Re: How many hours a week should I study?

Kevin,

I wouldn't really put a number on it. I started to keep track but I never
wanted to fall in a trap of thinking: "I've put it X number of hours, now I
must be ready." I dedicated every weekend to prep (over 1 year, including
written studies) and studied as much as I could during/after work. Probably
a little overkill. My goal like Scott V's was to learn more than just what
the lab wanted, and I wanted to be over-prepared. I wanted to prepare myself
to be an engineer, able to think outside that box for any kind of solution.

My only advice is not to judge your readiness by the amount of hours you put
in. It's quality that counts :-)

Bryan Bartik
CCIE #23707, CCNP
Sr. Support Engineer - IPexpert, Inc.
URL: http://www.IPexpert.com

On Sat, May 2, 2009 at 4:09 PM, kevin dalby <ieorbust_at_gmail.com> wrote:

> 100 hrs a week...wo.
>
> Ok, so it sounds like* *I really don't need to go through the exercise of
> scheduling my time because if I'm awake and not at work then I should be at
> it. Good to know.
>
> I wonder if this will get me out of housework?
>
> Thanks all!
>
>
>
>
> On Sat, May 2, 2009 at 3:47 PM, Scott M Vermillion <
> scott_ccie_list_at_it-ag.com> wrote:
>
> > Hey Kevin,
> >
> > Depends on too may factors to answer directly, IMHO. E.g. your
> experience
> > with the material tested, your natural speed and accuracy (or, as in my
> > case, lack thereof), etc. I did my R&S CCIE in seven months, six of
> which
> > were dedicated to lab prep (the other obviously dedicated to the
> written).
> > I did from 12 to 18 hours a day, seven days a week. So let's just split
> > that and say 15 hours/day, which works out to about 105 hours/week x ~26
> > weeks, or 2700+ hours. But then, I did not just prepare to pass the lab.
> I
> > broke things and debugged the hell out of everything along the way. I
> did
> > loads of packet capture and analysis. Took reams of notes. I stopped to
> > read most all of the config guide as it applies to the blueprint. I
> > continued to read books along side of doing practice labs. Took several
> > online classes (nearly all of them at least twice, some three times or
> > more). Attended one live boot camp and did one online too. So maybe it
> > could have been less than ~100 hours/week and I *may* still have passed,
> but
> > I have no regrets in this regard. I personally could not have done it in
> 30
> > hours/week for those same six months, but that's not to say that you
> can't.
> > Heck, check this guy out:
> >
> > http://ccie-in-3-months.blogspot.com/
> >
> > (you'll need to navigate your way through his archives down at the lower
> > right to follow his full story)
> >
> > Guys like Petr Lapukhov seem to need only to schedule and sit their labs
> in
> > order to pass them (he's CCIE 16xxx, yet he has four of them - and has
> for
> > some time!).
> >
> > For the rest of us, I would say it's nice to have a goal for completion,
> > but regard that as a floating point out in front of you that sometimes
> moves
> > closer in and sometimes moves further out. Focus more on learning and
> > learning well than finishing. If you take shortcuts to achieve your
> > timeline goals, you'll suffer down the line. Once you earn that number,
> you
> > *are* expected to be an expert (and in more than just R&S technologies,
> > LOL!). Personally, due to financial considerations, I had a hard date
> that
> > I had to stop preparing for the lab as a full-time job; I did not have a
> > hard date for earning the number, per se. Fortunately, in the end, the
> two
> > dates more or less coincided for me, as I was both flat broke and totally
> > burnt out! ;~)
> >
> > Best wishes for your prep,
> >
> > Scott
> >
> >
> >
> > On May 2, 2009, at 3:00 , kevin dalby wrote:
> >
> > Hi All,
> >>
> >> I have a quick question. I am just starting out and putting my schedule
> >> together. I would like to finish in 6 months and was wondering how many
> >> hours a week should I set apart to study. I am currently targeting
> about
> >> 30
> >> a week but frankly am feeling like that might not be enough.
> >>
> >> How many hours a week on average did everyone put in to get their #.
> >>
> >> Thanks in advance.
> >>
> >> PS. This is an amazing resource, thanks Paul.
> >>
> >> IE
> >>
> >>
> >> Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net
> >>
> >> _______________________________________________________________________
> >> Subscription information may be found at:
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>
>
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>
> _______________________________________________________________________
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>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

-- 
Bryan Bartik
CCIE #23707, CCNP
Sr. Support Engineer - IPexpert, Inc.
URL: http://www.IPexpert.com
Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net