Cisco is it where it's at?

[PalmStrike]

I have had a few people advise me of late that Cisco is the way forward if you really want to earn, and that it holds more weight than the old Microsoft Certs.

I am about to go in for just a small self learning course in the hope that with that and a year of being thrown in the deep end looking after a very ill network, I would hopefully have the umph needed to Kickstart quite a worthwhile career within the field of firewalls and WAN.

Any views/comments/advice?

 

[ajcazz]

From my experience - Cisco is the way to go. I worked in Hospitality for 10 years working up to Senior management, then got jack of the industry and completed my MCP in 1999 and went into a level 1 job for over 2 years earning the same money as when I was a manager in Hospitality. Then I got my CCNA and went into a level 1 job earning 25% MORE than the MCP job. I now have my CCNP and I am gunning for a 50% pay rise.
So you can see why I feel Cisco is the way to go.
ajcazz

 

[dogbert2]

Hmmmm,

In reality, a certification is only worth what a employer is willing to give you for it. I have a ton of certifications, a degree, and almost 21 years of work experience in the I.T. field. I'm going to start working on my bachelor's this spring, and at least with a college degree, it doesn't expire, you only pay for it once (more if you fail courses, heh), and given the fact that more HR droids are listing (college degree required/preferred), this makes more sense in the long run (esp. if you want to go into management someday).

I value certifications, but the issue of having to re-new them all the time (esp. if you get them while you are already employed, and would LIKE to have them, is another matter entirely).

What cisco should do is make the certification valid at a certain version number (CCNA 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, CCNP 1.0, 2.0, etc) so that a employer could check out what skill set a person has under that version number. I know the exam for CCNA 1.0 was WAY easier than the CCNA 3.0 exam series.

 

[PalmStrike]

Thanks, I shall ponder on it a little further.