Figure 1-2 Cisco Career Certification Levels of
Accreditation
Each level of accreditation has multiple certifications and
exams that pertain to that specific level. The higher the
level, the more skill and rigorous hands-on experience
are required. For example, the CCIE lab exam is
experience based, and completing it requires hands-on
expertise. In addition to the five tiers of the pyramid,
there are also specialist certifications that candidates can
achieve in specific technologies to showcase their
knowledge and base level of understanding. (These
specialist certifications are covered later in this chapter.)
Simplifying the certification portfolio reduced the
number of certifications available in general and also
improved the process of achieving these certifications.
Table 1-2 lists some of the certifications and tracks that
were available in the past, as they relate to the five-level
pyramid. You can see that there were a tremendous
number of options available for each track.
Table 1-2 Cisco Career Certifications Tracks Prior to
Restructuring