Hilarious…I just Googled for “pass CCNA” to find what was already out there on tips to pass the CCNA. The first hit was “How to pass CCNA: 6 Steps to Success.” The second hit then bragged, “How to pass Cisco CCNA exam in 3 easy steps.” It reminds me of the exercise videos that say “Great abs in 10 minutes a day” right next to the “7 minute abs” selection. So, I clicked on the 3 step process to see what advice was being given… Step #2 advised to “Buy a TestKing exam.”
Let me spell this out so I can make sure you hear me loud and clear: I HATE TESTKING. Hate it with everything in me. TestKing is essentially a carbon copy of the exam questions. A few words synonymous with TestKing: Cheating. Scamming the system. Unethical. Stupid. Which is exactly how you’ll feel if you use this to pass your exam (regardless of passing or not).
So what’s the right way to pass the CCNA exam? To fall in love with the technology! I was reading through a few of Network World’s Cisco Subnet authors and I thought, “these are people who really GET this stuff!” So, obviously, “falling in love with the technology” is a little vague…so let me be a little more specific:
#1 Method to Pass - Become a Nerd: Build a Home Cisco Lab
#2 Method to Pass – Get Some Good Study Resources
#3 Method to Pass – Take a Good, yet Ethical, Practice Exam
My next posts will hit these one by one.
Jeremy D. Cioara, CCIE No. 11727, is the owner of AdTEC Networks, an IT consulting firm. Jeremy also teaches on topics ranging from Cisco certification to IP telephony. Jeremy is also the author of books and official curriculums.
We've got 15 copies of his new book CCNA Practice Questions (Exam 640-802), 3rd Edition, up for grabs. Go here for details on how to win a copy. Go here for a sneak peek of a chapter.
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Glad to see you on here
Glad to see you on here Jeremy. I've been visiting ciscoblog.com for a while and think you provide great info. I've also seen your Cisco nugget videos and think you explain things in a manner where you hear that clicking sound in your mind when things just come together. When you talk about the home lab you should mention Wendell's CCNA/CCNP lab posts in the Cisco Subnet. They are great at helping you figure out what you need to build a great lab.
I look forward to checking out your blogs on here.
#2.5
Buy and watch Jeremy Cioara's CCENT/CCNA CBT Nuggets :)
Finally your CCIE# has been divulged
I keep expecting to hear your videos begin with:
"Hi, I'm Jeremy Cioara, CCIE# 11727 welcome to CBT Nuggets" :)
BTW Jeremy, in you CCNP Video Series, you refer a few times to a CBT Nuggets CCIP courses or Video training series by CBT Nuggets that focus solely on QoS, MPLS or BGP, but which effectively is the CCIP curriculum, but I cannot find anything on the CBT Nuggets site for CCIP or those particular subjects.
Thanks for everything Jeremey, I hope to hear more.
Cheers
Shaun
Well said!
I'm a 25 year old burgeoning engineer who passed the CCNA two years ago. I failed it on my first TWO attempts. But I was NOT going to cheat using a braindump. Today...I'm that much further ahead than those people who cheated.
What vendors offer ethical
What vendors offer ethical practice exams for the more obscure tests? I've been trying to find one for the TUC and GWGK exams for CCVP, but I can't find any that have been updated recently except the cheater versions.
Cheater? I don't think so
I found your article interesting, but I disagree with you on one part.
I don't believe TestKing is really cheating. I've used them for my A+, Network+, and my recently passed (on first try!) CCNA. Of course, I didn't just memorize all the answers, but when you look at the person that does, in the process of memorizing answers, they tend to really learn the material.
I found that using TestKing with CCNA helped me remember some of the harder things, which the test can tend to be (Knowing which protocols are for which purpose, for example), things like this TestKing helps out with amazingly.
Of course, the biggest part with CCNA is that TestKing can't really pass you, even if you do memorize every question and not understand it (which I admit may be possible, in this case it IS cheating, and the person doesn't deserve their certification), is the Simulations. No matter how much TestKing you do, you won't be able to do the Simulations unless you understand what you are doing.
In summary: I don't believe TestKing is as much a "cheater" resource as you do. I believe it can be used to "cheat" but the majority of users (in my experience) use it for a valuable study resource, and help with the tougher knowledge questions.
Good article though! I agree with your other methods of learning, and I'd add one extra thing: Cisco NetAcademy, if available to you, or the Cisco Self-Study Books (Published by Cisco Press), Those helped me the most!
Cheater? Absolutely.
I think you're mistaken. Using testking is absolutely cheating. What if - in highschool you stole a copy of your final exam, answers and all, from the teachers desk drawer, and used it to study... would that be cheating? I think anyone with common sense would say it is. This is absolutely no different.
Sure, somebody who cheats using Testking may not be able to do the sims, but you can certainly pass the CCNA without the sims. Theres usually only one or two of them. And they're usually so incredibly basic, anyone who even skimmed through their CCNA book would be able to do them.
Testking is not a study resource. It is an actual copy of the actual exam, word for word, including diagrams. Whether you will admit it or not, you will retain the information you're looking at - thereby cheating.
I also wanted to mention that by you cheating, my certification is less valuable. I think Testking and Pass4Sure and all of those other products (which are all owned by the same company) has tainted the certification, so many employers now look at the CCNA as being as worthless as the A+, or similar. CCNA is now simply a stepping stone towards certifications that employers will care about.
I worked my butt off to get where I am, and you cheating is basically a slap in the face - and I don't appreciate it.
Well Said!!!
Well said IPv6Freely!! ...why does saying that name make me feel like I just got prank called?
Someone Made an Oops!
You're right, it IS hilarious. Hilarious that you would condemn the use of braindumps while you willfully violate the Cisco NDA on your blog by divulging test information.
Ohhh!!! Set yourself up for that one.