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CCNP:SWITCH - Done
Hey everyone!
I am a long time member here, but after I got my CCNA in 2007, which launched my career, I became more of a lurker just checking in here and there for updates and tips. However, with my 3 year anniversary ( CCNA:S in 2008 ) coming up and the renewal emails coming in from Cisco, it was time to renew...
If you find my posts from 2007, you will see that getting my CCNA was no walk in the park for me, so I expected the CCNP exams to be next to impossible. Luckily, my exposure to real life problems/troubleshooting over the years actually helped, who knew (Network Admin). I have been "studying" the CCNP exams (BCSCI/BCMSN/etc) off and on for 2 years, but it was pretty much just for fun/work and nothing really serious. I knew this year I had no choice due to them expiring and I procrastinated up until July (expires on Sep.2). I took all my free time for roughly 3 weeks in July to study for the SWITCH, weekends included, and gave it a shot on August 1st. I knew going in that day that my chances of passing were slim to none, but I needed to see where I was in terms of my studying to determine if taking this exam is the right choice. I needed to see if maybe I should be attempting something else that maybe was a little less "challenging" in order to renew my certs before everything expires on September 2. I came out with a 617, but I felt confident that I could knock this exam out. I devoted the last 3 weeks to studying some more and this morning I walked out with my PASS.
What I used -
1. Cisco Press - Official Certification Guide.
I actually started studying originally with the Foundation Learning Guide, but after half way through I found it getting too in depth in areas I didn't feel had anything to do with the exam topics.
2. Cisco Press - SWITCH Lab.
I built my own lab at work with 2x3550-12G, 3x3550-48, 2x2950-24, 1x2960-24, and a 2811. Although this was great prep for the exam, it didn't help as much as say the lab experience I got when I was studying for my CCNA.
3. CCNP Training videos from INE.com.
I was definitely going to be going the CBT-Nuggets route, but I liked the depth of the INE videos a little better from the demos I saw. Although, for some of the later topics (Layer 2 Security, IPT, Wireless, and Layer 3 HA) it was definitely lacking and not even close to what you need to know for the exam. However, for the much larger range of topics like the Campus Network Design, Spanning-Tree, and Multilayer Switching, I thought it was great. Looking back at it, I should have gone with the streaming option vs download because the download is not in HD and streaming is. Had that been explained on the site somewhere i think I would have gone with the streaming from go.
4. One extremely patient wife and 13 month old.
Anyway, I hope you can take something away from all of that and good luck to all of you future CCNP:SWITCH hopefuls. On to ROUTE, but not 3 years from now...
I am a long time member here, but after I got my CCNA in 2007, which launched my career, I became more of a lurker just checking in here and there for updates and tips. However, with my 3 year anniversary ( CCNA:S in 2008 ) coming up and the renewal emails coming in from Cisco, it was time to renew...
If you find my posts from 2007, you will see that getting my CCNA was no walk in the park for me, so I expected the CCNP exams to be next to impossible. Luckily, my exposure to real life problems/troubleshooting over the years actually helped, who knew (Network Admin). I have been "studying" the CCNP exams (BCSCI/BCMSN/etc) off and on for 2 years, but it was pretty much just for fun/work and nothing really serious. I knew this year I had no choice due to them expiring and I procrastinated up until July (expires on Sep.2). I took all my free time for roughly 3 weeks in July to study for the SWITCH, weekends included, and gave it a shot on August 1st. I knew going in that day that my chances of passing were slim to none, but I needed to see where I was in terms of my studying to determine if taking this exam is the right choice. I needed to see if maybe I should be attempting something else that maybe was a little less "challenging" in order to renew my certs before everything expires on September 2. I came out with a 617, but I felt confident that I could knock this exam out. I devoted the last 3 weeks to studying some more and this morning I walked out with my PASS.
What I used -
1. Cisco Press - Official Certification Guide.
I actually started studying originally with the Foundation Learning Guide, but after half way through I found it getting too in depth in areas I didn't feel had anything to do with the exam topics.
2. Cisco Press - SWITCH Lab.
I built my own lab at work with 2x3550-12G, 3x3550-48, 2x2950-24, 1x2960-24, and a 2811. Although this was great prep for the exam, it didn't help as much as say the lab experience I got when I was studying for my CCNA.
3. CCNP Training videos from INE.com.
I was definitely going to be going the CBT-Nuggets route, but I liked the depth of the INE videos a little better from the demos I saw. Although, for some of the later topics (Layer 2 Security, IPT, Wireless, and Layer 3 HA) it was definitely lacking and not even close to what you need to know for the exam. However, for the much larger range of topics like the Campus Network Design, Spanning-Tree, and Multilayer Switching, I thought it was great. Looking back at it, I should have gone with the streaming option vs download because the download is not in HD and streaming is. Had that been explained on the site somewhere i think I would have gone with the streaming from go.
4. One extremely patient wife and 13 month old.
Anyway, I hope you can take something away from all of that and good luck to all of you future CCNP:SWITCH hopefuls. On to ROUTE, but not 3 years from now...
Comments
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WillTech105
Member Posts: 216
Congrats man -- we are in the same boat. Studying for CCNP: Route now and recently finished SWITCH.
If you need a study partner hit me up on IM or email.
I did similiar to yourself as well, did a lab, Cisco Press, and CBTs along with some real world experience.
Good luck on the ROUTE/TSHOOT!In Progress: CCNP ROUTE -
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pham0329
Member Posts: 556
Same boat for me also
Congrats to the OP
congrats. I also used INE videos to supplement the CBT nuggets I had. INE was definitely more in depth, and informative. I also think the flow of the INE videos made it a bit easier to learn. -
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networker050184
Mod Posts: 11,962 Mod
Congrats!An expert is a man who has made all the mistakes which can be made. -
Optionsnel
Member Posts: 2,859 ■□□□□□□□□□
congratsXbox Live: Bring It On
Bsc (hons) Network Computing - 1st Class
WIP: Msc advanced networking -
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Chris_
Member Posts: 326
Congrats fellaGoing all out for Voice. Don't worry Data; I'll never forget you
:study: CVoice [X] CIPT 1 [ ] CIPT 2 [ ] CAPPS [ ] TVOICE [ ] -
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Kelkin
Member Posts: 261 ■■■□□□□□□□
Congrats! I just passed the switch exams this morning myself.. those were some badly worded questions.. yuck. -
Optionscisco_trooper
Member Posts: 1,441 ■■■■□□□□□□
Congrats man. I'm in the same boat for the most part.
