What is Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Certification?

Over the last ten years, high-tech jobs have shown substantial growth but none as much as that of the computer industry. In addition to being among the most highly prized employees, men and women who are CCNA certified enjoy great salaries and benefits. These individuals are in essence, changing economy of the 21st Century. Department of Labor projections for future growth indicate that computers, software, and applications for information technology will continue to have a substantial impact on lives and employment opportunities in the United States.

CCNA stands for Cisco Certified Network Associate. It's the most widely held of the Cisco Career Certifications, a set of highly respected credentials for today's network professionals. With the CCNA certification, graduates learn a select set of in-demand networking skills, that put them on the career fast track.

Beyond increasing knowledge and productivity, CCNA certification prepares students for the only constant in today's fast-paced culture: change. CCNA status is the foundation for further training and certification. Students who achieve CCNA certification can learn to create global intranets, improve network performance and security, and apply a wide range of application-oriented solutions.

CCNA certified technical support specialists are more than network troubleshooters, providing valuable assistance to their organization's computer users. Because many nontechnical employees are not computer experts, they often run into computer problems that they cannot resolve on their own. Technical support specialists install, modify, clean, and repair computer hardware and software. They also may work on monitors, keyboards, printers, and mice in addition to keeping their company networks healthy and thriving.

Technical support specialists must know how to address a variety of problems and how to repair or run automatic diagnostics programs to resolve problems. With CCNA certification, these technical support specialists may design networks in addition to training computer users to better work with computer hardware and software. In addition, technical support specialists oversee the daily performance of their company's computer systems and evaluate software programs for usefulness.

Network or computer systems administrators design, install, and support an organization's LAN (local-area network), WAN (wide-area network), network segment, Internet, or intranet system. They provide day-to-day administrative support and onsite consultation for software users in a variety of work environments, including professional offices, small businesses, government, and large corporations. They maintain network hardware and software, analyze problems, and monitor the network to ensure its availability to system users. Without CCNA certification, these computer specialists are greatly hampered in providing the support and expertise many successful businesses require.

CCNA certified Systems administrators are the information technology employees responsible for the efficient use of Cisco-based networks by organizations. They ensure that the design of an organization's computer site allows all of the components, including computers, the network, and software, to fit together and work properly. Furthermore, they monitor and adjust performance of existing networks and continually survey the current computer site to determine future network needs. Administrators also troubleshoot problems as reported by users and automated network monitoring systems and make recommendations for enhancements in the implementation of future servers and networks.

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