Better to do self-study for CCNA?

pad10029 · April 2004

i'm just getting started on the CCNA and i'm wondering which is the best way to go about it. is it better to do the self-study thing or take a class?

the classes i've checked out are pricy ($2000 and up). but i just got my mcsa and i did it on my own cause courses i looked at cost 5k and up.

with mcsa, i had some experience as a admin and i had a home lab.i don't have a lot of experience with routers and i don't own any routers. so i figured that i could take a class at an institution that had the equipment that i could practice on.

so long story short... i could take a class for a few thousands or do self-study and buy a couple of routers to practice on. which do you think would be cheaper and/or best for me to learn the material?

Ricka182 · April 2004

I'm not taking classes because cost was the main deterrent, the second was the fact that with my own lab, I can practice whenever I want, and always add on if needed. When classes end, they're over. I'm currently saving to buy some used routers and switches to add to my lab. I'm trying for 2 routers and 2 switches, with all the assorted cables and such. The lab will hopefully consist of a master and a slave server, with 3, maybe 4 client machines. I'm lucky enough to get a good deal on some refurbished hardware. Anyway, good luck either way.

kicker22 · April 2004

I've done it by myself, and I did well in my exam.. I got 99.7% on it..
well, it did take me sometime but I did have some past experience with networking..

Anyway, if you think about it... with that money that you will spend on boot camp or whatever.. you can buy a sweet lab (routers and switches) and learn from it forever

Now, I only suggest that you learn by yourself if you want to learn and you are hard working guy..

otherwise, just go for boot camp...

pad10029 · April 2004

so after some research i've decided to do the self-study thing.
it would be cheaper to buy a couple2500/2600 series and a couple catalyst switches along with the new cisco prep book and set up a lab.

even if i took a class i would want a lab anyway... and that's too much money right now. most classes are 8 weeks and that's about the time that i would try to take on my own..... one month for reading with lab implementation and one month for practice tests always relying on my lab.

that was my formula for my mcsa, which was effective. i guess i started getting lazy for a second

and wanted to sit in a class to help with motivation and descipline. but you're right kicker... it takes descipline and hard work to do it on your own. some days the last thing i wanted to do was read a book on computers, but i had to.

soooo.... back to the formula

2lazybutsmart · April 2004

If you spent 5k on mcsa (and passed, obviously), I guess you're in for a big grin. That much money ain't a joke. If you had done your studies by yourself, you could've saved more than half of that money. And remember, self-studying=self-confidence.

Man I think you should get hold of a couple of 25xx's or 26xx's (if you can get hold of them cuz they're a bit expensive) and Todd Lammles book and you're set. All you'll have to do is buy some prep exams and take the actual exam once you're through with your studies. And you can do all that with something less than 1k... really less than 1k.

Best of Luck.
2lbs.

pad10029 · April 2004

thanks for the pep 2lazybutsmart... now i feel more confident that i can do it on my own.

i did do the mcsa on my own.... i was glad that i did it on my own and saved a bunch of money. you know, it's amazing that the schools charge so much for something that a person can do on their own.

going into the mcsa i remembered my experience with A+ and N+, i went to a school and spent all this money. the school just taught all the stuff that i could have found in a book, but at a rushed pace. i ended up having to buy an additional book and studying on my own before passing those tests.... so basically i ended up wasting money on the classes.

so, i'm going to jump into it with the confidence that my own hard work can get me a ccna cert.

thanks for the support guys.....

Better to do self-study for CCNA?

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