However, if you want to take the CCNA course from the comfort of your own home you can do so. All you have to do is find the CCNA certificate course on Cisco’s website and complete the course right there on your computer. If you have other equipment you will need to have it set up before starting the class.
When you first start with the course you will have a lot of material to learn and absorb into your mind. You will be expected to complete some labs and quizzes. You should feel free to download the course material on the website so that you can review it at your leisure. You will find that many of the questions on the quizzes are the same that you would find on most Cisco job sites but at times they are modified a little bit to make them a little more challenging.
It does take a little bit of time to complete the course. I would recommend doing it in smaller periods of time. Set aside about two hours a day for two weeks and then take off for the week. That way you will have a solid foundation to build upon. When you start your job, you will have enough knowledge to get the basics of networking down without having to take on any additional Cisco courses.
When you finish the course there will be a written exam and an oral exam. The written exam can be taken at any time during your employment as long as you have a computer with internet access at home. The oral exam can only be taken once you have been certified. With a little bit of hard work you should be able to pass both exams with flying colors. Once you have completed your Cisco certification, you will be able to show documentation to your boss that shows that you have learned all of the material that was covered in the course.
There are other programs out there that give people an extra two months to learn everything they need to know for the CCNA certification exam. In my opinion this is not worth it because you will have already spent a lot of time and money on finding out what is needed for this certification. If you are going to take the time and money to get this certification then you might as well take the time and money to know what you are doing before you spend it. The time that you will save by taking the course online will be well worth the time and money that you put into the whole process.
Another advantage of the Cisco Certification Tracker Website is that they have a community of people who like to talk about networking. I am sure that you have met at least one person that has gone through the CCNA certification process and has come out with a certificate or two. Chances are that you will find a few individuals that you talk to that have gone through the whole process and have managed to get a job in the field that they were working in prior to getting the certification. The advantage to you is that you will be able to discuss things with these individuals. If you have a good relationship with someone from Cisco then you should be able to find them again if they have questions about anything.
You can also go and take a Cisco certification practice test. This will allow you to see how you are doing and determine if taking the CCNA course is what you want to do. Keep in mind that these tests are not necessarily what will make you successful at getting the certification so be careful who you take them from. I have heard of some individuals who take the exams multiple times because they feel that they are able to take the tests more quickly than others but be careful of this.
