The first place that you need to look to find lower cost certification is on the Internet. There are many places that you can search for discounts on Cisco exams and when you use the major search engines like Google, Yahoo and MSN you will see many results. You may even be able to find some coupons for local area colleges that will help you get your Cisco Certification for much less than you would normally pay. The discounts that you will be able to get on these exams are likely to be greater than what you would find anywhere else.
If you have not already, I would recommend that you find a local training center and try to contact the manager and make sure that you can work at the location. A lot of times, there will be lower prices available since the management makes less money there. You will also be able to make sure that you are getting actual hands-on training instead of just listening to an audio recording. After all, an audio recording is just a transcript and does not provide you with the necessary knowledge to pass the exam.
Speaking of cost, here is one way that you can lower the cost of the course. When you search online for Cisco courses, you will probably notice that they cost quite a bit less than they would in a brick and mortar classroom. So the key is to find a local training center and ask how their costs compare to those of the online courses. You will most likely be surprised by how much you can actually save.
Another thing that you can do is consider purchasing an eBook. While it is true that not all books are worth your money, there are some that you will find to be quite useful. There are some eBooks on the market that actually cost less than the majority of the textbooks you buy at the college bookstore. This is another great way that you can save some cash. Some websites also offer downloads so that you do not need to spend money on shipping. Again, make sure that you do some research before purchasing anything.
If you still think that you are being overcharged for your Cisco certification price, there is another way to find out the value of your CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs. Many people will put these items into a bin with other items and if they look at the label, they will find that the value has gone down. So this is an easy way to find out how much your CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs are worth. Usually they will be less than 20% of what you paid for them.
If none of these methods help you, then maybe you should try selling your Cisco certification. You could create and offer the CD-ROMs and DVD-ROMs for sale and then get some cash for them. You can then pay off the other people that you have worked with and get your certificate at the same time.
No matter what you decide, you will find that there are many routes you can take to get the money that you need to complete your studies. You might just need to do some research. Find a course that works for you and go from there.