I feel a little bit disappointed! The CCIE Lab was easier than expected!
What i found out is that the CCIE Lab is not only about the technology and the knowledge (you'll probably find "better/harder" exams in the various vendors' Mock Labs).
It's also about being able to decode, to interpret, to decrypt the Cisco's way of asking you to do specific tasks. And that SUCKS!!! It's just too annoying to try to understand what the task is actually asking for (especially when english is not your native language), because someone though that "cryptic" words will make the exam harder. They do make it harder... to understand, but i don't think this should be the goal.
I surely own a lot to the proctor, who answered without any problem my 10 questions! Without him and without the 2 CCIE Assessor Labs, i wouldn't have learned the way Cisco is thinking.
Also i would like to thank Internetwork Expert for their excellent Mock Labs. Their clever scenarios and their above average difficulty made me understand many tricky things. If only their support was active, it would be the best ever knowledge evaluation material.
Lastly, i would like to thank the Dynamips/Dynagen authors. Both products are what actually made me decide to go for the CCIE in such a short time. Although i had full access to real equipment (routers & switches) because i work for an ISP, i decided to use Dynamips for my preparation. I just did 3 extra 6-hour rack rentals in order to test some strange L2 scenarios, something that Dynamips is lacking sufficient support for. The easiness that both programs provide is invaluable. You just need a capable PC of running them. I think i'll write a full review of my Dynamips/Dynagen experience in a new post. As i wrote in their forum, Cisco should build a statue for their authors.
After the "short" intro, i must say i'm happy that i passed on my first attempt, after 3 months of hard work.
And to answer the question in the title....YES it is possible to be done in 3 months. You just have to believe it.
"Impossible is nothing"
"Impossible is just a small word that is thrown around by small men who find it easier to live in a world they've been given to explore and not use the power they have, to change it! Impossible is not a fact. It is an opinion. Impossible is not a declaration. It is a dare. Impossible is potential. Impossible is temporary. Impossible is nothing!" --Muhammad Ali1 day after the REAL LAB!!!!
CCIE #19858
The journey has come to an end...
CCIE R&S Lab
Start day: 19 Oct 2007
- CCIE R&S Lab: 18 Jan 2008
Posts
Congratulations Tassos !!!
ReplyDeleteVictor.-
www.vcappuccio.wordpress.com
Hi Tassos,
ReplyDeleteI just would like to say *thank you*.
I've been reading your blog for the last months - while I was preparing for the lab - and it has been really helpful, not only the pure technical posts but also your advices about the way to prepare (which include stuff like dynamips settings, labing strategy, etc..). I thought your way of working could be also applied to me, so I tried to prepare in a similar way and it has worked : my journey has also come to an end yesterday, on the first attempt, after 3 months of real no-life :)
I'm sure your blog has helped / will help other guys as well. Keep doing man !
All the best to you for your continuation on the SP track.
/Julien
R&S #21502
Congratulations on your CCIE Julien!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you very much for the compliments ;)
I passed in 3 months...and oh by the way I already work for an ISP ????
ReplyDeleteActually it was first:
ReplyDeletehttp://ccie-in-3-months.blogspot.com/2007/10/how-it-all-started.html
"For the last 9 years i work in the telecoms & service provider business for a well known local ISP...."
and then..."i passed in 3 months".
Hi Tassos,
ReplyDeleteHow many hours a week on average did you study for those 13 weeks?
I would say about 25-30 hours per week.
ReplyDelete