NEED help wasting money!

cms819

Alright guys... I just got my CCNA certification. I have 1 years experience installing routers/switches loading configurations and basic troubleshooting with NOCs and Cisco Engineers. I also have experience replacing hardware components for servers, dekstops, and know how to terminate cat5e and cat6 cable. I really want to go in the field of networking. I bought books for CCNP, Server 2012, and ITIL foundation and now I see RHCSA is valued as well. What certification should I start working on.. So frustrating I want all of them!! but I want one that will help me get in the mid level job door.

Any advice will help thanks!

thewiz8807

I'm in the same situation. My ultimate goal is to be Network Security Engi, or something to that effect. Preferably working a Gov or Private Sector position.

I'm not sure where to go next. Just got my CCNA R&S and originally I had my sights set on Security+ but right now I'm just trying to get my foot in the door, an SOC reached out to me and the status on that is still pending.

I'm not sure which certs hold more weight in that field...the RedHat or Microsoft certs. I read on here that Linux certs are pretty commonly required for security positions but when I look at job postings I see mostly jobs asking for Microsoft Certs.


Any advice is appreciated, hopefully OP gets his question answered as well.

thatguy67

Same boat as both of you folks. I want to be in security and you need to know networking and OS. With the virtualization trend taking off, I would imagine it's only a matter of time until that's another necessary skill in the toolbox.

I am taking 70-410 in a week and hope to finish up my MCSA by the end of the year. I am also working on my MCSA and VCP as my sig indicates. My goals for next year will be RHCSA, CCNA:Security and probably the Juniper and Vmware NSX tracks.

devilbones

I would suggest that you go find the person at your company that has the job you want and ask how they got there. Thats what I did. I had a background in Windows and wanted to get over to the security side. They let me come over one day a week to see if I even liked it. After only doing this for a month they asked me to come over full time and I started down that road. Best of luck.

Mooseboost

Need help wasting money? I just happen to have a friend, who is a prince in Nigeria.. I can get you in contact... Just kidding! You are making the right steps to move into networking. Now, the question is: What do you want to do in networking? Networking is a very wide field and what you want to do may shape what path you want to take to get there.

joelsfood

I hear VCA6-DCV is a great way to waste money....

kurosaki00

Mooseboost wrote: »

Need help wasting money? I just happen to have a friend, who is a prince in Nigeria..

Yes? Prince of Nigeria here

joelsfood

CCNP is more applicable to networking itself. That being said, I think your best bet with one year of experience is going to be to target a job with mixed systems/network requirements. With that in mind, I'd look at MCSA or VCP.

Acrux

CCNP is going to take some time to get to, understand, and have value add without it just being a hollow cert if you pass it sooner than later.

Advice look at companies around you whom are partnered with Cisco (or other network vars) and perform installs, maintenance to other companies systems; apply to work there. You will learn a lot quickly, but its quick paced. Generally those have a core of good engineers to learn a lot from them in multiple environments. You could have 10x installs under your belt within no time whereas if you worked for a mom and pop or enterprise its all project/budget driven. Partners also will train the crap out of you and invest in you, paying for the training/boot camps/certs is a huge benefit!

Unless you want to play on the DC side of the house I don't know if I'd do anything such as VCP, MS Server/MCSA at the moment.. if you want to be route/switching/firewall focus on those areas (Even if it's more than Cisco like Juniper, Palo Alto, Arista, etc). Stay in a silo, don't be a JOATMON... trust me stay in a core of your area you will have much more value.

bpenn

joelsfood wrote: »

I hear VCA6-DCV is a great way to waste money....

I almost spit my lunch out. Lmao...

Sounds Good

joelsfood wrote: »

I hear VCA6-DCV is a great way to waste money....

too soon....

techfiend

This thread made my day, thanks!

cms819: If you know networking is your passion go for CCNP, you have related experience which is a big plus. I've tried certifying where I want to go with CCNA without experience and it hasn't done a thing. Now I'm starting to certify my experience with MCSA and VCP. I plan to forego the elusive VCA.

impelse

Guys, to work in security you need to know a little of everything and be strong in one or two things. Security+, CCNA:S and CEH will give you a general security knowledge and good base. Then other certs plus your experience will give you what kind of security route to go, then you will need to get the famous CISSP so they can begin to see you serious about security, long way!!!!

cms819

haha so far I got mixed answers. CCNP or MCSA, but no recommendations for red hat. I think I will go for CCNP. I read the first chapters of MCSA server 2012 and it was really hard to understand.. those power shell commands are ridiculous about 2 lines long Reading the CCNP book is a lot easier because it has a lot of info carried over from the CCNA.

Mooseboost

cms819 wrote: »

haha so far I got mixed answers. CCNP or MCSA, but no recommendations for red hat. I think I will go for CCNP. I read the first chapters of MCSA server 2012 and it was really hard to understand.. those power shell commands are ridiculous about 2 lines long Reading the CCNP book is a lot easier because it has a lot of info carried over from the CCNA.

As far as red hat goes - are you looking for more of an engineering or an administration role in networking?

cms819

Eventually I want to be a network engineer.

Kai123

I'd go for the CCNP. CCNA is amazing to have, but CCNP R&S should be the baseline of knowledge. Be really good at what you do and expand on that, rather then trying to branch out too early.

I work in a NOC for a large ISP with little switch experience. I'd love to learn Python, AWS etc but I know the only job I'm going to realistically be highered for with better pay is a networking one. Once I have the CCNP and more experience, its easier to focus then on something new.