When can I start applying for jobs?

I think there is legislation that prevents you from applying until you have been a CCNA for at least 6 months. This is punishable by 3-5 years in maximum security prison.

All kidding aside. It can't hurt to start trying. Really, you'll find that real experience is more important than certification. How much more important depends on who is hiring and what they are looking for. Best advice is take what you can get at first and don't be too picky, just one that will give you decent experience. Earn your wings and then look for the job that fits you.

As a past professional services manager and engineer manager, when reviewing resumes, I did not view the "Expected CCNA" as a compelling factor. Actually, I see this a an attempt to claim expertise without having any. However, if you have lots of real-world Cisco experience then it is not as negative. Either way, I don't think it improves your chances and if anything, it is seen as a negative. If you have attended and completed a CCNA training course, I would list that instead.

If you have a long-term goal to become a network engineer then figure out what it takes to get there and start taking the steps. One day, week and month at a time. You might need to work for free or take a night shift managing network equipment so that your certifications match your experience. Having a CCNA or even a CCNP without the the appropriate experience can be a problem because hiring managers will see you as "book smart" but they will be hesitant to hand over a complex network environment to someone lacking real experience.

Hope this help.

Yeah, I agree.

I'm working so hard, studying 8-12 hours a day. But I'm also getting really, really depressed with the reality of the situation.

If I hadn't left engineering to raise kids, I wouldn't be starting over. But I made that choice.

Now I feel like my own life is screwed. I scour the job sites every day, and I don't see anything for me.

I have been interviewing some of my friends in the industry. One of them has a great story. He is currently a Sr. product manager for one of the largest cell phone companies in the world. When he started, he was working the local newspaper on the printing press or something. He wanted into the industry badly... .. He approached a community college and offered to work evenings for free.

Amazingly they declined but he persisted and eventually they hired him without pay and he worked 10 hrs a day at the printing press and 10 hours at the college.

He basically worked for six months with almost no sleep.

After 6 months, when he had enough experience to get work elsewhere, he told the community college that he was going to get a job somewhere that paid. But..... .. He gave them a chance to hire him first and they did.

However, they did not have his position budgeted so they only paid him $8 hr.

While he was there he attended classes which included Cisco and Microsoft courses which, as an employee, he could attend for free (minus books).

He has no degree (some college) and started with no experience.

He now makes well over six figures....

He says that persistence and desire are his keys to success and based on his story, I believe him.

Email me ( snipped-for-privacy@gmail.com) and I will share the audio interview with you. You might find it inspiring.

Robert.

Pretty much every engineering job I ever had, was through knowing someone or by some chance meeting. My last job I got becuase my wife struck up a conversation with a guy on a plane. He was the president of a company who was in immediate need of an electrical engineer!

So even though I scour the job boards every day, I don't think much of them. In fact, everyone I know scours them as well, and not one of them has even got an interview.

I'll email you for that story.