Another Question

NickBurns · New Member Joined: 26 May 2005 Posts: 3 Location: Texas

What are my viable options to study?

Self learning seems to be slow and most lacking. Although the cheapest.

CBT's are boring and expensive.

In-class training is the best, but I don't know who's paying $6000 for a class.

How is everyone doing it?

TIA

jsprague · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 2:25 am

It depends to some degree which certification you are asking about... For example, taking classes for CompTIA exams is as waste of money. It also depends on who is paying - If company sponsored, people will take training classes.

Overall, most people self-study for their certifications using books, practice tests, and some use CBTs.
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namit · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 5:11 am

arnt there vidio classes that you can get from some people on ebay?
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jsprague · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 5:57 am

CBTs are video classes.. Smile

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namit · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 6:05 am

A ok sorry did not read it correctly.
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IMissCalifornia · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 9:16 am

Try checking out your local community college. The courses do take a little longer than some of the training centers...but

I only pay $65 a credit hour and most of the classes are 3-5 credit hours...so average class costs between $195 to $325 and then books too...which usually run about $100 per semester.

In the series for the CCNA was a total of 4 classes and I paid for 20 credit hours and then bought the books on line from Cisco to save some money.
They usually offer discounts when you buy the books on line.

Just an option. It does take longer. The classes are usually 8 weeks where I go to school, but it costs less and I have a total of almost 200 hands on lab hours.

I really feel like I learned a lot in those classes too and feel very comfortable that I actually know enough to pass the cert the first time.

IMissCalifornia · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 9:19 am

Forgot to mention that they also offer other classes for Microsoft etc...I just suggest calling them to find out what they offer.

jsprague · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 9:30 am

Good suggestion.. When I first started getting certified (Network Essentials on NT 4.0 track) I took a class at a community college which cost around $200. After the first one, I realized that I did not need classes, but I think it helped build confidence for my first exam.
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IMissCalifornia · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 9:50 am

Well for people like me that need a structured environment to keep them motivated...going to the school was a good thing. Smile

Plus we had access to all the equipment and the help of the instructors whenever we needed it...

I enjoy the classroom environment.

But I do agree that self study for some is a viable option and many people are successful learning that way.

Just wasn't for me.

jsprague · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 10:19 am

It is true that everyone learns differently. If I ever need a class, I would use a community college or CBTs rather than paying thousands of dollars for training schools. Smile

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IMissCalifornia · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 10:42 am

Exactly... Very Happy

Headhunter · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 7:01 pm

well 5 day training courses are quite good for people in the industry and they keep me in a job

I prefer self study, own time own pace, not easy sometimes but I just do

And as for example CCIE lab preperation... no classes available anyway so it's good to have some self discipline and start to learn how to self study
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IMissCalifornia · **Post subject:** **Posted:** Fri May 27, 2005 9:17 pm

Good point HH, we don't want you out of a job. Smile

Some of us don't have any self discipline though!! hehehe

Yellow Dog

And see if you can find it through their Continuing Ed programs. I teach part time at a local CC, and the ConEd A+ and Net+ courses I teach come down to less than a $1 an hour for the time they are in the classroom/labs