IT Certification Study Options, Choosing I.T Certification Path & Scheduling Exams

IT Certification Study Options, Choosing I.T Certification Path & Scheduling Exams

No two people learn the same way. To help your meet training goals, there are several training methods available in the industry. An individual must choose what best suits him/her and his/her money. Some of the methods an individual can pursue to gain certification are as follows.
Mentored learning: This unique approach to learning unites the strengths of traditional classroom learning and modern e-learning, with a practical approach. It’s usually offered by colleges.

Classroom Learning: Reach full potential through colleges’ instructor lecture and demonstration, followed by student practice through hands-on exercises and assessments. This follows the traditional classroom way and a student / teacher relationship. It’s still the most popular and preferred way of learning. It usually takes very long time ‘n’ you move at the pace of the lecturer. It’s not always the best and the cheapest method of gaining certification. It best suits novice individual

Onsite Learning: This is usually preferred by companies or bigger institutions when training their employees. The employees won’t leave their offices. There might be very few colleges which gives individual mentorship. However, an individual can source a qualified professional to take him/her through the course with the aim of getting certified. This might be very costly to the individual. It best fits companies

Distance Learning. Some claim it’s the most cost-effective than computer training options. It best suits individuals who have a busy schedule and they can’t spare time to attend to classroom learning, onsite learning or mentored learning. Several colleges are offering it and it needs disciplined individuals who are committed to the studies. It ends up taking longer than planned due to several disturbances along the way. In that scenario it ends up very expensive.
Online: This goes well with the current trends. This option works well to individuals who are connected to internet 24/7. There is no face to face interaction with the mentor. All the interaction is done via the internet; it also includes recorded videos of lectures. Individuals access notes, exercises and tests from a server stationed at the college offering the course. A user is given a user name and password to access the study resources on the server. It sounds so modern but from my observations the colleges offering it here in South Africa they are ripping people. I payed 1 600rands to do my CCNA through online training. I was given my username and password; I got access to study resources which includes study guides, practise exams and a video recorded lecture. That was all I got and there was no communication between me and the college and mo-so I did not have anyone to ask when I was having problems. It ended costing more as I was now sourcing a mentor for a fee. If properly administered it might be the best study option available it is very flexible as you can connect and do you training 24/7 hours a day as long as there is internet connection.

Self-Study: On my previous situation with online training I found out that it was more of self-study at a more expensive rate factoring in the internet expenses. If an individual has access to the study resources, the syllabus, the practise exams then I wonder why wasting a lot of money to do the training online, paying colleges, distance learning. There are a lot of websites where people are sharing the study resources for certification. Being in IT it gives me the impression that you will be connected to the internet at some point or another and all resources can be sourced from the internet at no further cost. I found it cheaper and worth pursuing IT certification through self study though it needs lots of commitment, people who have a background in the field as well as a structured studying programme and target dates. A certification which might cost 9 000rands will end up costing an individual less than 200rands.



Taking Certification Exams

Many colleges have what they call national exams and international exams. The national exams are the ones in which that college offers you a certificate that you have attended the certification course or to say at least you have mastered the course. Without scheduling and sitting for an exam at an approved testing centre the certificate from the college won’t be recognised as a formal say Microsoft Certification though some local companies here in SA who recognises the college as genuine might recognise the certificate. International exams are the certification exams taken at the testing centre, of which the testing centre will forward your details after passing the exam to the vendor of the certification i.e. to Cisco for them to print your certificate.

There are two main testing centres for exam certification. They are Thompson Prometric (www.prometric.com) and Pearson Vue (www.vue.com). Please note that your choice of exam centre may vary depending on your certification exam.
Beginning in 2008, Microsoft Learning is partnering with Prometric for the exclusive delivery of the Microsoft professional certification and Microsoft Dynamics exams. CompTia uses prometric testing centres
Effective starting August 1, 2007, Pearson Vue has been chosen as the exclusive certification testing vendor for all Cisco exams. Starting August 1, all Cisco exams will be delivered only through Pearson VUE Authorized Test Centres.

Scheduling the Exam

Scheduling an exam is very easy and straight forward; it doesn’t need the approval or the assistance of colleges you have been training with or where you will take the test. I have noticed colleges and other testing centres prefer individuals to register for their international exams through them as they charge slightly more. I.e. a BCMSN exam which costed 1040rands to register online, they were charging something like 1400rands. I understand they shouldn’t be doing it since they get commission from the testing centres
• All what you need to know is which testing centre is used by the certification program you are pursuing. If its Microsoft or CompTia, then you must schedule the test on Thompson Prometric, if its Cisco then you schedule the test with CompTia
• Visit the website of the testing centre i.e. www.vue.com or www.prometric.com
• If you are not registered on the testing centre’s website, Register or signup to create your account. Use your correct information i.e. names & addresses, as they are the ones which will appear on your certification
• After creating the account, you can then go ahead to schedule an exam
• You must search and choose the nearest testing centre where you will take the exam. i.e. In Cape Town, if you want to write CCNA you can choose to write at Torque IT near Tyger Valley, 2ko International near Green Point or in Stellenbosch
• You schedule the appointment, thus the date and time favourable to you to write the exam depending on availability.
• You make your payment ONLINE using your credit card or a friend’s credit card.
• Another option of making the payment is using the Voucher numbers. Normally colleges buy large amounts of vouchers at discounts. You can buy the vouchers from the college and use the voucher number to prove payment
• After scheduling the exam and making payment, you then get a confirmation which you go with to the testing centre. You then sit for your exam.

