Obtaining and maintaining technical certifications is an excellent way to remain relevant and updated. Cisco has made many changes to the Cisco certification track. There are new exams, new titles, a new exam syllabus, and a novel versatile approach to Cisco certifications. The core certification programs for CCNA, CCNP, and CCIE has been updated. Moreover, an entirely new DevNet certification program was introduced.
CCNA
The new CCNA exam Implementing and Administering Cisco Solutions (200-301 ) is replacing all the contemporary CCNA and CCDA certifications. Specialization at the CCNA level is getaway– no longer CCNA security, wireless, etc. Rather, engineers will now concentrate on the CCNP level. If you are new to Cisco technology, the great news is that it’s one exam and done to receive a CCNA certification.
CCNP
The CCNP certification path is also changed to focus on five core technology areas: Service Provider, Enterprise, Data Center, Security, and Collaboration. To receive any professional-level certification, an engineer must pass two exams: a technology core exam and a concentration exam. This restructuring is ruining the field across the various specializations. Moreover, each exam passed during your certification journey will get you a specialist certification.
To obtain the new CCNP Enterprise certification, you must get through the Implementing and Operating Cisco Enterprise Network Core Technologies (300-401 ENCOR) exam and any one of the six concentration exams. After passing Enterprise Core, you will receive Cisco Certified Specialist–Enterprise Core, and after passing a concentration exam, you will become Cisco Certified Specialist for that domain.
A comprehensive CCNP Enterprise certification will fetch the engineer three titles: CCNP Enterprise Certification, Cisco Certified Specialist–Enterprise Core, and Cisco Certified Specialist–Enterprise Advanced Infrastructure Implementation. In the new certification track, there are no prerequisites for professional-level certifications.
CCIE
The new CCIE certification track has six core technology areas: Enterprise Infrastructure, Enterprise Wireless, Data Center, Security, Service Provider, and Collaboration. There are no former requirements for the new CCIE program, so this continues to be unchanged from the old track. To obtain a CCIE, an engineer must pass a core technology exam and a lab exam in the technology area of choice. The old CCIE written exams have been replaced by the core technology exams from the CCNP certification.
The new core technology exams are the doorkeepers for the CCIE lab. For an instance, if you want to earn CCIE Data Center, you require to pass the Implementing and Operating Cisco Data Center Core Technologies (DCCOR 350-601) exam along with the lab exam CCIE Data Center v3.0. Lastly, the former CCIE recertification policy of two years active, one year idle, has modified to a full three years of active status before demanding re certification.
Major Changes with Cisco Certification Suite
In the new Cisco certifications, there are few major changes. These changes as below:
- Only one CCNA
- New Cisco certification track for Software Developers: Cisco DevNet certification
- Networking and Software together
- A New certification level: Specialist
- CCNP in two just steps
- Routing and Switching certification category will be Replaced with Enterprise Infrastructure
- CCIE in two steps
- CCIE Lab is changed
- CCNP has got simpler, but CCIE has become challenging
- is Easier But CCIE is Harder
- No Prerequisites Anymore
- Two options for Network Technicians
- Lower Certification Cost
- No recertification
- Recertification credits
- CCIE lifetime authenticity
- Start preparing for the exam and earn it.
Now, let’s focus on each of these major changes and see how they will affect us.
The Reasons Why Cisco Certifications Have More Weight than the Other Certifications:
- Cisco Certification proves and improves networking Knowledge
- Unlocks new paths for excellent career growth
- Boosts Salary
- Appreciation from Peers and Colleagues
- Employers want to hire Cisco certified professionals
Conclusion
The technology is rapidly evolving, and with that brings concerns about when to start a specific path or Cisco certifications. Waiting for the app, time to start is commonly never a good idea. The concepts are usually updated rather than completely new, so we always recommend journeying the current track and employing those skills to upgrade to a newer track when the time comes.
