How Hard is the 642-901 BSCI?

Kcolon1 · October 2007

Just out of curiosity - How hard is the 642-901 compared to the 640-801?

mikej412 · October 2007

Compared to the 640-801, I'd say the old BSCI exam was 2.5 times harder than the CCNA.

For the new 642-901 I'd guess 3 times harder -- but that's just to make the people who think the new exam is harder happy.

Of course, the more you study, the easier the exams get.

ITdude · October 2007

mikej412 wrote:

Of course, the more you study, the easier the exams get.

Funny how that works, isn't it?

Cyrus3v · November 2007

mikej412 wrote:

Compared to the 640-801, I'd say the old BSCI exam was 2.5 times harder than the CCNA.

For the new 642-901 I'd guess 3 times harder -- but that's just to make the people who think the new exam is harder happy.

Of course, the more you study, the easier the exams get.

I just pass the CCNA this last Tuesday and i want to keep going and take the CCNP. So which book (study guide) do you recommend? I try the Sybex but they have nothing update and i don't like books from ciscopress...to complicated

.

Or do you recommend to take the 642-892 Composite?

Thanks for the help

mikej412 · November 2007

Other than the official courseware, Cisco Press books (or the online documentation) are the only real study option for the CCNP that contain all the material you need to learn. Something like the CBTNuggets or TrainSignal CBTs could be useful for highlighting the "important stuff" but wouldn't replace reading and learning from the books.

If you read and learn the material from the recommended books on the Cisco Press web site, that should be enough to pass the exams.

If you're motivated, or still confused about something after reading the recommended books, then the Doyle-Cisco Press Routing TCP/IP books could be useful as another study source.

I had thought about taking the old Composite exam, but I decided it was easier to study, and then review, for the individual exams. Looking back, I'm glad I did the 2 exam option.

Slowhand · November 2007

If you're looking for some books that might help, I'd recommend Routing TCP/IP Volume I and Volume II, for extra studying. And I'm pretty sure Troubleshooting IP Routing Protocols wouldn't hurt either. Don't let the "CCIE Professional Development" titles intimidate you, the books are targeted towards CCNA-and-up audiences that want to learn about IP routing more in-depth than "just what you need for the exam". My former boss read all three in preparation for his BSCI exam during his CCNP journey, and he said they really drove things home for him. Personally, I'm just starting on Routing TCP/IP Volume I after having passed my CCNA exam, (the book arrived yesterday

).

Cyrus3v · November 2007

Thanks for the tips mikej412 and Slowhand, but do you think that i need to read all about this:

Building Scalable Cisco Internetworks (BSCI) (Authorized Self-Study Guide), Third Ed.

CCNP BSCI Official Exam Certification Guide, Fourth Ed.

CCNP BSCI Quick Reference Sheets

CCNP BSCI Portable Command Guide

These are the ciscopress suggestion. But I gonna start with the Building Scalable Cisco Internetworks (BSCI) (Authorized Self-Study Guide), Third Ed.

What would the CCNP BSCI Official Exam Certification Guide, Fourth Ed. add to my knowledge???

Slowhand thanks for the books that you recommend. Are they easy to learn? Like Todd book's?

Thanks for the help

Slowhand · November 2007

They're not "easy" in the sense that they'll only cover what you need. All three books are more like handbooks, rather than textbooks. They'll cover everything on each topic they cover, like EIGRP, BGP, IPv6, etc. and they won't be bound by the constraits of "just what you need for the test". I think they'll be helpful, you'll learn a whole lot about routing and TCP/IP along the way.

Cyrus3v · November 2007

Ok, i see what do you mean. They work like a backup. Thanks

How Hard is the 642-901 BSCI?

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