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My CCENT/Cisco Journey

ItztalItztal Member Posts: 19 ■□□□□□□□□□
in CCNA & CCENT
Hey there

I've been trolling the forum for about a month now and I must say you guys are pretty active here...

I've been doing a self study for the ICND1 using Odoms book, CBT Nuggets and other documents. I have been studying for a month now and due to 1. No experience and 2. Working 55 hours and 2 kids under 2 its been hard and slow, but I am in it for the long run.

I do have a question or 2...I don't really want to sign up for the Academy therefore my options for simulator is GNS3? I should note that I plan on going for the long haul in cisco so maybe a real lab may suit me soon?

Another question is..are there jobs that offer something like an apprenticeship? Meaning..can I go into a job..say I want to work in IT field..tell them I am working on my certs..and they hire me or something along those lines?

My last note is I live in Chicago IL..USA ..so if there are any other Chicagoans or Midwesterners...I say Hey..

Thanks in advance for the help and advice
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    IvanjamIvanjam Member Posts: 978 ■■■■□□□□□□
    Itztal - stop trolling! J/K :)
    One month preparing for the CCENT is no time at all - I have been studying for ICND1 for the last 4 months! I work similar hours to you in a totally unrelated field so I feel your pain. Good luck with CCENT/CCNA! icon_thumright.gif
    Fall 2014: Start MA in Mathematics [X]
    Fall 2016: Start PhD in Mathematics [X]
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    ItztalItztal Member Posts: 19 ■□□□□□□□□□
    Awesome.

    I am glad to see other people like me! I imagine there are a ton more as well
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    neoteslaneotesla Member Posts: 37 ■■□□□□□□□□
    I think it's possible to get to CCNA with the help of GNS3 and Packet Tracer (or Network Simulator). At least, that's what I plan on doing. (And it worked OK for CCENT).

    The reason I won't commit to purchasing a "proper" lab* at this stage is that I intend going Cisco "all the way" (and by this I mean towards a CCNP) only once I'm successful in gaining networking roles. My present IT work has little to do with networking (well, it sort of annoys me when the network's down ;)).

    At least from my experience it is a bit hard to convince the networking jobs' interviewing panels to give a chance a person with little (or no) Cisco track record. I'm hoping this might change once I have the CCNA under belt (in a month or so). Will keep you posted (in large red font), if it happens.
    * This might not happen even if I get a steady job in the networking area. The Uni I'm enrolled with is partnering with the Cisco Networking Academy, so I should be able to access all the gear I would need (provided that I don't move from the locale, which is likely).
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    mksmith777mksmith777 Member Posts: 5 ■□□□□□□□□□
    I am working towards my CCENT right now, and there are companys here that hire on short term bias if you have your voucher for the exam.
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    ItztalItztal Member Posts: 19 ■□□□□□□□□□
    Really? Awesome. I guess I have to do more research with the jobs.
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