how do you study

this is my question of the day.

I haven't studied all that much in the past and was wondering what everyone thought the best methods were for getting this stuff into your head from a book.

I've tried reading and makin notes then typing up the notes

I've tried going though questions and looking up the answer in the books and then reading the passage

anyone got any hot tips ???????????

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r_durant

This post should give you what you need...

http://www.techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=22477

Just do a bit of searching, you can bet you'll find an answer in this forum to almost every question you have...

dredlord

well there is no confermed way on how to study , since this is subjective and no one is the same. Thow it has been prooven that applying your knoledge helps cement wat you learn in your permenet memory. I would sujest making notes, revise your own notes form time to time. Do all exercises and lab activitys. This will give you bought confidence and knoledge bought are needed for the CCNA

Netstudent

I read the material over and over and over untill I can recite the entire chapter in my sleep. If I don't get it, I DO NOT move on untill I do. Taking notes of the main points in the chapters is also very helpfull so you can go back and hit the important topics without having to reread an entire chapter. I also cross reference cisco press ICND and Sybex. When I sit down and configure the hardware, i do it untill I can design a complete network without having to go back and look in the books for commands. I also go through all the show and debug commands and study their output. If I have something that isn't working right, like my frame-relay and OSPF post, I keep at it or ask for help.

totts

Netstudent wrote:

I read the material over and over and over untill I can recite the entire chapter in my sleep. If I don't get it, I DO NOT move on untill I do. Taking notes of the main points in the chapters is also very helpfull so you can go back and hit the important topics without having to reread an entire chapter. I also cross reference cisco press ICND and Sybex. When I sit down and configure the hardware, i do it untill I can design a complete network without having to go back and look in the books for commands. I also go through all the show and debug commands and study their output. If I have something that isn't working right, like my frame-relay and OSPF post, I keep at it or ask for help.

To add to the above, once you're confident that you know the material quite well, you may want to split your time between going over your notes, taking practice exams, working on labs, and keep going over subnetting problems.

mattipler

If I’m struggling with a topic I find having more than one source of info on a topic helps... gives you variety of angles/perspective on the same subject and will help you to get a better understanding.

Netstudent

Indeed...thats about where I am now. I have been studying hard for about 2.5 months. I have 2 chapters left, ACL's from press ICND and configuration registers in Sybex. After that it's review review review

ilcram19

well just keep reading...if u dont understand a topic try to go over it as many times it requires you to understand it onece u do dat the questions come pretty easy

Smitty74

How many hours a day or a week do you guys spend studying?

Netstudent

What I don't get is how some people say you can pass with one book and simulator. Others say theres no way they could have passed with one book. Some people take the test 3 or 4 times before they pass it and other people take it once and say if you study hard it's absolutely feasible. For me, the anticipation for the exam has increased because of all the mixed inputs about it.

I just hope I don't get a bunch of stupid little unimportant type of questions that you just never thought would be on there. If the test is purely what is represented in the Cisco press and Sybex books then i should be good.

I probably study about between 10 and 12 hours a week, pure cisco. I do a lot of studying while at work when thigns are running smooth and there isn't any projects going on. I am taking a full load right now at school, I have Data Comm. 1 , Web Technology, and Advanced Routing and switching 1. So I have to study and write papers for class as well. So add another 4 to 5 hours of studying. Thankfully A LOT of cisco material overlaps with school.

dredlord

Netstudent wrote:

What I don't get is how some people say you can pass with one book and simulator. Others say theres no way they could have passed with one book. Some people take the test 3 or 4 times before they pass it and other people take it once and say if you study hard it's absolutely feasible. For me, the anticipation for the exam has increased because of all the mixed inputs about it.

This one is easy to answer like i said before different people have different aptitudes, I personaly have a photographic memory and thus tend to rember wat i study well. When it comes to studying there is no benchmark for what is good or bad. I sugest you try out some mock exams to test your knoledge, feeling cofident and well prepared is the key to sucsess in any exam. Im shure you have studied well now go show cisco what your maide of! Good luck for the exam

Paul Boz

Smitty74 wrote:

How many hours a day or a week do you guys spend studying?

About five hours a day, Monday through Thursday. I work over night so I have a ton of quiet time to myself to pursue my studies. I almost never study outside of work. It doesn't mean I go at a quick pace, however. I spent a good three weeks studying the ISIS routing protocol, for example.

Netstudent wrote:

What I don't get is how some people say you can pass with one book and simulator. Others say theres no way they could have passed with one book. Some people take the test 3 or 4 times before they pass it and other people take it once and say if you study hard it's absolutely feasible. For me, the anticipation for the exam has increased because of all the mixed inputs about it.

I fit into the former. I used one book for the CCNA, and for the most part used the Boson Netsim software exclusively. In fact, I didn't use one piece of hardware to study for the exam. I don't think it's some great feat of intelligence though. The reason why some people can study one book, pass the test on the first try, and get by with minimal IOS experience is because they understand the concepts and can use IOS to help them. I don't believe in cramming my head with every conceivable command covered by the various exams because beyond the CCNA, the sheer volume of commands you need to know is astronomical. The BSCI quick commands guide I'm using for the first test of the CCNP is over 75 pages, and it's cover to cover of IOS commands. The key to properly studying isn't to memorize the details, but greatly understand the concepts. If you know how something should work it makes the test experience so much easier. It's not like ? doesn't work on the Cisco exams, so I don't see the point in writ memorizing specific IOS commands. I study a concept until I know how it works, then I lab what I learned, and in doing so pick up the functional IOS coding side. there's no ? to help your brain remember how a specific concept works, but IOS is kind enough to help you.

Netstudent wrote:

I just hope I don't get a bunch of stupid little unimportant type of questions that you just never thought would be on there. If the test is purely what is represented in the Cisco press and Sybex books then i should be good.

Again, the books can either contain enough material or not enough, depending on how well you interpret what's being presented to you. You may think a question is stupid and unimportant, but every question exists for a reason. You may think it's silly to be hit with a question about the clock rate of a serial connection, but if you're at work and you have a T1 that won't work, knowing how to troubleshoot it by recognizing that something is out of spec is critical. that's the point of those seemingly minute detail oriented questions.

TechStriker

I am struggling with ISDN and frame relay topics any specific advice will be appreciated

Paul Boz

Yeah, don't bother with ISDN, as it's barely if at all covered on the current exam. Just learn the terminology - the configs won't help you on the exam.

As for frame relay, what are you using to study?

TechStriker

Thanks Paul for your advice, I am using CCNA Official Exam Certification Library 640-801edition by Wendell Odom. Is this book enough or do I need to buy more books

Paul Boz

It should be enough, but I recommend that you read these forums and use the technotes and practice exams both here and at the Cisco prep center for CCNA's.

TechStriker

Thanks again, will do that I agree this forum is one of the best IT forums I came across

Smitty74

TechStriker wrote:

Thanks again, will do that I agree this forum is one of the best IT forums I came across

I agree, from what I have read on this forum this is the best one that I have came across also.