The Home Improvement Blog

The CCNA qualification is the usual starting point for all Cisco training. This will enable you to handle maintaining and installing routers. Basically, the internet comprises of vast numbers of routers, and large companies that have various regional departments rely on them to keep their networks in touch.

As routers connect networks together, look for a course that features the basics on networks (CompTIA Network+ as an example – maybe with the A+ as well) prior to starting your CCNA course. You must have a basic grasp of networks before you commence any Cisco training or you could find yourself a little lost. Once qualified and looking for work, networking skills will be valuable alongside your CCNA.

The CCNA qualification is perfectly sufficient to start with; don’t be cajoled into attempting your CCNP. Once you’ve worked for a few years, you will have a feel for whether CCNP is something you want to do. If so, you’ll have the knowledge you need for the CCNP – which is quite a hard qualification to acquire – and shouldn’t be looked upon as otherwise.

Adding in the cost of exam fees as an inclusive element of the package price and presenting it as a guarantee for your exams is popular with many training course providers. But look at the facts:

We all know that we’re still being charged for it – it’s obviously been added into the overall figure from the training company. It’s absolutely not free – don’t think these companies are so generous with their money!

Students who go in for their examinations when it’s appropriate, funding them as they go are much better placed to get through first time. They’re thoughtful of the cost and prepare more appropriately to be up to the task.

Shouldn’t you be looking to find the best exam deal or offer at the time, instead of paying a premium to a training company, and to do it locally – rather than possibly hours away from your area?

Many current training providers net huge amounts of money because they’re getting paid for examinations upfront then hoping either that you won’t take them, or it will be a long time before you do.

Don’t forget, in the majority of cases of ‘exam guarantees’ – they control when and how often you can re-take the exam. Subsequent exam attempts are only authorised at the company’s say so.

Shelling out hundreds or thousands of pounds on an ‘Exam Guarantee’ is foolish – when a commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools is what will really guarantee success.

Typically, a new trainee will not know to ask about something that can make a profound difference to their results – the way their training provider divides up the courseware sections, and into what particular chunks.

Typically, you will join a program that takes between and 1 and 3 years and get posted one section at a time – from one exam to the next. While this may sound logical on one level, consider this:

What if you find the order pushed by the company’s salespeople doesn’t suit all of us. And what if you don’t finish all the sections inside of their particular timetable?

Put simply, the very best answer is to get an idea of what they recommend as an ideal study order, but get all the study materials at the start. Everything is then in your possession if you don’t manage to finish as fast as they’d like.

Sometimes students assume that the school and FE college route is the way they should go. So why are commercial certificates becoming more popular with employers?

Accreditation-based training (to use industry-speak) is far more effective and specialised. Industry has acknowledged that a specialist skill-set is necessary to cope with a technologically complex commercial environment. Microsoft, CISCO, Adobe and CompTIA are the big boys in this field.

Academic courses, as a example, become confusing because of too much background study – and a syllabus that’s too generalised. Students are then held back from understanding the specific essentials in enough depth.

It’s a bit like the TV advert: ‘It does what it says on the label’. All an employer has to do is know what they’re looking for, and then advertise for someone with the specific certification. Then they know that anyone who applies can do the necessary work.

Getting your first commercial position sometimes feels easier to handle with the help of a Job Placement Assistance service. Don’t get caught up in this feature – it isn’t unusual for their marketing department to make too much of it. Ultimately, the still growing need for IT personnel in this country is why employers will be interested in you.

Get your CV updated straight-away though (advice can be sought on this via your provider). Don’t delay until you’ve graduated or passed any exams.

It’s not unusual to find that you will get your first job while still studying (occasionally right at the beginning). If your CV doesn’t say what you’re learning – or it’s not getting in front of interviewers, then you won’t even be considered!

In many cases, a local IT focused employment agency (who will, of course, be keen to place you to receive their commission) should get better results than any centralised training company’s service. It also stands to reason that they’ll be familiar with the local industry and employment needs.

A constant frustration of various training companies is how hard men and women are prepared to work to become certified, but how un-prepared that student is to get the job they have acquired skills for. Don’t give up when the best is yet to come.

Copyright Scott Edwards 2009. Check out CiscoCCNA4U.co.uk or HERE.

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