well..I passed the composite, and am moving on to the CIT exam. Read through the ciscopress book (not at all impressed with it), and have looked up on cisco's site information about the exam topics. Anyone taken the exam lately and have some thoughts on what to expect for it?
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CIT Exam 5
- Thread starter lerdalt
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NettableWalker
IS-IT--Management
The CIT sims were easy, really basic stuff; except on my 2nd attempt I entered an IP address wrong and locked myself out of the remote router, and thus failed the exam....
remember: Show CDP Neighbors Detail
MCP,CCA,CCNA,CCNP,Net+.
remember: Show CDP Neighbors Detail
MCP,CCA,CCNA,CCNP,Net+.
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helpdeskdan
Technical User
Thanks NettableWalker! Good to know - cramming right now.
helpdeskdan
Technical User
Dang. You must have had a different sim than me. cdp neighbor detail didn't give any useful information - I didn't get it. Lot more BGP than I had anticipated. Catastrophic failure.
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helpdeskdan
Technical User
I don't know what to tell you. NettableWalker obviously had little BGP in his test as he mentioned in one of his posts. So, I barely glanced at BGP. On the test, there were several BGP questions that I did not know. Maybe Cisco is reading these forums.
All I can tell you is study the outline from Cisco. Read the chapter reviews from the Cisco CIT book - there are questions from that book on the test but, as has been said before, it's mainly good for putting your coffee on. Remember, this is a troubleshooting test - they will ask you troubleshooting questions. They won't ask you what the default distance is when redistributing into OSPF, they will show you debug outputs and ask you why it didn't work. (Not an actual question but it gives you an idea) Know debugs, know shows.
If it helps, there was no ISIS, NAT, AAA (surprisingly - maybe a fluke), no cable modem/pppoe, not much about policy based routing, and nothing but basic STP. (IE - no MST, RSTP) I don't think I'm breaking any Cisco agreement by telling you that. If Cisco would do a better job of defining their tests and writing decent certification guides, I wouldn't have to! It's very frustrating; no wonder so many people are driven to testking. I've never done so bad on a Cisco test - very disheartening, I really need to pass this test and I'm quickly running out of time.
All I can tell you is study the outline from Cisco. Read the chapter reviews from the Cisco CIT book - there are questions from that book on the test but, as has been said before, it's mainly good for putting your coffee on. Remember, this is a troubleshooting test - they will ask you troubleshooting questions. They won't ask you what the default distance is when redistributing into OSPF, they will show you debug outputs and ask you why it didn't work. (Not an actual question but it gives you an idea) Know debugs, know shows.
If it helps, there was no ISIS, NAT, AAA (surprisingly - maybe a fluke), no cable modem/pppoe, not much about policy based routing, and nothing but basic STP. (IE - no MST, RSTP) I don't think I'm breaking any Cisco agreement by telling you that. If Cisco would do a better job of defining their tests and writing decent certification guides, I wouldn't have to! It's very frustrating; no wonder so many people are driven to testking. I've never done so bad on a Cisco test - very disheartening, I really need to pass this test and I'm quickly running out of time.
NettableWalker
IS-IT--Management
Don't worry dude, pay the money, take it again in 5 days and make sure you learn everything you didn't know yesterday and you'll be fine.
It took me 3 goes.
MCP,CCA,CCNA,CCNP,Net+.
It took me 3 goes.
MCP,CCA,CCNA,CCNP,Net+.
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- #8
Thanks for the advise. I have to agree about the book though. Reading the book then reading the test objectives, they seem to be almost opposite each other. Think my plan will be to read the chapter summaries out of all the books and give it a shot myself.
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- #9
WOWZA...broke down and took the test this morning and bombed. Had to make an attempt at it just to see know what to expect. I'm almost more confused now than before I went it. Not exactly certain where to start re-studying. Thinking my best bet is going to be getting some labs setup and going through actually breaking a few things.
I passed CIT on Friday (and am now a CCNP - yay!).
I prepared for this exam by skimming through the other three books and concentrating on subjects I knew I was weak on, and anything that was remotely related to troubleshooting. Also by setting up labs so I could go through some debugs, and doing a lot of show commands so that I was familiar with exactly what information is presented by each command.
