Hello, and welcome to my blog! I’ve been wanting to start a network based tech blog for a long time, and I’ve finally decided to actually start putting out content! I’m very excited for the opportunity to provide information regarding network engineering and industry certifications such as Cisco’s CCNA.
So a little bit about myself. I’m currently a network engineer for an MPLS and Hosted VoIP provider, and I’ve been with my company for over four years. I was introduced to Cisco via the Cisco NetAcademy program offered during my degree program at the local community college I attended. Shortly after graduation I began the arduous journey of studying for my CCNA certification. Looking back I strongly believe that NetAcademy prepared me for how Cisco formats their test questions and the level of detail required to answer their questions correctly. Many people that take the test aren’t exposed to the academy curriculum so they get acclimated to world of Cisco questions while they’re taking the first test, which can be detrimental. Some people are great at studying material in books or technical manuals then taking tests on what they’ve learned, but I’m not one of those people. I find it hard to focus on large amounts of technical data formatted in books, I’m not the best note taker, and I feel like I forget everything! The good thing is, I’m self aware and I make adjustments to compensate accordingly. I passed my first Cisco exam in May of 2011 with the CCENT test. This is the 1st half of the CCNA certification (ICND l) if you take the test in two exams. I was able to successfully pass the 2nd half of the test (ICND ll) in August of 2011 making me a Routing & Switching CCNA! It was a wonderful feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction that all my hard work finally payed off. Since I obtained my CCNA I’ve gone on to study for and acquire a few additional certifications which are listed below:
I will give some information on how I achieved the rest of my certifications on future posts along with some technical info that will hopefully help you in your quest to get Cisco certified or become a better network engineer. I plan to post a variety of technical articles about the common technologies used daily by your average network engineer/admin. If it’s not obvious by now, I will have a focus on networking with Cisco gear although many topics will be vendor neutral. I hope you enjoy the content I will provide on this site, and I will have the next post up soon. Thanks for stopping by!
-Eric