ICND 2 200-101 Pass! 920/1000. Study methods that worked for me.

drewbert87drewbert87 Member Posts: 16 ■□□□□□□□□□
in CCNA & CCENT
Hey Guys,

I posted this on the CCNA subreddit yesterday and people seemed to like it so I thought I'd put it over here as well. Hopefully it's helpful to someone.

Materials used: Lammle, Odom, Boson Exsims

My method went like this:
  • Read Lammle for general overview of topics, including watching the micro-nuggets from Jermey Cioara which were solid gold. I made notes for each major topic for simple things to reference (default hello timers, things like that).
  • Run the related labs in packet tracer along the way here: Index of /Download Really good labs!
  • Once the Lammle section I was working on was completed I downloaded the official exam topic guide in pdf format and crossed each topic off that I felt comfortable with and then any I didn't I read through in Lammle/Odom/google (link for ICND1):https://learningcontent.cisco.com/cln_storage/text/cln/marketing/exam-topics/100-105-icnd1-v3.pdf
  • After feeling like I had a grasp on each topic on the list I took a Pearson practice exam that came with the Odom book (which are sort of easy but still a good reason to get a "like new" version of the book). During the exam, write down any topics that you aren't 100% sure of your answer on when you are answering it.
  • Research in Odom and on google/forums about the specific questions or topics you didn't feel 100% on. It's important to note that I wrote down many items that I may have gotten correct on the practice test, it doesn't matter, if I wasn't completely sure of my answer I investigated the topic again.
  • I repeated this process for 3 tests with the Pearson tests studying the holes in my knowledge between each test, then I did the same thing again with the Boson Ex Sims. These were an excellent barometer of the actual test and were as hard or harder. I was getting low 900s on my ICND2 Boson's and I got 920 today. These will show you the holes in your knowledge, don't despair if you are only getting in the 700s when you first attempt them! I also by and large did not view the correct answers on these so I could retake them without "poisoning" the test until my scores were in the 900s consistently. After the second time through the Boson's on ICND1 and on ICND2 I was getting in the 900s.
  • Lastly I summarized the CLI commands in an Evernote and reviewed them a day or 2 before the test and reviewed the key topics one last time in Odom's book then tried to relax the day before the exam and not study anymore. I also weaved a few extra labs in and did a bunch of labbing in packet tracer on my own toward the end.
Some additional thoughts:

For me, finding someone to explain the overall concepts to you like Lammle, Cioara, or Chris Bryant was ideal and Odom's book was the invaluable reference I went back to when I had specific questions on a topic. I tried reading through it first and it was just too technical when I didn't have the broad stroke concepts in mind yet. I wouldn't recommend anyone try to pass these tests without at least Odom and Boson tests.

I feel like it's important not to worry about "passing" your practice tests, especially at first. They are used to find the gaps in your knowledge.

Lab stuff a lot! If when you're taking your practice tests you hit a wall and your question can be answered in the lab, do that instead of looking it up. The more you repeat the CLI stuff the more 2nd nature it becomes. Yeah it can be annoying to throw together 5 routers and get them all up and running to answer one simple question sometimes, but you are building your skills for the long term and you'll get faster every time you do it.

Anyone who puts their mind to this can succeed, but it will take a lot of hard work! I hope this is helpful to someone out there (I know I looked at 100 different posts like this one).
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