Someone else recommended printing out the objectives for the exam and referring to them, which I also did - it's a good way of verifying you're on track; if you look at one of the points and start hoping you don't get tested on it, you better start studying!
And yes, the CIT book itself is about 90% useless, but at the same time there are topics in there which you will get tested on. Topics such as topology and end system diagrams do come up.
I prepared for this exam by skimming through the other three books and concentrating on subjects I knew I was weak on, and anything that was remotely related to troubleshooting. Also by setting up labs so I could go through some debugs, and doing a lot of show commands so that I was familiar with exactly what information is presented by each command.
Someone else recommended printing out the objectives for the exam and referring to them, which I also did - it's a good way of verifying you're on track; if you look at one of the points and start hoping you don't get tested on it, you better start studying!
And yes, the CIT book itself is about 90% useless, but at the same time there are topics in there which you will get tested on. Topics such as topology and end system diagrams do come up.
helpdeskdan
Technical User
Thanks techkiwi - and congratulations! I am going to be retaking the test soon. I couldn't have said it better myself - the book is mostly worthless however, there are a few questions from it so it is required reading. You can't afford to miss ANY questions on the CIT! It is a shame the author takes such a "dumbed down" approach. It SHOULD be reviewing debug and show outputs, not going over trivial networking - you read the book and think, "Great, I know this stuff well - I'll pass, no problem!" which does not prove to be at all true.
I would advise anybody who flunks to go immediately grab a piece of paper and start writing as much as you can remember - what kind of topics were on the test and, perhaps more importantly, which topics were NOT on the test. You'll be surprised how quickly you forget! Then, if you have time, skim through your books and mark the chapters you will not need to study. When covering such a broad amount of material, a few chapters that can be skipped is a big help. Of course, I haven't passed yet, but this has already made studying easier - I had no plan the first time. Maybe that helps somebody, I don't know - maybe I'm just ranting because I'm mad at Cisco for publishing a terrible book and an inadequate test outline.
I would advise anybody who flunks to go immediately grab a piece of paper and start writing as much as you can remember - what kind of topics were on the test and, perhaps more importantly, which topics were NOT on the test. You'll be surprised how quickly you forget! Then, if you have time, skim through your books and mark the chapters you will not need to study. When covering such a broad amount of material, a few chapters that can be skipped is a big help. Of course, I haven't passed yet, but this has already made studying easier - I had no plan the first time. Maybe that helps somebody, I don't know - maybe I'm just ranting because I'm mad at Cisco for publishing a terrible book and an inadequate test outline.
I think it can be a mistake to make assumptions about what will be on your test based on what somebody else had on theirs - or even what you got on your first test. Although only Cisco knows for sure exactly how the tests are put together, I think it's safe to assume there is a large pool of questions they can draw from, and it may well be that you'll get all the BGP questions that NettableWalker didn't 
I found the testlets the hardest. I found that I was flipping through the four different questions trying to get a handle on what was going on. When I got one near the end (5 minutes left on the clock) I nearly had a heart attack. Ended up making some educated guesses on that one so that I could finish it in time ...
I found the testlets the hardest. I found that I was flipping through the four different questions trying to get a handle on what was going on. When I got one near the end (5 minutes left on the clock) I nearly had a heart attack. Ended up making some educated guesses on that one so that I could finish it in time ...
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techkiwi..you hit on EXACTLY the questions I've hated and dread seeing even one in any of the exams I've taken. I find I'm constantly flipping between the tabs. Its hard to decide if its worth copying down as much info as I can from the 'reference' tab to have in hand for the questions.
helpdeskdan..bet you have about the same thoughts that I do, maybe I should write my own book for the CIT. If it weren't for the fact the test has been expired, I might consider it further.
Also have to agree on doing the brain dump immediately after the test to help with some review of material later. I already know of some key chapters I need to review again after my first failed attempt, also know of some Labs to setup for it to prepare as well. Now that I think about it, a better book for studying for this test would be some lab notes that could be setup and run through with live equipment.
