Letting a cert expire

dave330i

Gonna let my CCNA exipre in June. Came to the conclusion that the time & effort I need to spend to renew it will be better spent on VCAP-DTD or prepping for VCDX. Feel bad about letting expire since CCNA was my first IT cert (technically it was CCENT, but no one cares of about CCENT), but have to do what makes more sense in the long term.

NotHackingYou

I have been debating this same thing myself. If you had an expired CCNA, would you still put that on your resume?

networker050184

I wouldn't put it on the resume if it's expired. If you do make certain that is very explicit. Wouldn't want them to go trying to verify it and see you as lying on your resume.

meadIT

I just had to renew mine for partner requirements. I only spent about 2 weeks freshening up on it enough to pass. I'm hoping to start on the CCNP track before the next one comes up, then lead that into the Cisco UCS certifications.

Are you going to submit for the VCDX defense at VMworld this fall?

N2IT

Honestly I am going to let my PMI certifications expire and my Security + expire when they are up.

RMP 2015
CAPM 2017
Security + 2014

All of these will not be renewed. (Honestly I am glad to take them off my resume I have way too many certs as is)

blargoe

I let my CCNA expire. It was a hard decision at the time, but I always figured I'd pick it back up at some point. I have done fine without it.

When I do list it on a profile or resume, I list the dates for which it was valid and call attention that while i did earn the CCNA, I am no longer holding the certification.

dave330i

meadIT wrote: »

Are you going to submit for the VCDX defense at VMworld this fall?

Seriously thinking about it. I just spent couple months updating an environment from 4.1 to 5.0 and updating the architecture documentation. There's a VCDX bootcamp book coming out in May. I'll figure out if I want to attempt in Aug or Feb after reading the VCDX book.

meadIT

The book is available on SafariBooks as a rough cut now. Are you still with a VMware partner? Going to PEX?

Slowhand

If you have a choice, then keep the CCNA current. It may not seem all that important right now, but you never know when having it on your resume's going to make the difference between getting a job and being passed by, or when you might need it as a stepping-stone to another cert.

Since you're going for the VMWare certs, which are definitely more datacenter-focused, you could always check out one of the electives for the Cisco associates level: Cisco Associate Certifiations

Heck, there might even be some overlap, concept-wise. Many require only that you have a current CCNA and that you take one additional test.

Qord

I'm battling this decision myself. My CCNA expires in May, and I'm thinking about letting it go. I started studying the Security track last year, but haven't been motivated to keep at it. I don't do much networking stuff in my job, and what little I do is limited to Aruba and Dell gear, not Cisco. At this point, I'm just not sure if I value it as much as I used to.

ChooseLife

If the effort is the concern, why not go for one of CCNA concentrations or a single CCNP-level exam that can be either easier to obtain or more aligned with your current work?

dave330i

meadIT wrote: »

The book is available on SafariBooks as a rough cut now. Are you still with a VMware partner? Going to PEX?

Thanks for the heads up. Started reading it.

Mrock4

dave- I think you have a very legit reason for letting it expire, but have you given any thought to possibly taking a CCNA DC cert to renew your CCNA? I've run into a fair share of colleagues/customers who regret letting their CCNA expire. I only mention the DC track since it's pretty relevant to someone who works in a VMWare environment.

Again, it sounds like you got a plan, but just food for thought.

mikedisd2

Mine will expired next year and I currently intend to sit the Security extension. Of course, I haven't checked the intensity of the exam yet. I think it's a good item to keep on the resume but there are other things out there as well.

beads

Depends if the CCNA is still relevant to position you may or may not be seeking as well. After awhile there are only so many plates you can keep spinning and how many revolutions of the hamster wheel to run. I let mine expire years ago with no regrets. Though I have four other plates (cert requirements and CPEs and CPUs) to keep me busy.

- beads

N2IT

Great point beads and analogy.

I think less is more a lot of times and trying to keep everything current will drive you crazy.

the_hutch

No intention of letting any of my certs expire. But at the same time, I don't have any certs that require me to retest like CCNA does. All of mine are just a combination of continuing education credits and yearly dues.

***

Actually not true. I will let my CFOI (Certified Fiber Optic Installer) expire in 2015 when its up. Sometimes I forget I even have that one. My job does not consist of pulling, laying or splicing fiber...and I have no intention of going in that direction. So I'd say, if the cert is not applicable to what you are doing or the direction you are heading...let it go.

teeman

I can see guys you are talking about letting CCNA go , me I think I will let go these ones in June CCNP,CCNA,CCNA Voice, I haven't really used them for the past 3 years, I have been into Servers side mainly.I might may be do the CCNA security because am more in security, but dont see my self configuring firewalls