July 27, 1998

Passed the Networking Essentials exam with an 862.

I used MS Press Materials, QUE study materials, and most importantly BRAIN DUMPS.

I'm writing this as I feel obligated to post some significant helpful information to those seeking to take the exam; as the vast majority of people here have offered their expertise and insight into helping others pass the exam, like myself.

Firstly, this sight is an invaluable tool and quite possibly a means to the ends. What I mean is I think many people who don't have prior networking experience (like myself), who simply study the books and do practice exams and do not come here and read all the helpful information will most likely fail. There are a number of questions on the exam that the books for one do not explicate, and if they do its brief and incoherent at best. This sight is the key to passing this exam. I want to thank everyone here who contributed and made everything much easier and comprehensive.

It would be senseless for me to post questions that I remember from the exam because the pattern of questions you will find from the others here are all on the exam; (T1 multilinked connections in varied cities, Incorrect Frame Types, Mismatched Protocols, Disaster Recover Plans, Ethernet to Token Ring tranfers times, IRQ conflicts, Networking devices [Routers=stop broadcast storms; Gateways=heterogenous enviornments and different protocols, Bridges=will bridge non-routable protocols such as NetBEUI], NDIS/ODI, Packet Size Reduction vs. Network Utilization=will not work, etc.)

Lastly the things that are still not on the exam are: Wireless Networks, IBM Cabling specifications, Modem Standards, and Apple Networks (just protocols). Read everyones test comments you will find a pattern of questions among all of them, write them down and do your own research as to the right answers, these questions have a high degree of probability of being on the exam and are probably the ones not covered in MS Press study guides, and other mainstream books.

Having a BA in Psychology I can offer you a basic schema for better test taking that worked for me

• • Get a good nights sleep or try atleast
  • Eat a light breakfast
  • Visualize yourself taking the exam and ultimately passing it, this will raise your level of efficacy and confidence
  • Get to the test center early, and take the senseless practice exam only to settle into the enviornment and customize yourself with test taking. Also take this opportunity to write down any pertinent infromation of u might know down of the laminated board they provide u with before u actually start the exam (i.e IRQs, Cabling specifications, OSI levels [All People Seem To Need Data Processing..., etc)
  • If you are nervous try breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth, and only click begin test when you are comfortable
  • Anxiety will interfere with performance, you will find when u are nervous that it is extremely difficult to retrieve infromation from memory and answer coherently. Try to remain calm, dont look at the time on the screen, pace yourself
  • When you see those scenario questions (especially early on in the exam), simply mark all of them and come back at the end, as these tend to take much of your time. If you find yourself answering them from the begining and lots of time has been consumed, you will start to become anxious and your performance will decrease
  • Finally make sure you pass the exam! Good Luck.