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If you want to become qualified in Google Analytics, Google offer an online exam called the Google Analytics Individual Qualification. It’s a useful qualification to have when working with Google Analytics on your clients’ sites (and you should be using some analytics software!).
I passed the test last week and thought I’d put together a few tips for anyone else who may be thinking of taking the exam.
General Information
The exam is all done online in a multiple choice format, usually with four different options for each question. There are 70 questions in total and you have 90 minutes to complete these questions. If you think that doesn’t sound like enough time don’t worry, you’ll be able to answer most of the questions quickly and I found I had a lot of spare time when I finished.
Unlike the Google AdWords exam, the exam is “open book”, so you can look up resources during the test if you need to.
Once you’ve gained your qualification it will last for 18 months, so don’t forget that you will need to take it again in a year and a half if you want to stay qualified!
Resources for Preparing for the Exam
Easily the most useful thing to do is watch the video lessons at Conversion University. Watch as many of these as you can if you have the time, as they are all very useful, but the most important ones will be the videos on cookies, filters and regex.
Have a read through the help center on any topics you feel you aren’t confident on after watching the videos.
Also, experiment! Take what you’ve learnt and try it out in Google Analytics. Familiarise yourself with all parts of the interface, try applying filters, add users etc. Set up a new profile so you don’t affect any important profiles in your account, and once you’re confident with everything you’ve learnt, it’s time to take the exam!
Resources for When You’re Taking the Exam
That’s right, as I said earlier the exam is “open book”, so prepare yourself and have these links open on your browser before you start in case you need to refer to them:
Your Analytics account
While this might seem a bit obvious, it’s important to have in case you forget where something is located in the interface. You don’t want to be worrying about logging in while the timer is counting down, so log in and have a profile open before you start.
Analytics Help Center
This is useful for when you forget something. A quick search for the relevant topic should refresh your memory, so keep this open in the background.
IP Range Tool
You may get a question asking for a regular expression to cover a range of IP addresses. Luckily Google provides a tool to do just that. Just type in the two ranges and it gives you the regular expression to use.
Regex Tester
I found this tool quite useful for testing any regex rules. Type the rule in the top and enter the URL in the bottom and it will highlight it if it meets the rule.
URL Builder
Another useful tool from Google. This will add tracking parameters to a URL.
Google Analytics API
You may get asked about some of the functions in the Analytics API, so you can find descriptions of what each of them do here.
Of course this list isn’t exhaustive, so if there was anything else useful you came across when preparing be sure to have that open too.
After the exam
Hopefully if you follow these tips you too can pass the Analytics exam. Then it’s just a matter of showing off your new certificate!
* CC Image by Alberto G.
Some really good tips here Mike. Thanks for taking the time to put all of this together and in a logical and easy format to follow. I am quite sure these tips will help as I prepare for this exam!
Thanks again!
Thanks for these tips and the useful links – I’ve not seen the regex tester before!
I was wondering if the exam covered any of the extra features in the new interface? From what I have seen of the training material the examples are all using the old version.
Thanks so much for putting together these great study tips. Looks like I’ll be watching those videos and doing some serious studying in the next few weeks. :)
Thanks for the comments everyone!
Calum: All of the study materials and the exam seem to use to the old interface.
I’m guessing when the new interface becomes the default interface they’ll update the exam and study materials.
I definitely think that the best way to prepare for the test is to do go through the conversion university slides, and to practice what you learn from the slides in Analytics! I would also suggest making some notes on the points that are new to you; you can then refer back to these notes during the test. I really learned a lot from the conversion university resources, and even thought there wasn’t a question in the test on every topic, I am now a more confident Analytics user thanks to having prepared for the test.
This is great! Thanks for the study tips! :)
informative
Thank You… Its like ultimate guide for passing the exam.
Mike, I just came across this guide – thanks for putting it together.
Could I suggest an additional resource?
With the help of a great team of content contributors and reviewers, I have put together http://www.googleanalyticstest.com, which is a free resource for practical GA training and GAIQ preparation.
There are currently 202 questions available across 28 categories. All questions have very detailed answer explanations, most with annotated screen shots, that you can access after your test is scored.
Feedback has been very positive. Hope you and your blog readers will be able to check it out.
Best,
Eric Fettman
Thanks for this info. Now I am practicing to attend analytic exam. Hope this can be very helpful for me.
Thanks very much for the advice. One thing i’d like to ask though – how long did you study before attempting the GAIQ? Also, do you use GA on a daily basis?