Congratulations on your decision to earn your CCNP certification! As a CCIE, I can tell you that Cisco certifications are both financially and personally rewarding.
To earn your CCNP, you first have to earn your CCNA certification. Then you're faced with a decision - take the three-exam CCNP path, or the four-exam path? They're both quite demanding, so let's take a look at each path.
The four-exam CCNP path includes the Building Scalable Cisco Internetworks exam (BSCI), Building Cisco Multilayer Switched Networks exam (BCMSN), Building Cisco Remote Access Networks (BCRAN), and Cisco Internetwork Troubleshooting (CIT) exam.
The three-exam path combines the BSCI and BCMSN exams into a single exam, called the Composite exam.
I'm often asked what order I recommend taking the exams in. After earning your CCNA, I recommend you begin studying for the BSCI exam immediately. You will find the fundamentals you learned in your CCNA studies will help you a great deal with this exam. You're going to add to your CCNA knowledgebase quite a bit when it comes to OSPF and EIGRP, as well as being introduced to BGP.
I don't have a preference between the BCMSN and BCRAN exams, but I do recommend you take the CIT exam last. You'll be using all the skills you learned in the first three exams to pass the CIT. It's a very demanding exam, and it's a little hard to troubleshoot technologies that you haven't learned yet!
The CCNP is both financially and personally fulfilling. Once you complete your CCNA studies, take a little breather and then get started on your CCNP studies. The more you know, the more valuable you are in today's ever-changing IT job market.
Showing posts with label certified. Show all posts
Showing posts with label certified. Show all posts
Friday, December 26, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
Certification Q&A: The Basics Of Certification
* What does certified mean?
There are four accepted meanings of the adjective “certified” but only two of which satisfy the needed meaning. To be certified means to be endorsed with authority by an institution or a person with higher position after one successfully meets certain requirements. Another meaning is that a person is qualified to do a certain job as supported by an appropriate document better known and regarded as a Certification.
* What certifications are there?
If you are pertaining to online certifications, there are lots to be traced. To help you find one best certification that fits your ability and interest, you may log on to reliable sites in the internet. For now, the following are the basic IT certifications:
• IT Auditing
• Document Imaging
• E-Commerce
• Internet/Intranet
• Linux
• Networking
• Printing
• Project Management
• IT Security
• Servers
• Service Technician
• Technical Trainer
• Webmaster
* Who benefits from certification?
Primarily the one given a certification benefits more. Being certified means one can properly function on a certain job. This means, companies will easily hire a person with certification especially when certifications come from a reliable learning institution.
In some ways, the company to which a certified person intends to apply for work will also benefit since the performance of the applying employee is being supported with a certification.
* Is certification better than experience?
The answer for that is a big "No." Certification means training. It is impossible for a person to send himself training without experiencing what it is he intends to do. For this reason, we cannot equate certification from experience since they do not share the same purpose. However, if you already have work experience, a certification is a big help for promotion, recognition and pay raises.
On the other hand, companies are not solely after experience but after educational attainments and performances. In other words, having completed a course as proved by a certification is a chance to be hired.
* Which certification program is best for me?
The best certification program for you is the one that fits your interests and capabilities. Those two factors should be considered above all ese when finding the right and best certification program for you.
* How much will getting certified cost?
Almost all training packages from different training institutions are cost effective. The training cost will depend on the training you want to pursue and in which training institution you intend to enroll. Generally, a trainee should prepare to pay between $100 and $400 for each training program.
* How long will certification take?
There are training institutions that offer a 6-month online training program. The usual training timeframe is one year. This length of training may exceed to a maximum of 2 years depending on the program conducted.
* Do I need a college degree to be certified?
You do not need a college degree to be certified. Some certification programs require one to have at least finished high school upon enrolling in a certain course.
* Will certification really help my career?
A certification may help your career. Nowadays, competition in the jobs is getting tougher. For one to stay in his or her job or to be promoted to a higher position, one factor to consider is his or her educational achievements. That is one reason why mastering your field of work by means of studying and training can be a great boost for your career. That is where a certification program can make or break your career advancement.
* Will I have to go somewhere for my certification training?
While you can find local institutions where you can take classes and tests, most training is done online now. You do not need to go somewhere else for your training. You do not even need to attend classes personally for your lessons. Not only is training done mostly online now, but examinations for certification are also given online.
There are four accepted meanings of the adjective “certified” but only two of which satisfy the needed meaning. To be certified means to be endorsed with authority by an institution or a person with higher position after one successfully meets certain requirements. Another meaning is that a person is qualified to do a certain job as supported by an appropriate document better known and regarded as a Certification.
* What certifications are there?
If you are pertaining to online certifications, there are lots to be traced. To help you find one best certification that fits your ability and interest, you may log on to reliable sites in the internet. For now, the following are the basic IT certifications:
• IT Auditing
• Document Imaging
• E-Commerce
• Internet/Intranet
• Linux
• Networking
• Printing
• Project Management
• IT Security
• Servers
• Service Technician
• Technical Trainer
• Webmaster
* Who benefits from certification?
Primarily the one given a certification benefits more. Being certified means one can properly function on a certain job. This means, companies will easily hire a person with certification especially when certifications come from a reliable learning institution.
In some ways, the company to which a certified person intends to apply for work will also benefit since the performance of the applying employee is being supported with a certification.
* Is certification better than experience?
The answer for that is a big "No." Certification means training. It is impossible for a person to send himself training without experiencing what it is he intends to do. For this reason, we cannot equate certification from experience since they do not share the same purpose. However, if you already have work experience, a certification is a big help for promotion, recognition and pay raises.
On the other hand, companies are not solely after experience but after educational attainments and performances. In other words, having completed a course as proved by a certification is a chance to be hired.
* Which certification program is best for me?
The best certification program for you is the one that fits your interests and capabilities. Those two factors should be considered above all ese when finding the right and best certification program for you.
* How much will getting certified cost?
Almost all training packages from different training institutions are cost effective. The training cost will depend on the training you want to pursue and in which training institution you intend to enroll. Generally, a trainee should prepare to pay between $100 and $400 for each training program.
* How long will certification take?
There are training institutions that offer a 6-month online training program. The usual training timeframe is one year. This length of training may exceed to a maximum of 2 years depending on the program conducted.
* Do I need a college degree to be certified?
You do not need a college degree to be certified. Some certification programs require one to have at least finished high school upon enrolling in a certain course.
* Will certification really help my career?
A certification may help your career. Nowadays, competition in the jobs is getting tougher. For one to stay in his or her job or to be promoted to a higher position, one factor to consider is his or her educational achievements. That is one reason why mastering your field of work by means of studying and training can be a great boost for your career. That is where a certification program can make or break your career advancement.
* Will I have to go somewhere for my certification training?
While you can find local institutions where you can take classes and tests, most training is done online now. You do not need to go somewhere else for your training. You do not even need to attend classes personally for your lessons. Not only is training done mostly online now, but examinations for certification are also given online.
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