CCNA 640-801 pass rate for 1st, 2nd, 3rd tries?

you are not alone.....

i think it relates to your background, learning method's you are/have used and probably how old you are too.... (old dog , new tricks etc...) as to how quick you pick it up and run.

Passing the CCNA on the first try involves some more factors: * how much experience do you have taking Prometric and Vue certification tests * how comfortable are you working with Cisco routers and switches * how many practice tests have you taken

I would love to believe that pure "street knowledge" of the equipment and technology is enough to get by, but it is not true. In a CCNA exam you will be asked questions like what category a dynamic rouing protocols would be identified with. These are book terms which would not be obvious from someone who is more equipment savy and not as book smart. Other questions would ask which protocol is better for a particular situation which seem more like a relative point of view than a factual direct question.

You should begin with your books and material - the exam guides. After learning what commands and concepts they describe, take it further. Do not just memorize the single command to save the configuration, learn the command and all of its possibilites totally, then move on to the next page. Also, stay within the book topics when fully learning a command or concept. It is a waste to read about dynamic routing and go further by reading the BGP configuaration guide while studying for the CCNA. Just take something like a mention of "show run" and learn what you can really do with a "show run" command. Through this you will fully understand the concepts that the CCNA guide and CCNA exam covers, not just memorizing a single answer for a single question and then failing when the question is worded slightly differently. This also allows you to confidently eliminate wrong multiple choice answers which can be very important when confused and doubting yourself during the test.

After learning what you think you need to know, take practice exams, either paper versions or computer based tests. This will train you to what kinds of questions you will get. After doing poorly initially, return to your books to build up on the sections that you did not know as well. If you really do fail on your first attempt, this method will assure that you can see which section on the real CCNA you did poorly in and be able to return and supplement your original success with the remaining knowledge.

Good luck, and do not lie to yourself. When you honestly test yourself before the exam and see that you are comfortable with the knowledge, you will know that your test fee will return something for your monetary investment.

According to my Cisco Academy instructor the pass rate is 17%

17% pass rate for the CCNA? Sounds more like the pass rate for a CCIE written or CCIE lab! That is 1 pass in 6 attempts!

Out of all of the people I have worked with in recent years that have taken Cisco certification tests, we have had better than 50%+ pass rate for any professional level exams and more like 75%+ pass rate for first time CCNA. Perhaps either times are changing or average knowledge going into the exam has dropped. Who knows why this is a different rate?

I will say this: No matter what a statistic says the pass rate is, if you prepare properly, you will pass that exam. Maybe not 17% but better at 50% where you fail the first try but definately get it on the second try.

Did your instructor tell you 17% pass rate to scare you all into studying or was this instructor's previous class pass rate 17%? If it is the latter, change instructors or consider dropping the program. I am kind of serious there because I have substituted for CCNA instructors who only cared about getting paid, not how many students passed the exam. When I taught CCNA, my student pass rate was more like 80%. Ever hear that phrase that a student is only as good as their teacher? Perhaps some students can surpass their teacher, but the point is to go where your instructor is very fluent AND can pass that on to others.

Best of luck, and do not stop after your first certification!

And how do/did you measure your success rate? When was this ?

How do I measure my success? I measure my success in how well I do my job with ease. Knowing subnets off of the top of my head without calculators and not having to look up commands makes my job easier. Knowing how to design the networks to work the first time makes my job better. That is what is beyond the exam, and I still have many more exams to help benchmark further learning for myself.

How long ago was this? (guessing the reference to the student pass rate better than 17%)?

2000-2002

Getting back to the topic: If the CCIE has a high fail rate around the point where a person takes 6 attempts to pass, that is roughly 17% pass rate. Why should the CCNA be so difficult as well?

My point is, and I have to end on this, that if anyone really reads and learns the material, and not just memorize from braindumps and TestKings, that they can pass within 2 tries if not just 1.

