How do I know when I’m ready to take the CCENT?

Hello,

I have never taken a Cisco exam before. For the last several months I have been studying to take the CCENT with the Cisco Press book, CBT Nuggets, and Todd Lammle's CCENT Study Guide.

I have subnetting down pretty good and feel I have a good grasp on the material/concepts. I can consistently and successfully answer questions from subnettingquestions.com.

I am stressing out because I'm not really sure what to expect. Are there any practice tests you folks would recommend that would help gauge on whether I am ready for the real thing?

Do Cisco exams try and "trip you up" with difficult wording like Microsoft and Comptia's tests do?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Mike J

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Comments

msteinhilber

It sounds like you have subnetting down pretty good so you're probably ok there. You certainly have used a good assortment of study materials too so you are probably alright in that regard.

Have you gone through the Boson practice questions included with the Cisco Press book? I have not personally gone through them yet, but I have seen a great many posts that mention those are more difficult than what you face on the exam typically. If you do well on the practice questions I would say it's safe to assume it's time to schedule that exam and pass it

jmc012

I always thought the Cisco test's were very fair, either you know it or you don't. If you can subnet fast that will help a lot, be prepared for lot's of sim's and simlet's. I found ccent harder than icnd2, mainly because of time pressure to get through all the sims.

mikejj83

Do the sim's let me use the question mark in the IOS simulation.

Example:

Router1# Show mac address ?

or do I need to have the command memorized to the tooth?

jmc012

It's mostly real basic stuff, I don't remember even trying the question mark. But I have heard it will work in some cases, but don't depend on it. I think I would know my basic command pretty well though. Probably your biggest problem will be fighting your own nerves, I know that was my problem.

johnwest43

Try the boson exams that come with the icnd1 book. I found those questions to be very tough. If you can pass the boson exam you are in good shape.

Slowhand

From the sounds of it, you're probably ready to tackle the real thing. Just remember, the biggest enemy you have in that testing center is your own stress. Take the next week to review things you might want to go over again, schedule the exam, then take some time to decompress before the test. Get up early, have a good breakfast, (make sure you get a good night's sleep beforehand,) and then go in there and knock it out of the park.

mikedisd2

You sound about as ready as I am. I read Todd's book, watched Trainsignal, got my subnetting sussed and practised on a cheap, inadequate router. Gonna take the ICND1 on Monday.

bcall64

I hear you. I'm just getting back into this. I originally took 3/4 of the first of 4 Cisco Academy classes but moved and had to stop and start over. It's been a year since I've done that and now I'm doing this on my own. I feel it's very difficult to truly get a good assessment of where I am. I haven't done much with the practice test yet so that will probably tell me a lot when I get there. Good luck everyone and wish me luck with my studies!

Agent6376

Study up on WAN protocols. I was a bit peeved when I ran into some items that were not covered in either Todd Lammle's book, nor the ICND1 Cisco Press book when it came to frame relay.

SephStorm

You may not need this, but just for kicks, you might want to look at the Train Signal CCENT videos by Chris Bryant. When comparing them to the CBT Nuggets, Its almost black and white. TS seems to go a lot into theory, and is more like reading the book. CBT Nuggets gets you that hands on learning feel, as they walk you through the commands.

For example,

The CBT Nuggets first video on switching details a few things about how switching works, CSMA/CD, and so on, the other videos go into IOS commands, and configuring switch security. The TS video on the other hand has very little in the way of IOS commands, he concentrates on showing network diagrams, and how switching works, showing vlans, etc.

I would suggest a combined learning technique in addition to the Odom book, after getting the theory from TS, get the hands on from the CBTN, test your knowledge on a test sim or the CCENT exam cram quizzes. If you get something wrong, or havent heard of something, go back and read the book.

My two cents.

captobvious

For me it was when I couldn't stand to study another moment.

Use the Exam Blueprint as a guide, if you can check off all those points you are ready! Good luck.

jmc012

captobvious wrote: »

For me it was when I couldn't stand to study another moment.

Use the Exam Blueprint as a guide, if you can check off all those points you are ready! Good luck.

Me too, when I couldn't take reading over the same subjects anymore I knew I was ready!

hypnotoad

jmc012 wrote: »

It's mostly real basic stuff, I don't remember even trying the question mark. But I have heard it will work in some cases, but don't depend on it. I think I would know my basic command pretty well though. Probably your biggest problem will be fighting your own nerves, I know that was my problem.

Yes, there is context sensitive help.

Worse case scenario: you pay $125 (or whatever it is in your area) for a really good practice test and an interesting experience. Dont stress too much

billscott92787

There are many practice tests. If you got the Cisco Exam Certification Library by Wendell Odom, they come with Boson practice test questions, which those questions are honestly more difficult than the CCNA itself. I would recommend picking up this set if you don't have it so you can practice with these exams. Trust me, your not alone that you are worried about what to expect. When I took my 640-802, I was so nervous I could barely move my mouse because I was shaking so bad. I was almost as nervous when I took my BCMSN, and I have been stressing about my BSCI that is in 18 days. Honestly, once you take the first exam, some people don't get over that fear, at least I haven't. It makes you more stressed sometimes, because you know what to expect. If there is a particular area you are weak on, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, LAB, LAB, LAB. Do it until you have it down, because the moment you don't, it will be on your test. Have subnetting down, how long have you been studying?

In addition just look at it like this. If I fail, I fail, that's the worst that can happen, then I will just take the test again. If you think any deeper than that your going to make yourself even more nervous.

Meditator

You probably won't exactly know if you are ready until you are in "it". So, practice your subnetting- know it like the back of your hands, basic configuration, principles of Switch/Router, VLAN, WLAN, Security.

Once "you" feel confident enough then go take the exam. If you failed, get up and go again- but don't ever look back. If you passed- cherish the hard work. It's almost like being in a fight, except you don't get hurt or killed- well maybe your ego hurts a little, if you failed.

Oh, yes, I felt the pressure, but that's why I needed to know the subjects real well so I didn't 2nd guess myself. Some people called it a rush.

BTW, a night before my ICND2 exam, I was dreaming about Frame relay config and subnetting.

TechGromit

I'm wondering the same thing, I hate to blow a lot of $ on Practice tests, the Exam is $150, some of these practice exams run $100. Am I better off just taking the exam and if I need to take it again if I have to, instead of spending lots of $ on pratice exams that may or may not be the same as the real exam?

Verities

TechGromit wrote: »

I'm wondering the same thing, I hate to blow a lot of $ on Practice tests, the Exam is $150, some of these practice exams run $100. Am I better off just taking the exam and if I need to take it again if I have to, instead of spending lots of $ on pratice exams that may or may not be the same as the real exam?

Depends if $50 means that much to you. At least if you take the real exam and fail, you know what to expect for the retake. However, the psychological impact could be worse if you fail an exam. If I fail an exam, I allow myself 24 hours of lamenting, then sucking it back up and getting back into the grind. That's what I did when I failed my first RHCE exam and it worked well for me.

dontstop

hypnotoad wrote: »

Yes, there is context sensitive help.

Worse case scenario: you pay $125 (or whatever it is in your area) for a really good practice test and an interesting experience. Dont stress too much

This is some solid advice I need to take on board. If you're 100% sure Cisco is for you passing/failing the exam is nothing more than a learning experience and a slight inconvenience. For me I think I've put the exam at the top of Mt. Everest because there are a lot of unknowns never having sat for it before it's hard to guage how to prepare for it. I have heard of people who sit the CCIE just to suss out the exam itself with not intention of making a real effort.