CCENT or CCNA

[beester]

I'm thinking about getting Cisco certified. Will a CCENT be enough to get in the door or do I need a CCNA? I have some experience in Cisco, 2600 Router, ASA 5510, but I know that a certificate would make it easier to get hired. Has anyone been certified? How hard are the tests?

[Love2Kiss]

I'm thinking about getting Cisco certified. Will a CCENT be enough to get in the door or do I need a CCNA? I have some experience in Cisco, 2600 Router, ASA 5510, but I know that a certificate would make it easier to get hired. Has anyone been certified? How hard are the tests?

I never touch CISCO at all so I have no idea, but I believe someone here can give you some idea.

[AOZ]

Certs are soo overated!!   Even my teenager girls are CompTIA A+ Certified... they'll be getting their MCP soon.  And because they got their A+ b4 Jan 2011... they will never ever need to renew.   

Certs are very easy to obtain.   For geeks.... all u need is to pick up a book and do some reading for a few days and then to take the test.   It's that simple if you've already been working with cisco switches/routers.  Oh.... make sure you brush up on subnetting for this exam.   

[six]

Get ya CCNA.  It'll get you pass the filtering scripts and HR.  Certs are only overated if the hiring manager is a geek or has less certs than you. 

[beester]

Certs are soo overated!!   Even my teenager girls are CompTIA A+ Certified... they'll be getting their MCP soon.  And because they got their A+ b4 Jan 2011... they will never ever need to renew.   

Certs are very easy to obtain.   For geeks.... all u need is to pick up a book and do some reading for a few days and then to take the test.   It's that simple if you've already been working with cisco switches/routers.  Oh.... make sure you brush up on subnetting for this exam.   

I know they are, but more and more companies are requiring it. It just gives you an edge. I may as well, since I will get reimbursed if I pass. I just don't like reading. The A+ one I never took because it was useless. I hear with Cisco certs, you can actually make more. It probably would have been simple if I was still in school learning about the stuff, but after being out of school for over 10 years, I'm a bit rusty in that department. Thanks!

[YAX]

My wife and I are both CCNA certified.  Got it over a decade ago though.  I don't think it was very hard.  If you have experience with Cisco equipment and you know your networking, you'd be able to pass with some studying.

[beester]

My wife and I are both CCNA certified.  Got it over a decade ago though.  I don't think it was very hard.  If you have experience with Cisco equipment and you know your networking, you'd be able to pass with some studying.

That's the thing. I'm a hands on person. Show something and I can mimic. Reading and retaining information is another thing. Know of any great sites or materials I can use to study? I have done some practice tests, but they may not be enough.

[YAX]

I don't know what's changed but back when I took it, there was alot on the TCP/IP model and OSI models.  I'd say, know your general networking concepts.  The commands you should already know.

[six]

That's the thing. I'm a hands on person. Show something and I can mimic. Reading and retaining information is another thing. Know of any great sites or materials I can use to study? I have done some practice tests, but they may not be enough.

When you signup for the ccna course, you can download all the stuff you need from cisco....like a data center emulator where you can unplug little pictures of patch cables and plug them into real pictures of ports on a switch....and it'll tell your setup works.

[vangsho]

That's the thing. I'm a hands on person. Show something and I can mimic. Reading and retaining information is another thing. Know of any great sites or materials I can use to study? I have done some practice tests, but they may not be enough.

9tut.com has some simulations you may want to look at if you're gonna take the CCNA. Official Cisco Press books, Train Signal Chris Bryant CCNA Videos and CBT Nuggets are good if you wanna study the material or be like my classmates and blow through the exam with dumps files.

[YAX]

yah.. when I was studying for the CCNA, I just bought a cisco press book, read it in 2 weeks.  took a  week to review and took the test then passed.  it wasn't very hard.

[AOZ]

I know they are, but more and more companies are requiring it. It just gives you an edge. I may as well, since I will get reimbursed if I pass. I just don't like reading. The A+ one I never took because it was useless. I hear with Cisco certs, you can actually make more. It probably would have been simple if I was still in school learning about the stuff, but after being out of school for over 10 years, I'm a bit rusty in that department. Thanks!

You'd be surprised to see the value some companies put on the A+ cert.  hehe.   I think that subnetting is the hardest part to studying for the CCNA.  Many students give up because they do not understand the concept behind subnetting or how to do it.  Do what all geeks do....  Grab a book and read and reread until it burns...practi ce subnetting & know ur cisco commands.  goodluck.

[beester]

Thanks everyone! I will update if and when I take the test.