modemgirl

I wanted to update the diagram of my internal network topology. What do you think?

ALSO:

I PASSED MY CCNA last week! :)

this is very exciting news! mainly, because i don’t have to stress about it anymore. my goal was to write it before my first anniversary with PEER 1, which came and went in the beginning of March, so it’s been looming on my conscience since then.  halfway though the exam i was positive there was no way in hell i’d pass – i messed up big time on a couple of the bigger “simulator” questions, and then drew a total blank on something very simple early on in the exam.

the test is quite structured and you’re only allowed 90 minutes to answer about 50 questions. once you click ‘done’ on a question there’s no going back, so you have to budget your time accordingly, without any idea of what you have left to do. thankfully i was able to jumpstart my brain, cut my losses and get on with it, but i lost valuable time and had to rush through the remainder of the exam,  running out of time halfway through the last question.

the exam questions take a variety of formats. the majority are multiple choice, with a few matching, which are fairly straightforward as long as you’ve done your studying. the hard questions are the simulations, which provide a situation and corresponding network diagram which functions as a simulated environment and allows you to log in to the necessary network devices, make configuration changes and solve the given problem. these questions can be quite long and complicated, and you are only given the bare minimum IOS to complete the given tasks. this can often throw the test taker for a loop, as you may not have access to certain commands that you might normally use in a given situation. like… SHOW RUN for example. no show run for you!

the test is written at a certified testing center and graded automatically. so after a small brain meltdown at the beginning, i rushed through the remainder of the exam, convinced the difficulty i had with my EIGRP configuration would be my downfall. despite all intention to stay optimistic, at that moment i was sure my career as a network analyst would soon be over. UR DOIN IT WRONG, SERRA! my brain screamed at me until suddenly the timer expired. my heart stopped, the screen went black and when i saw the word Congratulations! i was sure it was mocking me. considering that the passing grade is around 82% and i messed up bigtime on a couple of the big simulator questions…..wait… CONGRATULATIONS?!!!  i made some sort of squawking noise and then ran squealing with joy out of the test center. somehow i managed to pull off an 87% and i could start breathing again!

people keep asking me – so what is this certification, and what does it qualify you to do? well, the cert is cisco certified network associate, and it pretty much qualifies me to do the job i already have. it’s considered an ‘entry level’ networking certification, but for an entry level cert, it’s hella hard. the amount of material you need to know is huge, and very theoretical. also DRY AS HELL to study. i find networking interesting, but it’s not a very exciting thing to study unless you have a good teacher. i spent a lot of time watching chris bryant’s videos on youtube – he is a great teacher and explains things in a way that’s easy to follow and then reinforces the concepts with real world examples, which really helps with retention. sitting at home reading through one of the two 600+ page text books…. not so much.

so why write a cert when you already have the job? well, i don’t have a degree. i have a diploma from a technical college that no one has ever heard of,  so it’s nice to have something that officially recognizes that i might be a semi reputable human being who could warrant employment in the future. i’d equate this cert to having a BA or Bsc – it’s not really useful on it’s own, but in combination with experience and generalized awesomeness, it’s going to make me more employable and hopefully help me land jobs over my non-certified peers. not that i plan on leaving my current job any time soon, because i love PEER 1, but you never know.

another thing that rules is i actually learned a LOT while preparing for this exam. it really filled in a lot of the cracks and i feel a lot more confident in myself at work. the position i work in can sometimes be quite high pressure, and you will get a lot of clients on the phone who will throw terminology at you without always knowing what they are talking about. being able to understand what they want and explain to them the reality of the situation is key, and confidence is essential.

so now, what’s next? CCNP perhaps, but first i think it’s time to relax and enjoy the summer while it lasts :)