Here are some tips to follow for the CCNA test:
  • Relax before exam: In order to avoid last minute stress, make sure that you arrive 10 to 15 minutes early and relax before exam.

  • Familiarize yourself with exam: Before taking the CCNA exam, you are given an option of to familiarize yourself with the way the exam is carried out (the exam interface). You must make sure to take advantage of this.

  • Time Management Tips:
    • Manage Time Spent On Each Question: The duration for the exam is 90 minutes. You must determine how much time you will spend on each question. While determining this take into consideration that simulations take more time to answer. Also keep in mind that some other questions are weighed more heavily and may take more time to answer (e.g. difficult subnetting problems).

    • Be Sure Of Exam Interface: Clear your doubts, in case if you have any, regarding the rules for the CCNA exam or using the testing computer/software with the supervisor after he sets up your machine and before you start the exam. Remember that the exam is timed and you may loose your valuable test time for such questions, which you could have asked earlier.

    • Jot Down Important Points Before Exam: Before you start the exam, ask for scratch paper and jot down points that you may require to recall when taking

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    • your exam. This is always allowed and proves to be very helpful while taking the exam. These may include:
      • OSI Model layers
      • Access lists
      • Important tables such as powers of 2 (2^1 = 2; 2^2 = 4…2^8 = 256)
      • Class A,B,C address range and properties e.g.
        Class A: Denoted by network.host.host.host; first octet is between 1 to 126;
      • Important formulae such as 2^x-2 gives the number of hosts per subnet where x is the number of "off" bits in the subnet mask
      • Binary to decimal conversion table & tips

  • All Answers Are Final: Remember that you cannot return to a question once you have answered it. So, be very careful while answering to the questions and don't rush as it might cost you valuable marks.

  • Don't Panic. There Is No Negative Marking: Although the exam software does not allow you to review questions you've answered, there is no negative marks for a wrong answer. The CCNA exam does not penalize you for wrong answer, so never leave any question unanswered. If you are not able to find out the correct answers to some questions, eliminate the possible answers that cannot be correct and narrow down your guess.
SemSim.com provides training resources for Cisco certification exams: CCIE, CCNP, CCNA, CCDP, CCDA. It offers FREE learning resources to students such as study guides and router simulation labs at it's online learning center located at http://www.semsim.com/ccna/learn.html.

This was first published in August 2004

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