Junior networking engineers often seek to earn a Cisco professional certification (CCNA, CCNP, CCSP etc) in order to prove their knowledge and get a better status in their career. I believe this is a wise move for network professionals since the journey you go through for obtaining your certification will teach you all necessary theory and background that is essential to have when working in the demanding and exciting field of networks.

Your study efforts for earning any Cisco Certification should include three elements:

1. Learning the theory behind the specific certification technology.
2. Getting practical hands on training for Cisco devices configuration.
3. Solving many practice questions related to the specific certification.

If you include the three elements above in your study efforts then you will have no problems in passing any Cisco exam. Parts 1 and 3 (i.e learning the theory and solving practice questions) can be carried out using books and other training resources. Part 2 can be obtained with practical experience at your workplace, with buying Cisco equipment for practicing (expensive option) or with software simulators. If you want to get all three study elements in a complete package then you will either need to enroll in a class-based instructor-led training (very expensive) or buy an inexpensive Cisco Online Training package (there are excellent Cisco Online Training packages for around $60-$70). These cisco online training packages are interactive courses which will teach you the theory for the specific certification, simulations will show you how to do things, question and answer sessions help you remember what you learned etc. Plus you study on your own pace, starting and stopping the online course anytime you want. I think for a measly $60-$70 for a complete cisco training course it’s an excellent price.

Study Guide for CCNA 640 802

Many people ask me what is the best way to prepare for their CCNA Certification Exam. My answer is that everything depends on the individual. However, there are some training methods and resources that might be better and more helpful than others. Whatever training you choose to follow, the most important factor for passing the CCNA 640 802 exam is determination and consistency with your studies. Other than that, you need also some study guidance for the best resources available. You can find that below.

Many people are already working in the Network field either as Administrators or maybe assistants to the network administrator. If these professionals decide to obtain a CCNA certification, they already have a huge advantage for passing the exam. Their advantage is “Hands-On Experience” with actual Cisco equipment (routers, switches) and with actual network protocols that they use in their networks. Since the CCNA 640 802 exam will test candidates for knowledge of practical skills (commands, configurations, network scenarios etc), the professionals that are already working with Cisco equipment will know those topics pretty well. For those people I would suggest to just read the official Cisco Press CCNA preparation book and then solve many practice questions (total preparation duration for 1 month approximately). This study method would be enough in my opinion for passing the exam.

Now, the majority of candidates preparing for the CCNA have no experience in networking at all. For these individuals I definitely suggest to buy a professional training package. If you fall in this category, then don’t look for free training resources as they will not help you at all. If you have a LOT of money ($3-4K) and time, then go ahead and register with a classroom/instructor based training. This kind of training is usually a 5-day intensive course that will give you the best preparation for passing the exam. Usually, after the training course you will need 2-3 more weeks to study again all the material you received in the class in order to be fully ready.

The second option (and the best in my opinion) is to buy a professional CCNA Computer Based Training (CCNA CBT) package. This kind of training is usually in the form of Videos, with a real instructor teaching the material and showing you on the Video important aspects about the exam and practical examples. These Video DVDs are also bundled with extra PDF instructor nodes, exam practice questions, or even MP3 Audio and iPod Video for studying “On-the-Go”. The leader in CCNA Preparation is the Giant in IT Training, Trainsignal.com. Their Cisco CCNA Training package is the best value for money. It is a COMPLETE training package (Videos, PDF Instructor Nodes, iPod and MP3 Audio training, Exam Practice Questions etc), so you will not need anything else to prepare. I have actually used Trainsignal when I was preparing for my CCNP certification and have passed all of my exams easily, just by studying with the Trainsignal Video Training. Give it a try if you are serious about passing your CCNA 640-802 exam.

Thousands of people are searching the web every day to find training resources to study for their Cisco CCNA exam. Many are searching about practice exam questions, self study guides, books, training videos etc. There are several free online resources available for the CCNA exam but most of them are either outdated (they don’t cover the latest 640-802 CCNA exam) or they are not comprehensive. For a serious CCNA candidate, the free resources should be used only to compliment a professional CCNA training package.

