CCIE
CCIE stands for Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert. It is the highest level of certification Cisco Systems, Inc. provides. There are less than 12 000 CCIE certifaction holders world wide. .
The CCIE certification is considered and sometimes referred to as "the doctorate of networking".
CCIE Tracks
There are 4 different CCIE tracks:
- Routing and Switching
- Security
- Service Provider
- Voice
Routing and Switching
The most popular track, that covers a broad overview of all LAN, WAN and dial access network techniques, such as ethernet, TCP/IP, OSPF and BGP.
Security
There are only about 400 CCIE Security certification holders worldwide; this track concentrates on network security and covers subjects such as Cisco PIX firewall, IOS security Wireless LAN security and many others. .
Service Provider
This track focusses on networking in the service provider line of business. Only about 170 persons worldwide hold this certification. Subjects include optical networks, DSL and Cable, WAN Switching, Voice over IP and QoS, MGCP, Call Manager (Cisco's VoIP PABX) and Unity, Cisco's Unified Messaging platform.
The exam
In order to become a CCIE, you need to pass two exams; the CCIE Written and the Lab exam. The latter is an 8 hour, hands-on exam, where the candidate must prove he or she does not only know the theory but is also able to practice it. The CCIE Lab exam is considered by many as the hardest exam in the IT industry. Many CCIE's took 2 or more attempts before passing it.
Prerequisites
There are no formal prerequisites for the CCIE exam, but Cisco recommends to have at least 3 - 5 years experience in networking before attempting to become a CCIE. It is not necessary to hold CCNA or CCNP certifications.
