Cisco certifications - CCT vs CCNA and what training sources

dalekphalm · September 14, 2021

Hey guys,

We recently lost our networking specialist at work and until we hire some new people (who may or may not have any particular specialty in networking), I'm basically fumbling my way through Firewall and Switch management.

I can probably convince my employer to pay for some training (and possibly even certification), but I'd like some advice on a few details.

1. CCT Routing and Switching vs CCNA - do CCT first then CCNA? Or skip straight to CCNA?

2. Cisco official training courses vs Third Party?

Cisco charges like $300 for the CCT training, and $800 for CCNA. Are these worth the price?

Are there good free courses? I have unlimited access to LinkedIn Learning (Formerly Lynda.com) and Gale Courses.

Alternatives? Books? Seeking out third party instructor led training?

Our Firewall is a Firepower Next Gen Firewall. Most of our switches are now Meraki or HP Aruba, but odds are eventually I'll need to deal with Cisco switches again (plus the fundamentals will be transferrable to HP Aruba).

Lurick · September 14, 2021

I would say if you're dealing more with broad levels of support then CCNA would be more ideal as it touches on a lot of different aspects BUT the drawback is it's a very broad exam last I heard covering all the technology stripes instead of being focused like it used to be. I'm hesitant to say do one before the other but if you can clear the CCNA then the CCT should be cake if you have to go back and get that for some reason. I would say any free online courses you can find (I know it's not much help) on YT or via anything you have access to would be where I would suggest starting. Look at reviews for INE and other third party providers and compare that to the Cisco training. I've used INE myself and it's been pretty good, I had to stop but the training and courses were very solid in my experience.

Is that training Cisco provided instructor led training or just "here's some VODs and mock exams" style?

Edit:

Since you're dealing with a wide range of products go for the CCNA first, I missed that you're dealing with Firepower and whatnot too at first read.

LAwLz · September 14, 2021

29 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

1. CCT Routing and Switching vs CCNA - do CCT first then CCNA? Or skip straight to CCNA?

I skipped straight to CCNA, but I had plenty of experience first. It really depends on how comfortable you are with networking fundamentals right now. If you are new to networking, my guess is that CCNA will be very overwhelming. I haven't done the newer, reworked cert but from what I've seen it seems to have gotten broader (compared to the old routing and switching cert).

It's a shame Cisco stopped doing CCENT because it sounds to me like that would have been a good start for you.

If you feel comfortable with the fundamentals, go for CCNA. If not, I'd probably do some self studying and then take a CCNA bootcamp. I don't think it's wise spending time, money and effort on an instructor lead CCT course.

The 5 day CCNA bootcamp held by for example Global Knowledge requires you to know quite a bit of the fundamentals before taking the class. If you don't know the fundamentals already, you will get lost and have a hard time keeping up.

Here is a test they have (please note that you do not need to submit real info at the end to get your result).

35 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

2. Cisco official training courses vs Third Party?

I've been to a few courses at "Global Knowledge" and they have been really good. They are a Cisco certified partner so I do believe they count as "official training courses". I don't have any experience with non-Cisco certified in-person courses but there are plenty of great resources online that are from third parties. INE is one of my favorites.

40 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

Cisco charges like $300 for the CCT training, and $800 for CCNA. Are these worth the price?

Is that for the 5-day bootcamps? If so, I think they are worth it. Honestly, 800 dollars sounds pretty cheap, but maybe Swedish prices are higher than Canadian prices. Pretty sure the certification test itself is around 300 dollars, so please keep that in mind. I'd only recommend it if you get your boss to pay for it though.

50 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

Are there good free courses? I have unlimited access to LinkedIn Learning (Formerly Lynda.com) and Gale Courses.

I don't know about LinkedIn Learning or Gale Courses, but they are probably fine.

53 minutes ago, dalekphalm said:

Alternatives? Books? Seeking out third party instructor led training?

Google is your friend. I just searched "free CCNA course" and found this site that, at a glance, seems pretty good. I also did a search on Youtube and found this playlist which seems pretty good too.

I am working on a "networking primer for nerds" but sadly that will not be done anytime soon.

brwainer · September 14, 2021

If you're going to spend any money at all, look at ITPro.tv - $500/year or $50/month includes all you can watch video series, which have all been excellent (gone through Network+, Security+, and CCNA with them), full labs that you perform on actual hardware (the lab backend is ridiculous to dig into), and practice tests.