Journey to start MCSA

keeranbri

Hello All,

I am thinking about self studying and taking the exam for MCSA. I currently do not have any certs so this would be my first one. I was not sure what study material or online sites you would recommend and I am not really sure which MCSA I should study for? Which one is the most popular and recommended to take.

Jon_Cisco

MCSA can be a great cert but your not going to knock it out in a few weeks. I am currently working on the Server 2016 exams and before I am done it will have take up most of this past year for me.

I see from your past posts you have been uncertain what direction to go it. What are you trying to accomplish? That will be the most important part of picking an exam path. Of course just getting started is a huge plus.

danielcreed

The MCSA server exams are certainly a tough starting point. I had my A+ CCNA and a bit of experience before starting on mine. First thing I would think of is do you enjoy servers? Or client desktop support. I myself like both. Plus I work in Linux mostly these days but windows still is used here and there.

My advice watch a bunch of Microsoft videos. If powershell and technology like that grips you like it did me. Your on the right track of taking a MCSA route. Deciding to do windows 10 or server is a tough choice to me. I am currently half way through both. Taken me about a year to get there.

keeranbri

Based on my experience with the help desk, It seems that I Iike the thought of managing, creating and modifying the accounts of employees to make sure they are set up properly and have the correct access. Also, another interest is security but I know its such a broad topic so I don't even know where to start from there. Possibly securing a network and making sure there are no intrusions coming through interest me. Hope this helps a little bit for support and advice from you all who responded. Thanks!

N7Valiant

MCSA would be tough for a first cert given that it's more of an intermediate certification. I believe you need to pass 3 exams each to actually get the cert, and it's $150 per exam. It's not unheard of to fail multiple times before passing just the one, so I'd mentally set aside $1,000 for the exams alone.

As for study strategies, those will revolve around videos, books, and labs. Generally you'd want to dip your hands in all 3, but that depends on your learning preferences. Mine tends to revolve around books and labs. I learn by doing, and what I don't get I look up.

Home lab shouldn't be too costly, a half decent computer with Windows 10 capable of running Hyper-V should get you pretty far.

backtracker

The server MCSA will be a tough go as your first exposure to a Microsoft exam, although it really depends on your level of exposure to server operating systems. Download the trial, spin up a bunch of virtual machines and start practicing with all aspects/features of it- this will give you a good idea of what you are in for.

keeranbri

It seems that based on all your comments, that the MSCA as my first cert would be a tough one which I believe. What would be a good stepping stone cert before taking the MSCA. I also thought about taking CCENT but I know that is going a different route towards Cisco.

N7Valiant

CompTIA basic certs (A+, Net+, Sec+) would be good first ones. They cover basic foundations of IT and can open a few doors (I believe many government positions require Sec+). CCENT wouldn't be a bad choice as well so long as Cisco products have enough of a market share in your area that you actually get the opportunity to work with them and develop your skills further towards a CCNA or CCNP.

What are you looking to accomplish with certs? The CompTIA ones can get your foot in the door of a few entry level jobs. The MCSA can help you take the next step up away from Help Desk.

ssnyderu2

@keeranbri As stated, the MCSA 2016 is a tough track to start out with. You could do CompTIA A+, N+ & S+, but they are expensive. I am going to use the 70-698 Installing and Configuring Windows 10 to springboard into the server certs. You could also start with 98-365 MTA Windows Server Administration Fundamentals.