Renewing CCNA - How did/are you find/ing it?

Magic Johnson

Sorry for the horrific title!

I'm just in the process of renewing my CCNA via ICND2. At the time of achieving it first time round I barely had 3 months' experience in the telecoms industry (IT background). Now I have 3 years' worth, and all of it is just making so much more sense. Before it almost felt at times like a memory test, my true understanding wasn't very good even though I passed first time.

Just wondered if anyone else felt that way, or am I just a bozo?

ande0255

No, I feel like my time working with networking over the last 3-4 years has actually crippled my ability to learn R/S skills anymore, I can't believe I work with these skills every day yet I can't relate them to the exam materials at all...

You MJ, are a bozo for sure, but you seem nice enough so you are cool with me sir!

I'd be interested if your understand of the Material translates to the exam with a clock ticking down, sounds like you should be studying for the ROUTE rather than the INCD2, that is how you get promoted when you're already in the industry brah!

Magic Johnson

ande0255 wrote: »

No, I feel like my time working with networking over the last 3-4 years has actually crippled my ability to learn R/S skills anymore, I can't believe I work with these skills every day yet I can't relate them to the exam materials at all...

You MJ, are a bozo for sure, but you seem nice enough so you are cool with me sir!

I'd be interested if your understand of the Material translates to the exam with a clock ticking down, sounds like you should be studying for the ROUTE rather than the INCD2, that is how you get promoted when you're already in the industry brah!

Haha thank you for the honesty! I did find myself going 'nope, nope, nope, nope, wouldn't do it that way, nope, nope' but I guess that's missing the point of studying for an exam set out that way.

That was my plan but my company's recent switch to Juniper has altered my path, but I did still want to retain my CCNA certification.

E Double U

Magic Johnson wrote: »

my company's recent switch to Juniper has altered my path, .

This is why I prefer vendor neutral certs.

Danielh22185

"Re-newed" my CCNA a year later after receiving my CCNA with passing the route exam.

If I were you I would seriously consider renewing your CCNA with an NP level cert. CCNP although is a Cisco cert hardly tailors their content explicitly to Cisco only stuff. Just look at the blue prints, there is so SOOO much vendor neutral content it's worth chasing after to better your networking skill-sets.

I've also heard the Juniper certs are quite the breath of fresh air compared to Cisco.

Magic Johnson

I agree chaps. It wasn't a gradual move over kit by the way, it was a very sudden and abrupt 'BTW this is what we're doing now' which caught me off guard. I had 3 months to renew my CCNA and figured that wasn't long enough to do a CCNP (for my personal studying/circumstances) so decided to renew, and then go for my JNCIA straight after as it's really pressing for me to be at the same level in terms of how to use the kit.

I like plugging in the little gaps in my knowledge by re-going over this stuff, but it's fairly obvious I am well in my comfort zone...boohoo!