One factor that helped make up for that was that the Novell exams were adaptive. If you missed a question on a particular topic, you would continue to be asked questions about that topic until you got it right. You couldn’t afford to be weak in any topic, because the exam would most likely find that out and keep hitting you with questions on that topic until you failed.

Adding to the stress, after a certain number of questions your exam could end at any time. You had no idea how many questions you would get, just that you would get at least 15. Every time you hit the “next” button after question 15, you didn’t know if you’d get another question or if the exam would suddenly end and give you a pass or fail response.


What will be the next “big jump” in computer certification exams? To earn the world’s most difficult technical certification, the CCIE, the candidate must first pass a rigorous 100-question qualification exam, and must then pass a practical lab exam. The candidate is presented with an exacting set of network requirements and must build that network on a pod of Cisco routers and switches in less than eight hours.

This is just personal opinion and not “insider information”, but I believe the day will come when the CCNA, CCNP, and other Cisco certifications will require some kind of hands-on practical lab to earn the certification. What better way to test competency than to have to perform tasks on real Cisco equipment? There would be more overhead for Cisco with this kind of testing, since lab equipment and lab proctors would be needed, but the already-prized CCNA and CCNP would become that much more valuable in the workplace if employers knew that to earn that certification, the job candidate had to pass a hands-on exam.

This would benefit the candidates as well, since it would do an even better job in protecting their investment in time and money. This could also be the next step in ferretting out candidates who try to get past the CCNA and CCNP exams via braindumps. As I always tell my students and customers, when you’re standing in front of that router or switch, there is no multiple choice … you either know it or you don’t!

Are you preparing for CISCO ?

Schedule your study time, and regard this study time as you would an appointment with a client. If you were to meet a customer at 10:00 to discuss a network install, would you just decide not to show up and watch television instead? Not if you wanted the job. The same goes for your study time. That’s an appointment with the most important customer of all – YOU.

Turn your cell, iPod, TV, instant messenger, and all other electronic collars off for the duration of your study time. I know those of us in information technology don’t like to say this, but we can actually exist without being in touch with the world for a little while. You may even get to like it! Having uninterrupted study time is key to CCNA and CCNP exam success.

Finally, schedule your exam before you start studying. Contrary to what many people think, “deadline” is not a dirty word. We do our best work when we have a deadline and a schedule to keep. Make out your study schedule, schedule your exam, and get to work just as you would a network project for a customer. The project you’re working on is your career and your life, and by following these simple steps you can make it a highly successful project – by passing your CCNA and CCNP exam!