Been there. I took the CCNA the first time with a 759 and then got a

809 the next time 2 to 3 weeks later, trying to beat the Nov 6th change. I'm curious what text and hands-on materials you used. Myself, while trying to decide between Odom and Lammle, I came across Chris Bryant's Ultimate CCNA Study Package. It sounded great, in addition to his text it came with 3 free days rack rental, and a lab workbook. Bryant's name appeared on forum's here and there as an active participant, and although I couldn't find many comments about his product, I couldn't find anything negative either. So after studying his materials thoroughly until I had his text down cold, and after acquiring a 2-router and 1-switch kit and hammering away at it with his labs (as thoroughly as I could with a limited kit), I went to the test. I already knew what to expect as far as the format of the test goes, so that was not upsetting at all. I was shocked though, at how the test differed from what I had expected, given the "Ultimate CCNA Study Package". Apparently "Ultimate" isn't synonomous with "Comprehensive". Bryant's package didn't cover extended access lists in enough depth, nor did it cover STP in enough depth. He breezed past Ethernet, and BGP wasn't even mentioned, so I was very surprised to see those repeatedly on the exam. That only names a few topics that were neglected by his text. In a race to beat Nov 6th, I grabbed Odom's 640-801, a set thats worth its price for the exam CD alone. I crammed the material but it wasn't enough, like I said I only got 809. Like other people here have said, I believe success on the exam is dependent on a combination of text-book smarts and hands-on practice (and lots of it). Consequently you can only be as smart as the text you bought and the hands-on work you did. I was lacking in the "text" area, you could say. There are 3 days left, but I'm deciding to forego the 801, in order to give the Odom set a thorough study. Then I'm taking the 2 test option in a month or two. Long story short, I don't know what your study plan was, but your not the only one who had problems. Come to think of it, I remember several sad faces filing out of the test facility when I was there and I could tell from their computer screens they were taking the same exam. The way I see it, the tougher the test is, the more the certification is worth. So take it with a grain of salt. It's still a career worth pursuing. Hang in there.

The test itself isn't hard. If you pass it with a good score (not border-line), you are ready to enter a networking job at a basic level. You have to learn the concepts, then apply them.

Folk like you keep funding these fools who steal material or simplky re-write it and reiterate, for $50 a time.

I passed my CCNA with full marks, first attempt, and spent $0 on tuition. My university course was paid by the Scottish government, so I had easy access to lab equipment. The fact is, without access to lab equipment I'd still have passed, because I haven't touched equipment in many months, but I've got a good memory, and simulators work well for CCNA.

The reason CCNA is pretty shit these days is because anybody can get it with a bit of memory, which is why CCNP seperates the people with no chance in networking from people who are genuine and talented.

I passed the CCNA exam in 2001 and the four CCNP exams 2002-2003, all on the first try. But don't be discouraged, I had about 5 years job experience with Cisco routers and switches before.

IMHO it is hard to pass the tests without any practise, but not impossible.

Don't give up!

Best regards, Martin.

tedium schrieb:

I have material from both Todd Lammle and long-time CCIE Wendel Odom. I prefer Wendel's material for those who want to really learn the material.

If you are having a hard time grasping the concepts, take Todd's material. If I might say, he presents the material starting from a lower level and his teachings are not very complicated and are filled with analogies. Even though I do not like his work, I do have to admit that they guy has been making a living as a traininer, primarily CCNA, for quite a while. Then again, if the CCNA is too harsh for you and you need it presented in a more gentle way, you probably are not grasping this topic.

To get all of the information you need, I recommend Wendel Odom's writings. They cover everything. That seems to be the complaint common in these postings about the books - that they did not cover what was on the test. An comparison of how Wendel writes is how a segment of data goes from one host to another from birth to death with all of the events in between described in detail while other books spend only a single paragraph simply stating that it happens.

I am biased towards Wendel's book rather than Lammle's books because by the time you are attempting to take a CCNA, you should be an intelligent learned person who can take the total description of the topic and be able to learn from it. If you bought CCNA for Dummies, then you shouldn't be doing this.