So, in the last year I have studied for and passed a number of Cisco exams. I’ve even been able to retain a good portion of the stuff I have learned. Some people have asked me how I do it and it is simple: I study, a lot.
I get into study mode and I just keep going because I know if I don’t, I’ll slow down and won’t study or take any exams. This happened to me after I took my first Microsoft exam. Rather than getting the study materials and books, and jumping right in, I took a break and then didn’t take my next exam for almost four months. Sure most people would say that isn’t a terrible length of time, but for me it was. I wasn’t actively studying or preparing other than my daily work responsibilities. When I finally did start studying, I really pushed it and didn’t study as hard as I should have. I was able to pass my practice exams but when I took the real exam, I barely passed. It wasn’t a comfortable feeling for me because exams can get expensive. Now I prepare completely differently.
First I order the self-study materials for the exam(s) I want to take. Cisco Press has a great deal that if you order so many books you get a discount of 35% so I try to order a few books at a time. Amazon is also a great resource for ordering books. Self-Test Software has decent practice tests to make sure you know the material, but for the most I just use the practice tests included with the Cisco books.
Once my books arrive I begin reading them. I take them everywhere I can and read them constantly. Depending on the topic, I tend to study one chapter a day. I feel this allows me plenty of time to read and absorb the material. After I have read the book, I begin reviewing the study questions and install the software if there is any included with the book. The new CCNA books had great study materials on the discs included. The CCSP books didn’t really have much. The books for those exams are mostly reference books and will do you good if you keep them on your shelf for reference.
As I go through the practice exams and study materials I make notes on the topics that I really don’t understand well and then I look them up on Cisco’s web site and read their documentation. Doing that alone will expand your knowledge and understanding more than anything else.
Then I practice, practice, practice. I build simulations using dynamips, dynagen and gns3. I go through stuff in the practice exams using my labs. This allows me to type commands over and over until I have them stuck in muscle memory. Before I discovered dynamips, I would open notepad and type everything out. Doing that lets you visualize where you should be your command prompts.
So far doing these things has helped me pass each test the first time. I know a couple of people who have had to retake the CCNA multiple times to pass and I tell them the same things: Read the books, do labs, read Cisco documentation, do some more labs, take practice tests, wash, rinse, repeat.
