Exam Profile: Cisco CCNP Routing and Switching ROUTE (300-101)
Date: Oct 3, 2014
The ROUTE exam is one of three exams making up the popular CCNP Routing and Switching certification track from Cisco (the other two exams being SWITCH and TSHOOT). As its name suggests, the ROUTE exam verifies your ability to configure a variety of routing protocols (for example, EIGRP, OSPF, and BGP) and associated technologies (for example, route redistribution, CEF, VRF-Lite, and GRE tunnels).
Exam Details
- Number of questions: The ROUTE exam contains 45‒65 questions.
- Type(s) of questions: The ROUTE exam includes multiple-choice questions (both single-answer and multiple-answer) and simulation questions.
- Passing score: Cisco does not publish the passing score for the ROUTE exam.
- Time limit: The exam has a time limit of 120 minutes.
- How to register: Exam registration can be done at the Pearson VUE website: http://http://www.vue.com/cisco/
At a high level, the ROUTE exam covers six broad areas. These areas, and their exam weightings, are as follows:
- Network Principles (10%)
- Layer 2 Technologies (10%)
- Layer 3 Technologies (40%)
- VPN Technologies (10%)
- Infrastructure Security (10%)
- Infrastructure Services (20%)
Trouble Spots
In addition to topics covered in the Cisco official ROUTE course, the ROUTE exam blueprint also contains multiple topics covered in your CCNA studies (for example, PPP, SNMP, and Frame Relay). As a result, you might need to go back to your CCNA material to supplement your ROUTE study resources.
A larger challenge is that the ROUTE exam blueprint also contains items that are neither in the Cisco official ROUTE course nor in your CCNA materials (for example, Unicast Reverse Path Forwarding [uRFP] and VRF-Lite).
You can expect multiple simulation-style questions on the exam, where you configure and/or verify routers in a given topology. Therefore, a challenge for some certification candidates is the navigation of the simulation environment. Fortunately, before beginning the exam, you have the option of going through a tutorial that teaches you to navigate through the simulation questions. However, if you are new to Cisco simulation-style questions, you can go through a web-based exam tutorial available here: http://bit.ly/examtutorial
Preparation Hints
Hands-on experience adds tremendous value for ROUTE exam candidates because candidates will encounter multiple simulation questions on the exam.
If possible, you should attend the ROUTE course from a Cisco Learning Partner (CLP). Attendance in the ROUTE course provides you with experience configuring a variety of routing technologies and services.
You should print out the Route exam blueprint, and go through the blueprint bullet-by-bullet, making sure that you understand each topic.
Recommended Study Resources
For self-study, the CCNP Routing and Switching ROUTE 300-101 Official Cert Guide book is your best resource. This Cisco Press book covers all non-CCNA topics on the ROUTE exam blueprint, and it identifies which topics to study from your CCNA materials. The book also challenges you with quizzes, practice questions on a CD-ROM, identification of key topics, and memory tables.
The CCNP Routing and Switching ROUTE 300-101 Complete Video Course is a collection of approximately 150 videos with a total run time of approximately 15 hours, covering all non-CCNA topics from the ROUTE exam blueprint. Also, this complete video course contains Glossary Quizzes, Module Quizzes, and Interactive Exercises (including drag-and-drop scenarios and simulation-style questions that challenge you to perform router configuration).
The CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 Network Simulator contains nearly 400 lab scenarios that can benefit you in your ROUTE and SWITCH studies, in addition to your CCNA studies.
Because many of the topics on the ROUTE exam blueprint are covered at the CCNA level, you might want to invest in current CCNA study resources. Recommended resources include CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 Official Cert Guide Library and CCNA 200-120 Complete Video Course.
Where to Go from Here
Evaluate where you are in your certification pursuits. If you are not yet a CCNA, that should be your first step. The CCNA certification equips you with fundamental routing and switching concepts.
After attaining a CCNA, the next step would be to deepen your understanding of routing and switching technologies by going through the ROUTE and SWITCH curriculum and passing the corresponding exams.
The TSHOOT exam should be taken as a final step in the attainment of your CCNP Routing and Switching certification because it assumes a breadth of routing and switching knowledge.
Resources
As a reference, here is a listing of links to resources mentioned in this exam profile:
ROUTE Exam Registration: http://http://www.vue.com/cisco/
ROUTE Exam Blueprint: http://kwtrain.com/routeblueprint
Exam Tutorial: http://bit.ly/examtutorial
CCNP Routing and Switching ROUTE 300-101 Official Cert Guide: http://kwtrain.com/routebook
CCNP Routing and Switching ROUTE 300-101 Complete Video Course: http://kwtrain.com/routecourse
CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 Network Simulator: http://kwtrain.com/netsim
CCNA Routing and Switching 200-120 Official Cert Guide Library: http://kwtrain.com/ccnabooks
CCNA 200-120 Complete Video Course: http://kwtrain.com/ccnacourse