Most people know that the professional training packages are the best, so they search for pirated free download copies over peer-to-peer, rapidshare and torrent networks. In addition that you can get sued for piracy and copyright infringements, you run also the risk of getting infected with malware, Trojans, botnet agents etc from those pirated copies.

My advice for you is to invest in your professional career, and the first step is to invest some money in a trusted professional training, rather than trying to download pirated copies. Especially for the CCNA exam, which is the foundation of Cisco Networking, you should invest in a proven training that will offer you the required solid base knowledge for your further Cisco certification and career development. Trainsignal is the leader in Cisco CCNA Video Training, offering an excellent CCNA Computer Based Training (CCNA CBT) package that will help you to pass your exam guaranteed. Instead of running the risk to download free pirated copies of CCNA training, just buy the official Trainsignal CCNA Video Package. Its value is multiple times bigger than the price you will pay for it. After obtaining your CCNA, you will pay back the price for Traisignal in a few days!! Download your CCNA Video Training with 90-days Total Experience Guarantee.

A few days ago I stumbled upon a post on About.com which listed the top 10 technical certifications for 2009. The rankings were evaluated according to the website’s visitors feedback, to the profitability and relevancy to today’s market, and from the popularity of the certifications discussed on the site. First on the list is Cisco CCIE. The site provides also an indicative average salary for each certification, which however depends on many factors such as experience, work location, company etc. Let’s summarize the top ten certification list below:

1.      Cisco CCIE: As one of the most difficult certifications to obtain, the CCIE is an excellent credential for a professional. The thriving networking field demands high skilled professionals and the CCIE is the top of the line. Average Salary $93,000.

2.      CISA: The Certified Information Systems Auditor certification from ISACA association is also very popular and profitable. CISA professionals serve the company as Information Systems auditors dealing with security controls and business controls of Information Systems. Average Salary $115,000.

3.      CCSE: The Checkpoint Certified Security Engineer is another high level security certification for professionals working with the Checkpoint Firewall-1 product. Average Salary $90,000

4.      MCSD: This is a Microsoft certification about solution designs using Microsoft products. The Microsoft Certified Solution Developer is expected to know all enterprise Microsoft solutions and use business analysis skills to suggest the best solution for a specific customer. Average Salary $88,000

5.      PMP: Another certification that requires high skills and lots of experience. The Project Management Professional is required to possess extensive experience in project management such as a Bachelor’s degree with 4,500 hours of project management work. Average Salary $101,000.

6.      CISSP: Another security certification in the list shows that security is a hot topic for getting certified in 2009. A Certified Information Systems Security Professional is required to pass a rigorous 6 hours exam (250 questions) covering 10 domains in information security. It is said that the CISSP knowledge is 10 inch deep by 10 miles wide!! Average Salary $94,000.

7.      RHCE: Red Hat Linux is the most popular linux flavor. Red Hat Certified Engineers should possess the skills to configure networking and security on Red Hat OS. The exam is actually a 5-hours hands-on test on configuring Linux. Average Salary $83,000.

8.      SCJP 6.0: This is the Sun Certified Java Programmer certification. Designed for programmers with skills on Java 2 development platform. Average Salary $75,000.

9.      CAPM: This is another project management certification, but less demanding compared to the PMP. The Certified Associate in Project Management requires professionals to possess 1,500 hours of project management experience. Both CAPM and PMP certifications are awarded by the Project Management Institute (PMI) which is a highly respected institution in the industry. Average Salary $75,000.

10.   Cisco CCVP: The Cisco Certified Voice Professional comes as number 6 in latest ZDNET survey for highest paying certifications. Voice over IP and IP Telephony technologies are always hot and should be expanding even more in the future. Cisco holds maybe the top position in IP telephony, that is why CCVP engineers are in high demand. Average Salary $89,000.