Cisco 360 Learning Program

The Cisco 360 Learning Program is the smart way to ensure that you and your staff are equipped with expert-level skills, knowledge, and training to support your customers and maintain the Cisco ccie training for your organization. As the only CCIE training program authorized by Cisco, the program is designed to accelerate expert-level competency and provide the skills and training that are needed to prepare candidates for the rigorous CCIE R&S and Voice lab exams.

The CCIE Lab is currently are offered only at ten Cisco lab exam locations worldwide. The locations may be found on the Cisco certifications website. Some CCIE tracks do not have lab exams available at all locations. For example, the Storage Networking lab is available only at the Research Triangle Park, NC and Brussels locations. In addition, according to a survey by Cisco the average cost to prepare for CCIE certification, spent mostly on practice equipment and self study material.

There are no formal prerequisites for the CCIE exam, but Cisco recommends one has at least 3–5 years experience in networking before attempting to become a CCIE. CCIE was the first Cisco Certified qualification, and as such there were no other certifications that could be taken prior. The development of the associate and professional certifications was due to recognition of the fact that a ccie service provider boot camp is overkill for many networking personnel, and also for the vast majority of businesses who employ such people, and that certifications needed to be offered at lower levels. Despite the development of the lower certifications, Cisco has chosen not to make them formal requirements for the CCIE certification.

It is possible to hold multiple CCIE certifications. This is done by passing both the written and the lab exam in a particular track. As of September 9, 2008, there are 1,729 individuals who hold multiple CCIE certifications. Of those, 274 hold three or more CCIE certifications.
Cisco began its CCIE program in 1993 originally with a two day lab, later changing it to the one day format used today. Fewer than 3% of Cisco certified individuals attain ccie r&s lab, and on average will spend thousands of dollars and 18 months studying before passing.Many candidates build training-labs at home using old Cisco equipment, selling it again to other candidates after passing. Alternatively candidates may rent "rack time" online and practice lab scenarios on Cisco equipment hosted on the Internet for that purpose.