Starting the Certification Journey!!

Furious George

Hello all!! This is my first time here and its a great thing to see.

I am an It Consultant as of now working for a consulting firm in Philadelphia. I have the practical knowledge and pretty solid Server/desktop experience. I am thinking of taking some exams just to get some certifications on paper. I would like to get some input as to which courses to take first.

I was thinking of the A+ then going the MCSE route. I don't think i will be messing with Cisco. What study Guides do you recommend? If there is anything that you think this certification n00b needs please advise. Thank you for your time and I look forward to be an active member of this great community.

keatron

Well for the A+ exams, the Mike Myers book is pretty good. As for the MCSE track you should ask which material per exam, because honestly I've found that sometimes the best study material vendor is dependent on the exam you're taking, however, Transcender is usually considered the most solid amongst most of us.

I am thinking of taking some exams just to get some certifications on paper.

Really? well get ready to have your eyes opened, because I'll bet you are going to learn some things you didn't know. Not only that, you'll probably learn some things you'll start implementing as soon as you learn them

Gabe7055

For A+ Keatron is right Mike Myers has the best books you can buy. For MCSE usually MS Press is a good bet but some of there books (70-284) are really bad and should be avoided. In the cases where MS Press can't provide you with what you need I would suggest Sybrex.

For practice exams you can't beat Transcender but man are they expensive

strauchr

I wouldn't bother with A+ and just jump straight into MCSE. If your already experienced and you are planning MCSE then A+ is virtually worthless to you.

Selftest Software is a good practise exam provider. I've used a variety of books and seemed to pass every time so I guess just get books that suit your learning style but make sure you set up a lab and do the lab exercises from the books.

keatron wrote:

Really? well get ready to have your eyes opened, because I'll bet you are going to learn some things you didn't know. Not only that, you'll probably learn some things you'll start implementing as soon as you learn them

Dam straight!

determinedgerman

Hey there,

I would agree with Strauchr that you should think about going for the MCSA or the MCSE first BUT A+, Network+ and all the other CompTia certifications are good for life. There is no recertification neccessary. It is always good to have the basic vendor neutral certifications that you can put on your resume. I don't think that any certification that you have is worthless.

Please let me know if you think otherwise as I would like to hear some feedback on this.

DarklyWise

With your experience, you definately want to look into Network+ & Server+ - they are good Certs to have and as germangiant said, not only Vendor neutral but also good for life...

Remember, no one ever got turned away by having too many certs! ( now if you had a PhD in CS and were applying for an entry level support job.. THEN you'd be over qualified and probably turned away )

bananaman

If you are getting MCSE, you might as well pass either A+ and Network+ or A+ and Server+. If you have either of those combinations, then they can be used in place of an elective exam for Microsoft, making it a little easier to get the certification. And you said you won't mess with Cisco, bad move. If you are in IT, you should be familiar with basic Cisco router configurations because I guarantee that you'll have to configure one someday as an MCSE. Just some food for thought.