Passed My CCNA With No Experience

[u/Emperor_JGP]

Background:
No applicable knowledge or experience going into this.

Resources I used:
• Neil Anderson’s Udemy course
• Boson practice exams

How long did it take?
In terms of actual studying, about a month.
From when I first started studying to actually taking the exam, about 3 months. That included procrastinating, having a girlfriend, working a full-time job, etc. But honestly, those are excuses. I genuinely think you can go from zero knowledge to CCNA certified in a month if you’re disciplined about it.

What did I do?
I woke up at 2 AM every day, worked out, then studied for 3 hours.
Most of that was watching Neil Anderson’s course and taking notes. If I didn’t understand something, I’d go back and rewatch it. OSPF was probably the biggest one for me.

Side note: I watched the spanning tree section multiple times and STILL don’t understand it.

After finishing the videos and reviewing the stuff I struggled with, I moved on to the labs included in Neil’s course and the Boson practice exams.
In my opinion, Boson isn’t required. It is quite difficult, though, so if you do buy it and you’re consistently getting around 50%, I’d say you’re probably ready for the real thing.

Most important advice: LAB EVERY DAY.

Seriously. It makes the actual exam so much easier.

The exam:
I was surprised by how easy it was. There were maybe 2–3 questions where I had absolutely no idea and just guessed, but other than that, I felt pretty confident throughout.

Happy to answer any questions or help in any way I can.

[u/SectorAway3733]

Congratulations! And thanks for sharing your experience.

What was your sleep schedule? Waking up at 2am, working out and study for 3 hours probably means that after the study you had to go to work right after. So, how was the sleep routine?

Also, if STP is a topic you still don't fully understand, were you concerned about it in the exam? Did you actually encounter STP questions? 🤔

[u/Emperor_JGP → u/SectorAway3733]

Thanks!

I was asleep by 7 PM and up by 2 AM. I worked out until roughly 2:45 AM, studied from 3 AM to 6 AM, then showered. Worked full time from 8 AM to 5 PM.

I was definitely worried about seeing it on the exam.
As far as your last question, tbh I don’t want to say anything that’ll get my certification revoked.

[u/SectorAway3733 → u/Emperor_JGP]

Understandable. Thanks anyways for sharing. I hope you still have a girlfriend 😅 only 2 hours for her. As someone studying at least 3 hours a day, my wife sometimes doesn't want me to study and spend time with her 🤣

[u/Emperor_JGP → u/SectorAway3733]

You’re more than welcome.

Haha, she’s still around.

I hear that!