Network engineering question

Vercian

Hello everyone,

I have a few questions to throw out for those with experience / advice to share. I just started studying for the CCNP (I plan on doing Switch > Route > TShoot) and currently don't use a lot, if any, of the material at my current job. That said, I am the primary tech of our infrastructure which spans the WAN through 3 regions, and we have around 80 - 90 Cisco devices. Cisco just doesn't break very often (nor do I have time to work with it often) and my job role focuses on literally everything, including Exchange and our virtual environment so my time is consumed pretty quickly.

I'm getting great experience but really want to break out of the 'jack of all trades' deal and go for a straight Cisco career. Cisco, after all, is what I truly enjoy. That said, I don't feel that with my CCNA that I would be capable of really troubleshooting a network or assembling one, as it's been around a year and a half since I attained the cert.

After I get further into the CCNP curriculum that'll change of course, but at what point should I pursue a pure network engineering position? And I do remember the high points of the CCNA, so is it enough to just dive in to a networking job? I don't want to get a job that I'd fail at because I need more exposure, but at the same time I don't want to wait too long and stale my knowledge of all things Cisco.

Thanks for any advice, and thanks for the forums too and information posted!! I'm hoping to have the CCNP knocked out in a few months.

xenodamus

I passed my CCNA about a year ago, and up until my current position have only had a small degree of interaction with Cisco equipment (upgrading IOS, assigning ports to VLANS, etc.). But I've known for a long time that I wanted to move into a pure networking role eventually. So, after I passed my CCNA I started watching the new job postings on Monster, Careerbuilder, and the like. When I saw network-only jobs come through.....I applied. Sometimes i got interviews, sometimes not. When I did interview, I was always honest about my level of skill/experience but emphasized my desire to get into hardcore networking.

Eventually I landed my current role as a Jr. Network Engineer. It took a year, but this job is exactly what I had been looking for. They know my knowledge level going in, but they also know my aptitude for learning. I touch nothing but network gear and learn something every single day.

So, based on my experience I say if you want a network job....go for it. Now.

If you are honest about your abilities, you'll land a position that will make use of the skills you have and give you the opportunity to learn what you don't know.

Vercian

Xen,

That's awesome advice and exactly what I was looking for. Your experience sounds exactly like mine, except for IOS upgrades. Haven't even had an opportunity to do that yet. Hopefully I can mentally last at my current job until another comes around.

What other Cisco track should I look into apart from the CCNP? I'd imagine Voice and Security both are incredibly important, but does one track build better off another or should I just pursue pure R&S and shoot for a CCIE after the CCNP?

Thanks a bunch!

xenodamus

I can't comment much on the material above CCNA. I have to get this CISSP out of the way before I can get back to learning anything useful.....sigh.

Regarding voice and security, our environment is so large that we have dedicated teams for network, security, and voip. So, the value of getting into the other areas may depend on the infrastructure you work with. When I get back to my Cisco studies I plan to work on the CCNP and the CCIP. I want the IP because I hear alot of jargon thrown around everyday with BGP and MPLS in it. I think it's going to be worth my while to learn about those.