Ask A CCNA Candidate How Theyre Preparing For Exam Day, And Youll Get Different Answers. Different Books, Different Websites, Different Practice Exams. One Trend Ive Noticed Is That Some Candidates Answer The Question By Reeling Off The Number And Names Of The Practice Exams Theyve Purchased. Basically, The Candidate Is Studying By Taking A Lot Of Practice Exams. And In Some Cases, I Mean A Lot Of Them. The Intent Of This Article Isnt To Slam Practice Exams. I Do Want To Address This Trend Among Cisco Certification Candidates Of Purchasing As Many Practice Exams As They Can Find, Attempting To Pass The CCNA Exam By Brute Forcing It, As One Cisco Employee Recently Said. I Have Nothing Against Practice Exams. I Sell Flash Cards That Serve As A Practice Exam, If Thats The Way The Candidate Wants To Use Them. However, You Cant Be Dependent On Them To Pass Your Exams. As I Tell Students Every Day, When Youre In Front Of A Rack Of Routers, There Is No A, B, C, And D Choice. Youve Got To Know What Youre Doing. If Practice Exams Are A Candidates Primary Tool For Exam Preparation, Though, Theyll Most Likely Be Disappointed On Exam Day. The Current Cisco CCNA Exams Are Designed To Weed Out Those Who Have Memorized A Chart Or Two There Is A Premium Not Only On Knowledge, But The Ability To Apply That Knowledge. Just Taking One Practice Exam After The Other Will Not Develop This Skill. Simulators Are Fine To A Certain Extent As Well, But Dont Become Dependent On Them. The Simulators Ive Seen Dont Really Let You Make Mistakes In Your Configuration, And Its When You Have To Fix Your Own Mistakes That You Truly Learn Whats Going On. Keep The Long-range View When Preparing For Your CCNA Exams. Youre Not Just Studying For Exam Day Youre Laying The Groundwork For A Successful Career. The Study You Do For Your CCNA Exam Will Be Some Of The Most Important Study You Ever Do, Since All The Work You Do For Future Certifications Like The CCNP (and Yes, The CCIE!) Are Based On The Foundation Youre Building Today. Make It A Solid Foundation. Stick To A Well-rounded Study Plan, Using Books, Practice Exams, And Routing Equipment, And Youre On Your Way To Success In The Cisco Field.Chris BryantCCIE 12933christhebryantadvantage
