Yes, you can do it without on the job experience, but it's going to be more difficult and require more study time and hard work to pass the exam. It's not a real easy exam with little experience (even with experience, it's nothing to laugh at).
The CCNA Routing & Switching exam has become progressively more difficult over the years. There is a lot of material to cover in the syllabus. It is not one of those entry level exams that you can pass simply by reading a book once.
In a nutshell, the difference is that the CCNA certification is the associate-level certification that tests professionals on switching and routing fundamentals. The CCNP is a more advanced certification that requires a deeper level of knowledge and understanding of WANs and LANs, and how they work together.
For one payment you will get only one attempts. A candidate must pay the exam fee per attempt. What are the complete videos of CCNA R&S that cover the whole exam contents?
Cisco certifications are vendor-neutral and help you lay a solid foundation of network knowledge that can be used for any networking appliance. Whereas, AWS is not vendor-neutral and is specific to their platform, and requires network knowledge to implement their technologies.
Cisco certification exams may be taken at authorized test centers. Candidates can register online up to six weeks in advance. Most exams can be completed in two hours. Labs may take as long as eight hours.
It takes about about 1month of self study if you have opted for ccna course otherwise it takes 2–2.5 mnths to get prepare for the CCNA. It is definitely not a difficult test, but for those new to networking, there are a lot of new concepts and a lot of things to grasp.
CCNA certification(Cisco Certified Network Associate) surely worth time and efforts. By CCNA certification you won't become the networking engineer but surely you will learn the basic networking which will help you further in future.
The CCNA R&S validates the knowledge and skills an entry-level networking professional would learn in their first couple of years on the job. The most common job you can get with a CCNA R&S is network administrator. Job titles associated with CCNA R&S: Network Administrator.
Now you've heard that as of Feb. 24, 2020, the CCENT credential is going away. 24, you'll need to take the new exam numbered 200-301 to obtain the CCNA credential.
According to the InfoSec Institute, CCNA professionals can earn as much as $118,830 a year, on average. And, a recent PayScale report indicates the salary earned by certified network engineers specializing in Cisco networking ranges from $50,971 to $101, 017 per year.
What is the CCNA Certified Salary in India?
| Designation | Salary (per annum) |
|---|
| Network Support Engineer | Rs.5,00,000 (approx.) |
| System Administrator | Rs.4,50,000 (approx.) |
| Network Technician | Rs.4,83,000 (approx.) |
| Network Associate | Rs.6,00,000 (approx.) |
Here is what I think you should do after you get your CCNA:
- Use Cisco hardware on your house (Your friends houses too if possible) → Buy some old gear Cisco devices and install them on your house.
- Gain real-world experience.
- Learn other technologies:
- Go for the CCNP Routing and Switching:
- Specialize or continue to CCIE.
Cisco is a great company to work for, continuous training is always provided so you can keep up to date with technology. I feel proud to work @ Cisco. Flexible hours but raises are far and few between and layoffs are common. Politics play very heavy and it's more of "who you know" than the work you do.
CCNA is an associate level certification offered by Cisco Systems and yes you can pursue it even after completing your 12th or intermediate level examination. If you want to experience the job abundance available in Networking field then would suggest you with higher level certification training i.e CCNP and CCIE.
Ofcourse, CCNA is still worth it in 2020. CCNA is the very basic certification course for any networking/infrastructure related domains. And also cisco made changes in CCNA certification which are applicable from Feb 2020. So, you cannot ignore CCNA if you want to pursue your career in the networking field.
If you don't pass the CCNA exam then you have to try it again. If you are determined to pass the CCNA exam, you have to take preparation for a long time. The exam is not so easy to pass on the first attempt. You pay and you loose if you fail in the exam.
The average salary for a female CCNA ranges from $55,166-$90,642, while the average male salary falls between $53,514-$89,797. The CCNA is a foundational cert for those seeking a high level networking profession, as well as one of the most highly sought after certifications in the industry as a whole.
Ofcourse, CCNA is still worth it in 2020. CCNA is the very basic certification course for any networking/infrastructure related domains. And also cisco made changes in CCNA certification which are applicable from Feb 2020. So, you cannot ignore CCNA if you want to pursue your career in the networking field.
5 Best Cisco Certifications in Demand:
- Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician (CCENT)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Routing and Switching (CCNA R&S)
- Cisco Certified Design Associate (CCDA)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Cloud (CCNA Cloud)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Data Center (CCNA Data Center)
10 Tips for CCNA Certification Exam Success
- Get to Know Your Exam.
- Create Your Own Custom Study Plan.
- Get Involved In an Exam Prep Course.
- Understand TCP/IP Stack Addressing & Data Flow.
- Have a Basic Understanding of the Cisco Command Line Interface (CLI)
- Take Practice Exams.
- Join the Online Community.
- Have an Exam-Day Preparation Plan.
There are two ways to become CCNA-certified:
- Pass one CCNA Composite exam (currently 200-125)
- Pass two individual ICND exams (currently ICND1 100-105 and ICND2 200-105). In effect, 200-125 = 100-105 + 200-105.
Verdict: Cisco certificates are still so valuable but not as much as it used to be few years ago. Cisco certificates worth every penny you pay for it.
The 29 Most Valuable IT Certifications
- Certified data professional (CDP)
- Certified information systems security professional (CISSP)
- Cisco certified internetwork expert (CCIE)
- Cisco certified network associate (CCNA)
- Cisco certified network professional (CCNP)
- Certified information systems auditor (CISA)
- CompTIA A+
5 Quick Tips to Pass CCNA Certification Exam in First Attempt
- CCNA Certification Tracks.
- Obtain Hands-On Experience.
- Obtain the Appropriate Study Materials.
- Perform Practice Tests.
- Strengthen Your Knowledge Right Before the Exam.
- Take a Rest.
- CCNA is Comprehensive.
- The CCNA Exam is Quick.
If you hold a CCNA certification then your average salary can be around $81,000, if you have CCENT holder, then it can be up to $70000-$71000, for CCNA system security $84000-$85000, for CCNA data centre is $94000-$95000, for CCDA candidates its $97000- $98000, for CCNP security its $105,319.
5 Best Cisco Certifications in Demand:
- Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician (CCENT)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Routing and Switching (CCNA R&S)
- Cisco Certified Design Associate (CCDA)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Cloud (CCNA Cloud)
- Cisco Certified Network Associate Data Center (CCNA Data Center)
Cisco Certified Architect
CCNA Certification Exam Costs – $325 to $600
| Cisco Certification | Cost |
|---|
| CCNA Routing and Switching | $325 or $330 |
| CCNA Security | $465 |
| CCNA Service Provider | $600 |
| CCNA Wireless | $465 |
Exam costs alone for credentials such as Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE), Red Hat Certified Architect (RHCA), and Oracle Certified Master (OCM) exceed $1,000. The OCM exam is expensive because it requires the use of a hands-on lab designed specifically for the test.
CCNA R&S is associate level of Cisco Certification in Routing & Switching track/technologies, whereas CCNA Security is associate level of Certification offered by Cisco Systems in Network Security track/technologies. Because CCNA Security doesn't cover any practical part.
