A+ Certification

#1

I am curious if any of you have taken the CompTIA A+ Certification. I’ve been doing some practice tests, filling in some gaps in my knowledge (IRQ codes, printer repair, and other things that I don’t use on an everyday basis) and I am getting to the point where I am confident and ready to take this exam.

Do you have your A+ certification? How difficult was the exam? If you work in IT, and you don’t have this certification, does it matter, if you know what you’re doing? Any thoughts are appreciated.

#2

I have Security+ so I can at least speak about CompTIA certs in general. When I was going through tech school a lot of my wingmen were taking the A+ cert and I can say that the fail rate was a lot higher for them then it was for us in Sec+.

That being said… If you read the books, use online resources (ie: cbtnuggets, etc), and have hands on experience then you should pass it pretty easily. Don’t be over confident but don’t be scared either.

Also, http://www.techexams.net/forums/ is like the best online cert resource you will ever find.

Good luck!

#3

That forum is great! After only browsing for a few minutes, I found several great resources. Sec+ and Net+ are my next steps, after that I’ll be going for Sisco then MS Certs, which seem like the most trusted/professional ones.

#4

I actually just got signed up for the CCNA on the 24th of February so if your interested in what thats like I’ll be able to tell you :slight_smile: Also, the guy who writes a ton of Cisco cert books is on techexams; I can’t recall his username but he is super helpful.

Good luck in the future! I also plan on signing up for some MS certs as soon as the opportunity presents itself.

#5

They’re expensive, that’s about it.

#6

Be careful, some certifications are just completely useless. They might look good on your resume to HR drones but to an IT guy they aren’t worth the paper they are printed on. Microsoft and Sun certifications are two that come to mind.

#7

Yeah, this is true. Nobody gives a shit that somebody is a Sun Certified Associate/Programmer/Architect/Whatever.

On the other hand, there are highly regarded certifications such as the Cisco ones.

#8

I passed the A+ yesterday, solid score in hardware and software sections. Not sure if I’m getting the Net+ Sec+ or moving right on to Cisco.

#9

Obligatory: What the fuck Pault posted

#10

How familiar are you with networking? Can you subnet well and do you troubleshoot decently? If not then I suggest Network+. If you put the time into it though your probably more then capable of getting the CCNA. I actually passed my CCNA a few weeks ago after going through a 2 week refresher course :slight_smile:

Congrats!

#11

[quote=“Newty, post:10, topic:539920”][quote author=PaulT link=topic=658771.msg4415927#msg4415927 date=1395917508]
I passed the A+ yesterday, solid score in hardware and software sections. Not sure if I’m getting the Net+ Sec+ or moving right on to Cisco.
[/quote]

How familiar are you with networking? Can you subnet well and do you troubleshoot decently? If not then I suggest Network+. If you put the time into it though your probably more then capable of getting the CCNA. I actually passed my CCNA a few weeks ago after going through a 2 week refresher course :slight_smile:

Congrats![/quote]

That’s actually the exact certification path I was going toward. A+ >> Net+ >> Sec+ >> CCNA. Thinking about Microsoft Certs, but it actually seems as though people look down on those.

#12

[quote=“PaulT, post:11, topic:539920”][quote author=Newty link=topic=658771.msg4416283#msg4416283 date=1396058991]

How familiar are you with networking? Can you subnet well and do you troubleshoot decently? If not then I suggest Network+. If you put the time into it though your probably more then capable of getting the CCNA. I actually passed my CCNA a few weeks ago after going through a 2 week refresher course :slight_smile:

Congrats!
[/quote]

That’s actually the exact certification path I was going toward. A+ >> Net+ >> Sec+ >> CCNA. Thinking about Microsoft Certs, but it actually seems as though people look down on those.[/quote]

Certs actually are looked down upon by most people in the I.T world. Anyone can pass a test but that doesn’t mean you actually know the info like a real network/system admin. However, Human Resources usually won’t open a resume unless it has their requirements. What are their requirements? Certs of course lol. It’s a double edged sword to be honest.

#13

I think they key difference is to not harp on having certs to anyone in the IT field. Use them to get past HR, not to try and impress people who know what they are talking about

#14

Yep, exactly this.