DA0-002 Data Acquisition and Preparation Practice Question
A company receives daily sales data in CSV format. The data includes a 'Date' column in MM/DD/YYYY format. To load this into a database that expects YYYY-MM-DD, the analyst should:
⚠ Common exam trap
DA0-002 often tests the misconception that manual editing or schema changes are acceptable solutions for data format mismatches, when in fact automated transformation during ETL is the standard best practice.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Use a data transformation tool to convert the date format during ETL
The correct approach is to use a data transformation tool to convert the date format during ETL. This ensures the data is standardized to the database's expected YYYY-MM-DD format without manual intervention, preserving data integrity and enabling automated, repeatable loads. Transformation tools can parse MM/DD/YYYY and reformat it consistently, which is a core ETL function.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Manually edit the CSV files before loading
Why it's wrong here
Manual editing cannot scale to daily files and introduces transcription errors, so it fails the recurring-load requirement. It is tempting for one-off corrections, but an ETL or SQL conversion function applied during load handles format transformation reliably and repeatably.
- ✗
Change the database schema to accept MM/DD/YYYY
Why it's wrong here
Altering the schema to MM/DD/YYYY breaks the database's date semantics and any dependent queries expecting ISO format. It is tempting when source formats feel fixed, but schema changes should reflect the target standard; transformation belongs in the load process, not the table definition.
- ✗
Ignore the date column and use a default date
Why it's wrong here
Discarding the date column loses the temporal dimension the sales data requires for reporting and trend analysis. It is tempting when a column seems problematic, but defaulting dates destroys analytical value; the correct approach converts MM/DD/YYYY to YYYY-MM-DD during ingestion.
- ✓
Use a data transformation tool to convert the date format during ETL
Why this is correct
Transforming the date format during ETL converts MM/DD/YYYY strings into the YYYY-MM-DD structure the target database requires, satisfying the format-mismatch constraint. Handling this in the transformation layer preserves source data integrity and loads correctly typed values.
About these practice questions
Courseiva writes every DA0-002 question from scratch — 1,004 in total, each with an explanation and a wrong-answer breakdown. None are copied from real exams or dumps. Learn why practice questions differ from exam dumps →
JA
Written and reviewed by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
This DA0-002 practice question is part of Courseiva's free CompTIA certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the DA0-002 exam.