Looking to get into CCNA

antok86

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Hi everyone..im looking into cisco certs and was looking for some guidance. Are thete certain ccna certs that need or should be done in a certain order? Do you need to enroll in a class as a requirement to take a test or can this be self study then take a test?
 
Wikipedia has an article that outlines all the Cisco certs.

Unless you're an absolute networking noob, I'd say skip the CCENT and start with CCNA Routing and Switching. Where you go after that will probably depend heavily on your focus and/or who you work for, but I can't see going wrong with CCNA Security.

Unlike VMWare (last I knew anyways), the Cisco certs don't require a classroom component. However, many local community colleges have partnered with Cisco to offer courses for CCNA R&S and Security, CCNP R&S, and one or two others. Many offer hands-on and/or online labs. See what reviews you can find, though. Some are taught by moonlighting networking pros, others by the CS teacher who happens to have a hole in their schedule for the quarter.
 
Cisco is changing everything again. CCENT will not exist after February, nor will CCNA R&S. See:
Code:
https://www.reddit.com/r/ccna/comments/bz2lso/the_new_cisco_certs/

I believe you still have the option to do the old tests but you need to have the CCENT/CCNA done by February or you will end up with nothing.

You can absolutely self study and sign up to take the test when you feel ready. That is what I did when I got mine.
 
Wikipedia has an article that outlines all the Cisco certs.

Unless you're an absolute networking noob, I'd say skip the CCENT and start with CCNA Routing and Switching. Where you go after that will probably depend heavily on your focus and/or who you work for, but I can't see going wrong with CCNA Security.

Unlike VMWare (last I knew anyways), the Cisco certs don't require a classroom component. However, many local community colleges have partnered with Cisco to offer courses for CCNA R&S and Security, CCNP R&S, and one or two others. Many offer hands-on and/or online labs. See what reviews you can find, though. Some are taught by moonlighting networking pros, others by the CS teacher who happens to have a hole in their schedule for the quarter.
There is no downside to breaking the CCNA into CCENT 1 and 2.

As for the certs themselves:



 
Cisco is changing everything again. CCENT will not exist after February, nor will CCNA R&S. See:
Code:
https://www.reddit.com/r/ccna/comments/bz2lso/the_new_cisco_certs/

I believe you still have the option to do the old tests but you need to have the CCENT/CCNA done by February or you will end up with nothing.

You can absolutely self study and sign up to take the test when you feel ready. That is what I did when I got mine.


I'm... not sure how I feel about these changes. There were seemingly a few unnecessary CCNA-level certs (Security AND CyberOps? Industrial/IoT?). But I think there was value in some concentration/specialization at that level.

Seems they're trying to push people into the CCNP tracks.


There is no downside to breaking the CCNA into CCENT 1 and 2.

As for the certs themselves:






Well, doing CCENT means having to take (and pay for) two tests instead of one to get to CCNA R&S. If one has any networking knowledge it's just as easy to go straight through.

And, well, with CCENT now going away it seems kinda pointless to go for it.
 
Well, doing CCENT means having to take (and pay for) two tests instead of one to get to CCNA R&S. If one has any networking knowledge it's just as easy to go straight through.

And, well, with CCENT now going away it seems kinda pointless to go for it.
Is paying for CCENT 1 and 2 more/less/same compared to the CCNA?
 
Unless you're an absolute networking noob, I'd say skip the CCENT and start with CCNA Routing and Switching.

It doesn't hurt to break it up if your networking knowledge is based more on standards than on Cisco. Depends on the person, of course. Cisco's operating systems are enough of their own thing to make taking some time to get acquainted desirable.
 
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