I want to share my experience studying for, and taking the DevNet associate test. It took a long time to get enough momentum In my study routine to take the test, but I did finally take it and passed! I will admit that I did not one-shot the test but I managed to pass on the second round. I originally took the test within the first year of its release to achieve the DevNet 500 award and also to take advantage of a promotional discount. It did not work out as planned : ( While I was able to do some limited studying in preparation, I was not well equipped to take the test. The test was brand new therefore I could not follow my usual method of consuming a Cisco Press study guide as my main source of study material. I read the blueprint and found Cisco docs and articles on the subject matter. I did pretty well considering the small amount of study time I put in, but alas I fell short of passing. A few years passed before I took the test again, and my second attempt proved fruitful with a more structured study effort.
The DevNet Associate subject matter covers a wide area of topics related to network-focused automation. Python is the programming language of focus for the exam but the test covers much more than just writing scripts. DevOps methodology, software design principles, and Cisco product use cases are all included in the curriculum. I have always said that the CCNA was a harder test than the old CCNP Route & Switch tests because of the amount of subject matter covered. The focused tests provided a smaller range of material to focus on which made it a bit easier to study for. when taking a Cisco test in my opinion. I think the DevNet associate test is similar to the CCNA in that regard. Before diving into the study material, I spent some time building up my Python skills. I admittedly have had issues staying consistent with my Python learning so I’m not as far along as I’d like to be but I built up enough knowledge for the test. I mainly used a Cisco Learning Network online course entitled Python for Network Engineers as my Python study guide. It was a great course given by Du’an Lightfoot, and my only gripe is that the content is only available for 6 months. Some concepts were a bit out of reach for me at the time and I would like to revisit them now, but can’t because I lost access to the course. To cover the rest of the blueprint topics, I used the DEVASC study guide by Cisco Press. I also used the DEVASC cert bundle from the Cisco Learning Network which packages the “Developing Applications and Automating Workflows using Cisco Platforms” online course and 1 exam voucher. Lastly, I used developer.cisco.com modules to dive deeper into specific topics such as API calls and GIT workflow.
Now that I have passed the test, I’m trying to sharpen my DevNet skills. The current focus is Python basics with the intent to use Python to solve problems and automate repetitive tasks in my day-to-day work. My most recent win was to create a script that did not have any code within global scope, all of the tasks performed within the script were encapsulated within a function. Consistency in my study will hopefully produce some results over the course of 2024. I’ll let you know how it goes!
~Eric Perkins