Why Pursuing a Service Provider Certification Could Benefit You

Cisco Service provider (SP) certification is one of the more mature technologies in Cisco’s portfolio. For several years, the current version of each certification level has been consistent. This stability is the reason why the orbit is not out of date. Because it serves the niche market, the SP technology track can bring your career to any major Internet service provider, (ISP) and large enterprise companies. With the global influence of ISP, obtaining service provider certification can make you more competitive in new jobs. Now, let’s review some of the skills needed to obtain SP certification and the benefits of obtaining SP certification.

What kind of background do you need?

Obtaining CCNA SP and CCIE SP does not require specific prerequisites; however, like all of our professional level certifications, there are prerequisites for obtaining CCNP SP: you must have a valid CCNA SP or any CCIE certification. As an SP professional working with telecommunications, cable television, and Internet providers, your on-the-job experience will usually provide you with the basics you need to obtain Cisco SP certification. For more senior candidates in pursuit of CCIE, the knowledge you gain at work should be better prepared for the design, implementation, diagnosis, and troubleshooting of complex service providers based on dual-stack solutions (IPv4 and IPv6) in written and experimental exams. Understanding the interoperability and functional requirements of network and service components should enable you to convert this knowledge to a specific device configuration.

The assistant, professional and expert level exams share a number of common areas of knowledge that require you to build your skills when you upgrade to the next certification. The Associate, Professional, and Expert examinations cover the following technical areas: with the progress of the candidates, the level of knowledge and experience required is increasing:

Core Routing & Edge Network Services

OSPFv2, OSPFv3, IS-IS, IPv4 & IPv6.

BGP Routing & Services

High Availability & Fast Convergence

Next-Gen services for Service Provider

MPLS, Layer 2 and Layer 3 VPN & more

At the Associate level, positions may need the ability to manage existing networks, while professional positions may need to be able to configure and maintain scalable networks and be ready for positive expansion if necessary. Expert level examinations require more experience and technical skills.

Benefits of the SP Track

Consolidating your skills and knowledge while taking the SP exam and obtaining certification may translate into a beneficial, highest-paying job. If you already have some specific service provider tracking skills, you can build on what you know. In addition, candidates with routing and switching backgrounds can reasonably consider adding service providers to their portfolio. In fact, candidates who may be considering different career paths will be well suited to pursue SP certification. For those who hold SP certification, you may find a lot of jobs at a large company or a smaller ISP operator because you need qualified people with these very specific skills. Here are some vacant positions that identify the need for or prefer SP certification, whether at the CCNA, CCNP or CCIE level. The salaries for these positions range from $60, 000 to more than $190000.

· Network Engineer – IP Designer

· Backbone Support Engineer

· Network Infrastructure Development Engineer

· Deployment Management Specialist

· Principal On-site Support Engineer

· Network Consultant Engineer

· Solutions Architect

· Technical Leader

· Design Engineer

These positions are by no means the only ones available, but they provide a small overview of the types of jobs available in this niche market.

This is the next step in your career and the best time to get ready for CCNA, CCNP or CCIE SP certification. If you are looking for CCIE SP certification, keep in mind that our expert-level certification program uses a more flexible and modular blueprint approach. This means that the CCIE service provider has been revised from v4.0 to v4.1. If you plan to take written and experimental exams by June 21, 2017, you should refer to v4.0 subjects. Candidates who plan to take written and experimental exams on and after June 21, 2017, should refer to v4.1 subjects.

If you are interested in obtaining SP certification, please study and determine which is suitable for you according to your current knowledge, skills, and abilities. The market is open and some suppliers are looking for qualified and certified professionals to fill their vacant positions. The benefits of obtaining SP certification will be worthy of effort and dedication. Good luck!

Note: All exam information is collected by SPOTO. if you have any question, and you can follow or contact SPOTO. we will resolve you all questions.