CCIE Written Exam 4.0 – Studying Starts Here
ByAfter a few weeks off from studying it’s time to start the long road to CCIE. After asking the advice of some current CCIEs, I have decided to use Internetwork Expert’s training materials for the labs. I managed to catch a 25% sale a few weeks ago and so ordered workbooks I, II and III as well as the Advanced Technologies Class on Demand course. The materials are for the CCIE 4.0 version of the exam and I’ll receive product updates for the lifetime of the 4.0 product, so I’m covered for the new materials when they arrives. Internetwork Expert have already started to develop workbook IV, which is going to cover the new troubleshooting section of the CCIE lab exam, and this should be availablein the next few days.
I thought it would be good to have the CoD available while studying for the written exam as an additional reference . The other list of learning materials I plan to use are:
- Routing TCP/IP Volume I and II by Jeff Doyle and Jennifer Carroll (absolutley essential reading for CCIE candidates)
- Relevant parts of LAN Switching by Kennedy Clark and Kevin Hamilton
- CCNP Multilayer Switching Companion Guide by Wayne Lewis
- MPLS Fundamentals by Luc De Ghein
- Cisco QoS Exam Guide by Wendell Odom and Michael J. Cavanaugh
- CCIE Routing and Switching Official Exam Certification Guide by Wendell Odom, Jim Geir and Naren Mehta (this is currently for the 3.0 track as there is currently no 4.0 book available)
- CBT Nugget courses that I purchased for the CCNP
- Cisco Networking Academy Alumini course for CCNP
- Cisco online resources
- Cisco Documentation CD
For the written exam I’ve started off by downloading the R&S 4.0 Written Exam Topics. I plan to study every part of the exam topics, only ticking a part off when I am happy that I fully understand that section. I have decided to renew my CCNP BCSI module on the way, and so I plan to study the routing sections from the topics first. For the first week or so I’m going to go back to basics and study the following topics:
- Format of an IPv4 packet header
- Format of TCP and UDP packet headers
- ICMP format
- IPv4 addressing
- Subnetting and VLSMs
I have not set myself a concrete deadline for completing my study for the written exam. although I would like to have have passed by the end of this year. If anyone would like to add any more useful resources to my list then please let me know and I’ll publish them.
Popularity: 69% [?]
good luck with the studies…i’m hoping to get past the written this year as well. I like the plan of ticking off each of the written exam topics when you are happy with them.
liquid
Thanks liquid. If you put together any sort of study plan then email me and I’ll post it on the site. It’s always good to learn how other people approach their CCIE studies. How long are you planning on studying for the written? Good luck with the study and let me know how you are progressing.
The only problem for me with ticking off each section is that after a while I forget some of the details of what I first studied. I have modified my plan from that to where I am going back through all the sections a second and third time. It’s like I’m painting a wall and a little more knowledge sticks with every coat. It definitely gets frustrating though.
That is a common problem with studying for any exam that has a lot of subject matter to remember. I can remember when I studied for the composite MPLS/BGP exam, that by the time I finished the BGP topics I had to go back to MPLS and do some quick revision.
We all have different learning methods and finding your best method can be difficult. I studied law at University, so to help remember hundreds of legal cases I had to find a memory technique that worked foe me. Personally I try to write very condensed study notes from the books and videos I use for studying. Once I have finished all the topics I go back over the notes to try and cut them down further, thus reading the notes again in the process. I then use visual aids such as mnemonics, small mind maps or relate the material to a memory I have such as a place or person. I find it much easier to remember things using images than I do trying to remember words and text.
I have a friend who merely highlights sections of his Cisco books as he reads them. He says this helps him visualise the pages and remember the text easier. Lucky person. For most people things aren’t so easy.
You really just need to find a method that works for you.