CCNA Preparation Help

finchx6

Hey, I'm just looking for some help in the best ways to go about studying for the CCNA and what some of the better resources are to study with. You see, I actually received the A+ and Network+ before I graduated high school, well, that was like 5 and a half years ago. I'm actually a graphics artist (have my degree in digital imaging and design), but I landed a decent paying job doing IT work. Well, it goes without saying that the only time I've used my A+ since I got it is when I'm building and troubleshooting my own personal machines, and I've never used the Network+... IP Addressessing, subnetting, etc... all of that info is GONE... But, they hired me on here at the beginning of November and they want me to have my CCNA sometime in December... anyone got any good recommendations?

bmauro

http://www.techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7268

james_

Hey Finchx6. I got my net+ about 6 weeks back. I can tell you CCNA is a huge step above Net+. I have been studying for 6 weeks now and would dare not walk into the exam, there is a lot of information to absorb, and if you don't have hands on experience with CISCO devices and a good knowledge of concepts such as VLAN, STP, WAN, TCP/IP, OSI, Remote Access technologies etc, you will find it very hard to pass your CCNA in a single month, not impossible, just extremely hard.

You will find most people recommending the CISCO press and SYBEX books for the CCNA, however, because of your time constraints, if you had to choose just one, I would go with CISCO Press - but studying from more than one reference is always beneficial and can help understand those really tough subjects, by having it explained in 2 different ways.

Do they want you to sit the Full CCNA exam by End of December, or just the INTRO? The INTRO is a much more realistic goal in just 1 month.

Good luck in your studies!

DirtySouth

Dang! They want you to get your CCNA in a month? See if they'll pay for you to get some routers & switches. That way you can have your own lab. This will help out alot. Good Luck!

finchx6

If its just the intro, I could pass that right now with the information I've already gathered/learned. There hasn't been a single question I didn't know the answer to on the INTRO (from practice tests, example questions, and brain **** I've looked over)... however, they neglected to specify if its just intro or the entire thing.. If its the entire thing, I'm going to go ahead and tell them its not happening in one month. For the whole thing, give me 2 - 3 months, and I can do it. I'm not trying to brag or sound arrogant or overconfident, but I do have a pretty good capacity for learning, as well as the basics to build off of. I mean, granted, the CompTIA exams are childs play compared to this (from what I've been told) but I did receive both of them without any preparation, with the exception of a little research on subnetting for the net+.... In high school my C++ teacher noticed I knew a little too much for my own good with the school's computers and network, and he's the one who originally TOLD me about the certifications available and recommended I try and get a couple. Everything I read said the A+ and Net+ were good to start off with, so I just went for those...heh...