Question on Certs

emaz

Just got my network + a few weeks back, and was wondering if anyone thought it was worth to go with the A + still or just move on to big and better things. I was wondering about the Secuirty +? Is that worth taking? Pretty much from here I would like to go more vendor specific. Probably get an MS cert then move on to Cisco. Thoughts?

Darril

Welcome to the forums emaz.

It depends on where you're at and where you want to go.

If your basic knowledge about computers is lacking than the A+ helps you lay a solid foundation.

Security is an issue for many companies and the Security+ certification is valued by many employers. It shows you understand some of the basic risks and will understand the reasoning behind many of the rules a company implements for security purposes. If you plan on working in the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), it is a required certification.

emaz

Thanks Darril! I am currently a Systems Administrator, I never went for any certs because I was going to school and never really had the time to dedicate towards certifications and of course numerous other things that just prop up in life such as kids, house etc. lol. But with the downtime with no school and not foreseeing myself going back to school for another year at least. I would like to take this time and grab some certifications if I can. I mean the problem that I have is I want to know everything and unfortunately that is not feasible, lol. But I figured the CompTia would be a good start, and I understand after being in the field for some time I probably should have done this a while ago. I figured some certs on the resume would help down the road and help out on some stuff that I might be rusty on that I haven't touched in some time.

wintermute000

Out of curiosity (I'm not in US) is the Sec+ requirment waived for CCNA/CCNP/CCIE Security holders?
Seems a bit retarded if not.

Darril

@wintermute000, I'm assuming you asking about the DoD requirement. There's actually a matrix and there are multiple choices for different jobs and levels. However, the Security+ certification is a basic certification required for many jobs at a couple of levels. You can view the matrix here: DoD 8570 Information Assurance Workforce Improvement Program.

wintermute000

OK thanks for the info. Just curious thats all.
Seems a bit dumb to get a CCNP Sec / JNCIP-Sec etc. to have to do a CompTIA but anyway.