Ugh! Failed today with an 837

Well, I failed today with an 837. This was my First Try and I totally ran out of time. I was only half way through the test with 20 minutes left. Needless to say I didn't finish.

Gripe Section:

I realize that Cisco really wants you to know the CCNA material well, but the whole idea of writing very complex questions with complex diagrams and giving you a very short amount of time to complete it rubs me the wrong way. Isn't this supposed to be an intro certification?

I know, it wouldn't mean as much as it does if it wasn't super difficult to obtain. I just wish those who never tried testing for the CCNA realized that.

End of Gripe Section:

Here are the numbers:

82% Planning and Design
86% Implementation and Operation
76% Troubleshooting
65% Technology

How did I do so poorly on technology?!?! Time to re-read the INTRO Cisco book again I guess.

Advice for other first time test takers:

(1) Time Management!
Move quickly through the questions: Don't bother trying to understand the highly complex diagrams and router outputs, skip this and go directly to the question and understand the question. Very often you need little information from the diagram to solve the problem. You can easily eliminate several answers often without looking at the diagram. This is especially true for the router simulator questions.

(2) Don't trust the simplicity of practice tests. I used Measure-Up and although I was told the questions were very similar to the actual exam they were in fact much simpler! The actual exam has very complex questions- you are presented with A LOT of information, most of which you don't need.

Advice for second time test takers

Anyone have some???

I'm going to try to take the test again in probably 2 weeks, I'm traveling for work and it's tough to study when you travel.

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Comments

sprkymrk

Wow, tough luck man. You actually scored admirably if you really were only half way through the test and got an 837. About 2 more correct answers would have put you over the top.
Only advice I can offer is what you already stated - time management. Mark the tough ones if you have to spend more than 7-8 minutes on and come back to them if you have time.

kevozz

You'll get it next time! What is the passing score, 850 out of 1000?

nuglobe

sprkymrk wrote:

Wow, tough luck man. You actually scored admirably if you really were only half way through the test and got an 837. About 2 more correct answers would have put you over the top.
Only advice I can offer is what you already stated - time management. Mark the tough ones if you have to spend more than 7-8 minutes on and come back to them if you have time.

You cant go back to questions once you move on to the next one.

mikej412

Puffy Elvis wrote:

Well, I failed today with an 837. This was my First Try and I totally ran out of time.

Sigh... yep, time management is important and you covered it well in your hints. Plus you mentioned a good "method" for tackling those "Comple Diagram/Bunch of Stuff questions. I figured that out on the Cisco Network Academy tests -- I went from my average of a minute per questions to barely finishing. Once I figured out the "test taking trick" for those questions, I've been back to my minute per question average on the Cisco Certification exams.

Puffy Elvis wrote:

How did I do so poorly on technology?!?! Time to re-read the INTRO Cisco book again I guess.

INTRO? Which exam did you take? INTRO is probably only 20%-25% of the CCNA exam... (subnetting is in both INTRO and ICND and if you take that out, then the other INTRO stuff is probably 20% or less).

To see what was covered under the technology section, look at the exam blueprint (topics) on the Cisco Career Certification & Path section on their web site (CCNA exam, right?):
http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/le3/current_exams/640-801.html

Puffy Elvis wrote:

Advice for second time test takers

Anyone have some???

Any idea how many questions you didn't answer?

With your score, you should easily pass next time. Make sure you keep reviewing so that you keep what you already got. That technology section could have been lower because there might have been a couple more technology type questions near the end you didn't answer. And since there is a test pool of questions -- the mix may be slightly different for your next exam. The percentages may reflect the mix of questions you got (and the ones you didn't get to) rather than a real weak area.

I guess the best advice is to take what you learned about Cisco exams and brush up on any areas you felt surprised by on the exam.

If your work and travel over the next 2 weeks don't let you study or review to the level you feel you need -- push the re-test back as needed (but not too far, 'cause then you just want to take the test to get it over with).

sprkymrk wrote:

Mark the tough ones if you have to spend more than 7-8 minutes on and come back to them if you have time.

The only Cisco exams I've seen with a mark and review option are the CCIE Written exams.

EdTheLad

Puffy Elvis wrote:

I realize that Cisco really wants you to know the CCNA material well, but the whole idea of writing very complex questions with complex diagrams and giving you a very short amount of time to complete it rubs me the wrong way.

I feel exactly the same,my last 2 exams i've finished in the last few seconds,normally i have the last 5 questions to do in 2 minutes.I dont really see why the time is so short.For me, it should be about knowing the material,an extra half hour would make all the difference.If you move to CCNP you will get more pissed off,longer dialogs and more complex diagrams in the same short time.Anyway you'll get it next time as you see time management is the key and the first few questions are important to get a good rythm going.

thisisalex02

keep ur head up.. Youll get it next time

Danman32

I took the academy, which compressed the ICND to 4 long days (nearly 9 hours each), and highly encouraged us to take the test on Friday, especially when the training center offered to pay for 2 retakes.

I blew off the sim and simlet as I couldn't figure them out under the time pressure. I got an 800 that time. I finished the test with a couple minutes to spare.

The courseware (books) they give you at the academy is exactly what you need to know for the test, unlike other vendors. I studied every command I could (and there are lots). Also ran every low or no cost sim lab I could get my hands on, even if it might be outdated. That gave me pointers on what to look for sytematically in troubleshooting problems. Two weeks later after grueling study, I took the exam again and got an 850. I believe I got through the sim, not as sure about the simlets. I'd say a good portion of the first test I got again on the second try, especially the sim and simlets.

Passing is 849 by the way.

I heard that they made CCNA a bit harder so as to lessen the chance that someone gets the cert but still have no clue about what he is doing. I have heard that the exams for CCNP are not as hard.

I'd say the 2 weakest points is knowing the commands, and being to pick apart subnets quickly without a calculator. My other problem was forgetting that switches don't route, so if you have more than one VLAN on a set of switches, you have to have a router somewhere between the vlans to get the vlans to talk to each other. I knew this before starting the course, but in the time crunch on the test, sometimes you forget these subtleties.

wizarddeath

Ok, not sure how I got out so well. Finshed my exam with 25 minutes to spare(but then again only got a 862...)

Best tips, Know how many host per subnet value bits barrowed, that will save HUGE time on the drag and drop portion. 10 minutes max on a sim, doesnt matter if you dont know the answer, after 10 minutes, you should move on. Know how to eliminate the answer, example, you want to place an access to block ftp from so and so, its an extended list, closet to source, eliminate the 2-3 options that have an OUT associated with the interface, and the incorrect router, nab the 2 ip address's place them in the correct order, and correct command access-list, then access-group to apply, and your done.

VTP, example, why wont these 2 VTP share info? check the domain name(your eyes should always goto this field first.)

Best peices of info, look for keywords, then where that info comes from. (I can proably assume I got maybe 1 or 2 questions incorrect for not looking over the complete question and answering some side topic, but it may be doubtful if any.)