Now I will admit, there were things on the exam that I do not think were covered as well in the other courses. Specifically troubleshooting of BGP.
helpdeskdan..bet you have about the same thoughts that I do, maybe I should write my own book for the CIT. If it weren't for the fact the test has been expired, I might consider it further.
Also have to agree on doing the brain dump immediately after the test to help with some review of material later. I already know of some key chapters I need to review again after my first failed attempt, also know of some Labs to setup for it to prepare as well. Now that I think about it, a better book for studying for this test would be some lab notes that could be setup and run through with live equipment.
Now I will admit, there were things on the exam that I do not think were covered as well in the other courses. Specifically troubleshooting of BGP.
helpdeskdan
Technical User
I remember BGP questions that were not even in the BSCI book! It's almost enough to drive a man to testking. (I've gotten this far without them, I'm not giving in now)
By the way, this looks like a nice random cisco page. (Hint, hint)
In your test prep, I might also advise you to google some other phrases prepending the word "cisco": eigrp faq, ospf faq, osfp commands, rip commands, ect.
Again, I'm not breaking any cisco agreement. It's not like I'm giving out answers.
By the way, this looks like a nice random cisco page. (Hint, hint)
In your test prep, I might also advise you to google some other phrases prepending the word "cisco": eigrp faq, ospf faq, osfp commands, rip commands, ect.
Again, I'm not breaking any cisco agreement. It's not like I'm giving out answers.
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- #16
Bummer, I had hopes for you. I've been taking a couple of weeks off from studying. Ready to get back in the groove of things though now this week. Plan is to hit all three books and do some labs as best I can. Its the best way I can think to prepare for this exam anymore.
helpdeskdan
Technical User
lerdalt -
2 cents of advice I found to be true: forget the books! They are good for review, but when it comes time to cram for the test, you need to look elsewhere - I can tell you from experience that there are questions on the test that I knew the answer to only because I read about it on a Cisco website. Read the cisco book over once though - there are questions from the test in it!
There is no truly good materials for this test in print! Scour the internet for cisco troubleshooting guides and study them. Here's an list of some websites I liked enough to bookmark. I'd advise studying every one of them. Remember, we only have till the Nov 15th! After than, there is NO MORE REGISTERING for the CIT! (Academy students - GOOD LUCK - I've been trying for a month and a half to get a voucher with no luck. I now plan not to need one!)
2 cents of advice I found to be true: forget the books! They are good for review, but when it comes time to cram for the test, you need to look elsewhere - I can tell you from experience that there are questions on the test that I knew the answer to only because I read about it on a Cisco website. Read the cisco book over once though - there are questions from the test in it!
There is no truly good materials for this test in print! Scour the internet for cisco troubleshooting guides and study them. Here's an list of some websites I liked enough to bookmark. I'd advise studying every one of them. Remember, we only have till the Nov 15th! After than, there is NO MORE REGISTERING for the CIT! (Academy students - GOOD LUCK - I've been trying for a month and a half to get a voucher with no luck. I now plan not to need one!)
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Thanks for the list, you should post those as an FAQ as well. Looks like some good stuff.
You are right about the books, but I remember from my failed attempt there were just a couple of what I'd describe as "theory based" that I couldn't remember exactly from the books.
All I know is kudos to anyone that has past this test previously. Don't know how you found the material needed to cover it but AWESOME JOB!!!
I know I need to step up my efforts in studying. Hopefully life/work will stop getting in the way and I can knock out the CIT by Thanksgiving. After that I have to take one of the new exams which the material is not available yet.
You are right about the books, but I remember from my failed attempt there were just a couple of what I'd describe as "theory based" that I couldn't remember exactly from the books.
All I know is kudos to anyone that has past this test previously. Don't know how you found the material needed to cover it but AWESOME JOB!!!
I know I need to step up my efforts in studying. Hopefully life/work will stop getting in the way and I can knock out the CIT by Thanksgiving. After that I have to take one of the new exams which the material is not available yet.
helpdeskdan
Technical User
If I actually PASS, maybe I'll post a faq. ;-)
BTW - thanksgiving may be too late - NOV 15! Read my rant on the New CCNP track thread.
BTW - thanksgiving may be too late - NOV 15! Read my rant on the New CCNP track thread.
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