Comment My experience as a CCNA (Score 1) 182
I dont'know about other certs, but for the CCNA cisco offers a service know as cisco networking academy.
In 2002 I engaged in the networking academy and I must say I was impressed. We had 6 months of classes with plenty of hands on activities and laboratories. We learned a lot with the practical classes. I got in touch with different routers and switches and in the labs we built full networks passing through carefully thought design to mounting the cables and configuring the routers, switches and PCs. To receive the academy diploma you had to produce a threaded case study detailing every aspect of a network design for a school campus.
I can't say if all the academies are like this, but I was pretty much satisfied with the service I got. I got out of the course with a job offer that was pretty good for a 16 year old kid still in highschool. I really think that the networking academy offered me more than a paper saying that I'm a CCNA. One of the coolest things is that after engaging in the networking academy you gain access to a site that offers all the studying material constantly updated, even after you're out of the academy.
What I mean is, if you're really into networking and would like to get a ccna, you should check a networking academy. Learning from the book is probably cheaper and faster but messing with a real router is much better.
Just remember, YMMV!!
In 2002 I engaged in the networking academy and I must say I was impressed. We had 6 months of classes with plenty of hands on activities and laboratories. We learned a lot with the practical classes. I got in touch with different routers and switches and in the labs we built full networks passing through carefully thought design to mounting the cables and configuring the routers, switches and PCs. To receive the academy diploma you had to produce a threaded case study detailing every aspect of a network design for a school campus.
I can't say if all the academies are like this, but I was pretty much satisfied with the service I got. I got out of the course with a job offer that was pretty good for a 16 year old kid still in highschool. I really think that the networking academy offered me more than a paper saying that I'm a CCNA. One of the coolest things is that after engaging in the networking academy you gain access to a site that offers all the studying material constantly updated, even after you're out of the academy.
What I mean is, if you're really into networking and would like to get a ccna, you should check a networking academy. Learning from the book is probably cheaper and faster but messing with a real router is much better.
Just remember, YMMV!!
