat Detection Tactics	54%
7	Module 4: Phishing & Email Security Topic 4.4: Responding to Email Attacks Investigation Lab 4: Phishing & Email Security Module 5: Digital Forensics & Incident Response Topic 5.1: DFIR Foundations & Evidence Handling	67%
8	Module 5: Digital Forensics & Incident Response Topic 5.2: Windows Host Forensics & Analysis Topic 5.3: Linux Host Forensics & Investigation	75%
9	Module 5: Digital Forensics & Incident Response Topic 5.4: Live Response & Digital Evidence Collection Investigation Lab 5: DFIR	85%
10	Module 6: Cloud Security & AI Topic 6.1: Cloud Security Fundamentals Topic 6.2: Cloud Threats & Defense	89%
11	Module 6: Cloud Security & AI Topic 6.3: Forensics & Incident Response in the Cloud Topic 6.4: AI-Enhanced Security Operations Investigation Lab 6: Cloud Security	100%
12	Review Week • Consolidate and organize your notes • Review topics you found challenging • Rest up before your exam	—

CCDL2 — Week-by-Week Breakdown

Week	Topics	Goal
1	Module 1: Network Forensics Introduction to Network Forensics Understanding Network Data Types Understanding Network Data Sources Preparing Network Captures for Analysis Extracting IoCs & Objects Network Forensics: Use Cases	2%
2	Module 1: Network Forensics Lab - Network Forensics 1 Lab - Network Forensics 2	8%
3	Module 1: Network Forensics Lab - Network Forensics Module Investigation	19%
4	Module 2: Forensics Evidence Collection What is Digital Forensics? Memory Acquisition Disk Acquisition: Write-Blocking Mounting Forensic Images: Analysis Tools & Techniques Module 3: Disk Forensics Windows Forensics Profiling Windows Systems Collecting Network Connections and Devices Exploring User Information Collecting File and Folder Activity Linking User Actions to Files/Folders	28%
5	Module 3: Disk Forensics Detecting USB Device Intrusions (includes USB Forensics Lab) Analyzing Installed Applications Analyzing Execution Activities Lab - Disk Forensics	38%
6	Module 3: Disk Forensics Lab - Disk Forensics Module Investigation	50%
7	Module 4: Memory Forensics Windows Memory Forensics Volatility 2 Collecting OS Info Understanding Windows Processes Network Connections Analysis Detecting Persistence Techniques Collecting Files Artifacts Lab - Memory Forensics	56%
8	Module 4: Memory Forensics Lab - Memory Forensics Module Investigation	68%
9	Module 5: Threat Hunting Threat Hunting Essentials Methodology-Based Hunting Elastic SIEM	73%
10	Module 5: Threat Hunting Endpoint Threat Hunting (includes Endpoint TH Labs 1 & 2) Network Threat Hunting (includes Network TH Labs 1 & 2)	86%
11	Module 5: Threat Hunting Lab - Threat Hunting Module Investigation	100%
12	Review Week • Consolidate and organize your notes and cheat sheets • Review topics you found challenging • Rest up before your exam	__

CCDL2 Training

Understanding Core vs Optional Modules in CCDL2

Format and Domains Covered