With this easy way of registering for the exams, it means you can schedule the exam any time, any day and at any location of your choice.

Certifications in Networking

As said before there are thousands and thousands of certifications in IT. So when pursuing any professional certification, you should give much thought and care to your education, experience, skills, goals, and desired career path.

Once a career road map is in place, selecting a potential certification path becomes much easier. In the event that you have chosen Networking as a preferred choice, I have laid down the possible certification paths you can pursue.
Networking is a specialised field that deals with the communication between computer systems or devices.

Start off your lucrative Networking career by certifying on major networking technologies, systems, skills and tools used in today's computer networks. Then get practical experience by installing, configuring, upgrading and maintaining servers, routers, switches and learning skills that will be useful on the job. There are several vendors that offer certifications in networking namely Cisco, Jupiter, Microsoft, Linux, and Novell.

The most sought after certifications on the market today being Cisco & Microsoft certifications. Cisco mainly deals with networking equipment and its internetwork operating system (IOS) on routers, switches, firewalls, whilst Microsoft certifications mainly deals with administering the LAN using Microsoft Windows Server 2003, 2005, 2008.
For those Networking professionals looking to get a certification to accelerate their career and be masters in networking, the Cisco CCIE is the answer. This Networking certification identifies internetworking professionals with the highest level of expertise, and distinguishes those capable of tackling the most challenging assignments in their field.

Possible road map to become a Network Professional

CompTia: http://www.comptia.org/certifications/listed.aspx

Click the above link to learn and get syllabus for the various CompTia certifications like A+,N+, Security + etc.CompTia certifications are vendor-independent and are recognised by most of the vendors. It makes a novice person in IT to appreciate, learn and know the I.T environment. The vendor-neutral CompTia certifications prove competencies in areas such as installations, preventative maintenance, troubleshooting, security and configuring.

The CompTIA A+

A+: The CompTIA A+ certification is the industry standard for computer support technicians. The international, vendor-neutral certification proves competence in areas such as installation, preventative maintenance, networking, security and troubleshooting. CompTIA A+ certified technicians also have excellent customer service and communication skills to work with clients.
Required exams: CompTIA A+ Essentials, CompTIA A+ Practical Application
Number of questions: 100 for each exam
Length of test: 90 minutes each
passing score: 675 for CompTIA A+ Essentials, 700 for CompTIA A+ Practical A application on a scale of 100-900
Exam codes:
220-701 for CompTIA A+ Essentials
220-702 for CompTIA A+ Practical Application

CompTIA Network+

N+: CompTIA Network+ covers all the network fundamentals you need to get started with your exciting new networking career! It is an international, vendor-neutral certification that proves a technician’s competency in managing, maintaining, troubleshooting, installing and configuring basic network infrastructure.

Since its introduction in 1999, more than 235,000 people have become CompTIA Network+ certified. Microsoft includes CompTIA Network+ in their Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) program, and other corporations such as Novell, Cisco and HP also recognize CompTIA Network+ as part of their certification tracks.

Number of questions: 100
Length of test: 90 minutes
Passing score: 720 on a scale of 100-900
Recommended experience: CompTIA A+ certification and nine months networking experience
Exam codes: N10-004 and JK0-016
Exam codes: N10-003 and JK0-012,

CompTIA Server+

Server + : CompTIA Server+ certifies the technical knowledge and skills required to build, maintain, troubleshoot and support server hardware and software technologies
Number of questions: 100
Length of test: 90 minutes
Passing score: 750 on a scale of 100-900
Recommended experience: CompTIA A+ certification
Exam codes:
SK0-003

CompTia Linux +:

Linux +: Exams cover system architecture; Linux installation and package management; GNU and Unix commands; devices, Linux filesystems, and the Filesystem Hierarchy Standard. Professionals who pass the CompTIA Linux+ exam can work at the Linux command line, perform maintenance tasks, assist users, and install and configure workstations.
Required exams: Two, LX0-101 and LX0-102
Number of questions: 60 on each exam
Length of test: 90 minutes
Passing score: 500 on a scale of 200-800
Recommended prerequisites: CompTIA A+, CompTIA Network+ and at least 12 months of Linux administration experience

The nxt topic of Discussion will be Cisco Certification Programs & Microsoft Certifications
Compiled by
Onias S Dhedheya