After CCNA exam

suni_143_me

Hi,
I am new to this but would like to do CCNA certfication. Could some one give more details regarding this exam and the opportunities once we clear this exam. The opportunities are only on hardware side? If so I guess it is not very much suitable for girls.
Thanks in advance for your help.

Suni

jamesleecoleman

Wait!! Why do you guess that working with hardware is not suitable for girls?

Xenz

You should check a couple job boards such as monster and dice. Check to see what people are looking for in the area. Where I'm at, it's mostly software and not a lot of hardware. Those that do hire for systems admin/network admin want MCSE or CCNP or above. 2 1/2 hours west of me, Chicago has about 10 or so jobs a week that I could probably get. 3 hours south, Indianapolis has 2-8 a week that I could fit into etc..

CCNA did get me a couple calls, but no real work. The whole male vs female thing doesn't really apply. In this market I seem to think whoever has the better resume or whoever can at least sell themselves the best will have preference over others. Male or female it doesn't matter. Employers can be picky in the current market.

By the time you finish the CCNA, the job market will hopefully be a little better. My resume isn't impressive, but I've been able to get an interview or at least some feedback by simply laying out my goals regarding certifications and being flexible.

mikej412

suni_143_me wrote: »

If so I guess it is not very much suitable for girls.

Your biggest problem would be the adolescent boys in the networking and server admin fields, not the hardware.

With a CCNA you may start out on a helpdesk (hopefully Network related ), NOC (Network Operation Center), etc..... Or you could be "racking and stacking" routers and switches in a Data Center or wiring closets around the Company (or customer sites). Or you could be a junior network admin doing "fetch and carry" tasks for senior network engineers (hey, that network documentation doesn't update itself and somebody's got to do it ).

What's your current experience (and education)? Are you just starting out? Changing careers? Trying to get out of a (non-network related) helpdesk?

Here's a CCIE Success Story on YouTube to get you started..... YouTube - My CCIE Success Story
A female CCIE -- plus she dances, plays the piano and violin, paints, and works out so that she can kick anyone's a** who makes a "nice rack" comment about the 1:21 minute mark in the YouTube video.

Sakina

Hi Suni,

Please dont see hardware as male orientated, believe me no amount of "hardware" feels threatening. I'v worked with the "blokes" for many years now and to tell you the trueth, its far more fun. No bitchiness and fighting... like you'll find amongst the girls. They also love showing off their expertise, so I guess you never miss out on learning something while they are

Dont undersell yourself, IT and hardware is very much a girlie job too now days.... well except here in NZ .

Mike.... we will invent some nice pink routers one day with lacy brush panels for the racks and all this without opening our mouths.....and the unsuspecting males will wonder what we are thinking Just bringing the womens touch

skrpune

mikej412 wrote: »

Your biggest problem would be the adolescent boys in the networking and server admin fields, not the hardware.

well, the adolescents aren't just relegated to the networking/server admin fields, I can tell you that much from experience! But seriously, it can be tough to be a chick in IT, as with any male-dominated field. It's getting better, but I still get comments about not looking like an IT-person or people assuming that I'm some sort of an admin assistant instead of a tech. I know what I know, and if other people underestimate my abilities, then they're just pleasantly surprised when I surpass their expectations. Simple as that. The only thing that's a little hard is figuring out when to suck it up and let comments slide and when you have to say something to "defend" your own honor, so to speak. Most of the time, I just have to do my job and that's enough to shut up the jerks.

mikej412 wrote: »

Here's a CCIE Success Story on YouTube to get you started..... YouTube - My CCIE Success Story
A female CCIE -- plus she dances, plays the piano and violin, paints, and works out so that she can kick anyone's a** who makes a "nice rack" comment about the 1:21 minute mark in the YouTube video.

Well, great, now I feel like a total slacker.

captobvious

skrpune wrote: »

well, the adolescents aren't just relegated to the networking/server admin fields, I can tell you that much from experience! But seriously, it can be tough to be a chick in IT, as with any male-dominated field. It's getting better, but I still get comments about not looking like an IT-person or people assuming that I'm some sort of an admin assistant instead of a tech. I know what I know, and if other people underestimate my abilities, then they're just pleasantly surprised when I surpass their expectations. Simple as that. The only thing that's a little hard is figuring out when to suck it up and let comments slide and when you have to say something to "defend" your own honor, so to speak. Most of the time, I just have to do my job and that's enough to shut up the jerks.


Well, great, now I feel like a total slacker.

I wouldn't worry much skrpune, not everyone can have OCD!

PC509

It's probably more difficult to land a good hardware job being a girl, although I wouldn't have any first hand experience with that... But, I've met a few girl sys admins and hardware gals that could put most of the guys I've met to SHAME. Of course, I've seen some pretty ingenious guys, too. I think once you prove yourself, it doesn't matter the ***.

Get your CCNA, and bust ass and you'll be on top in no time. NO PUN INTENDED in that sentence, although it sounds like one!

So, go for it, and slaughter the men out there.

blossoms005

Hi,
I am planning to do CCNA certification. But my male colleagues are telling it is not for girls .
I am very much interested in networking. So, can anyone help me out ? Suggestions please.
Thank You

krjay

Do you live in Saudi Arabia?

theodoxa

I went through the Cisco Academy back in 2001, but never got around to actually taking the CCNA. Now, I'm studying again for it. One thing I've noticed has changed in the last 11 years is that there seems to be alot less hardware material. My classes included cabling (UTP), MDF/IDF/POP design requirements, etc...We even had to do a TCS (Threaded Case Study) where we designed an entire network from the ground up. We were given floorplans and maps and were told to pick and price the hardware, design the LANs at each site (pick a location for the MDF/IDFs, plan where to place the hubs, switches, and routers, determine which cabling to use, etc...) and a WAN to connect the sites (what type of links to use: Point-to-Point, Frame-Relay, etc...This was of course in addition to all the configuration stuff (VLAN Design, ACL Design, etc...)

Now, the CCNA appears to be almost entirely configuration and troubleshooting with some basic networking. I guess all that stuff I mentioned must've been spun off into the CCDA. All that said, even without a CCNA (I had other Networking-related Certs and a 2-year degree in networking) I still did some hardware work - racking/unracking Servers, Switches, and Routers and connecting Cables, IP Phones, etc...The equipment was shipped to the branch office preconfigured. I just installed it in the rack and connected all the cabling according to the wiring diagrams. With a CCNA, I would expect to do more on the software (configuration side).

jenniferscott

Hello Everyone, If u more details for CCNA and other IT related courses so review this site "www.allexamguide.com/career"

I hope after review u have more information on IT related courses & our training program.

TurK-FX

I work in cabling position. We did 2 big jobs past 3-4 months, and both job had a Female supervisor of Data center.

Cisco Inferno

blossoms005 wrote: »

Hi,
I am planning to do CCNA certification. But my male colleagues are telling it is not for girls .
I am very much interested in networking. So, can anyone help me out ? Suggestions please.
Thank You

Your coworkers are jerks.

MAC_Addy

blossoms005 wrote: »

But my male colleagues are telling it is not for girls .
I am very much interested in networking.

Indeed your coworkers are jerks. Though, if it were your boss, you could sue him for saying something like that. That's discrimination. Highly frowned upon. If I were you, I'd study for it, take the test, ace it and then rub it in your coworkers faces! Muhaha.