How Much Does A CCIE Make?
Picking out a certification as a stepping stone for your career path depends on many factors, and one of them is the salary that it may provide. The CCIE exam is considered the ultimate achievement for professionals in the networking field. However, how much can you earn with a CCIE certification?
CCIE is the most prestigious and one of the highest-paid certifications in the IT industry. On average, a certified CCIE expert can earn approximately $150,000 per year. It usually starts at around $125,000, and it can rise up to about $190,000, but that mostly depends on the job roles and tasks.
Below, I have explained what CCIE means and how does it impact your career path. Also, I have provided the average salary that a CCIE professional can get, and all the other benefits that come with this certification. Once you read all of the details, you will be able to determine whether this is the right choice for you and should you go for it.
What Is A CCIE Certification And What Does It Do For You?
The CCIE certification stands for Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert and it is one of the most prestigious certificates in the IT industry. It is considered the ultimate achievement for IT professionals, and it can get your career at the highest level. Along with the certification, you get immense knowledge and needed skills to make amazing progress in your IT career.
The CCIE certification is concerned with designing, implementing, maintaining, and troubleshooting networking infrastructures in a company or an enterprise. The CCIE program consists of six series and they include collaboration, data center, routing and switching, security, service provider, and wireless. Each of the series provides in-depth knowledge in the particular field and enables the candidate to improve and gain skills that will impact their career.
What is more, Cisco keeps up with the trends all the time, therefore the certifications are updated on a regular basis. Once you obtain the CCIE certificate you are proven to be an expert in a certain field, depending on the type of certification, and you certainly qualify for high-paid positions in different companies.
To take the CCIE exam, you are not required to present any kinds of prerequisites. However, you need to be prepared to pay a small fortune on materials, courses, and the exam itself. Since we are talking about a prestigious certification that gets you on the expert level in your career, it is understandable to spend a lot of money.
Along with the costs, you will also have to sacrifice a lot of your free time. The CCIE preparation process requires a seriously devoted time on studying and practicing. You need to be prepared that it will take most of your free time, or even all of it, depending on your work schedule and other activities.
However, you can rest assured that you will gain a lot of knowledge in different technologies and networks, and with regular lab practice you will obtain a lot of experience. What is more, you will be qualified for many job positions, therefore you will have a lot of options and opportunities.
How Much Money Can You Make With A CCIE Certification?
Since the CCIE certification is one of the most prestigious certificates in the IT industry, it is understandable that the job positions that it covers are the highest-paid ones. So, the average salary for the CCIE job positions is around $150,000.
However, the salary ranges depending on the companies and the positions that they offer. Also, the salary can vary due to the location of the company or organization. Some places have companies with more requirements on the IT market, therefore their employees are paid more.
It is important to understand that the CCIE certification offers a lot of opportunities for career growth and improvement. So, even if you start with a lower salary, you should expect that that can change over the year of your employment.
To be more specific in the terms of numbers, the lowest CCIE salary is approximate $125,000, while the highest is nearly $190,000 per year. That means that the average monthly salary for CCIE certified positions would be around $12,000.
Nowadays, the highest-paid CCIE experts are across the United States, especially in California, Massachusetts, and North Dakota.
When it comes to the highest-paid CCIE job positions, it is considered that Senior Network Engineers earn the most. So, their salaries can rise up to $190,000. Again, this may vary due to certain company’s requirements.
The Benefits Of Getting Your CCIE Certification
The CCIE certification offers a lot of advantages for experts career-wise. Firstly, once you obtain the CCIE, you get qualified for a promotion in a company you might be currently working in. That means a higher salary and greater benefits for you.
Secondly, with a CCIE certification, you get the opportunity to apply for more prestigious job positions in the world of IT. Since the CCIE is an expert-level certificate, it will set you apart from many candidates and will put you in an advantageous position.
The CCIE experts are considered leaders in the IT industry and they are the professionals that demonstrate the highest skills in the networking field. The certification gives you opportunities for advancements, and that is the reason why it is so highly valued.
Is The CCIE Worth It Even If I Don’t Have The Time Or Money To Invest In?
It is a fact that taking the CCIE exam requires spending a lot of time and money. The CCIE is not an easy exam and it requires a lot of investment and devotion.
Therefore, if you are not in a position to spend money on resources or preparation courses, and you do not have enough time to prepare, then probably it will not be convenient to indulge yourself in the whole process. However, if you have the experience, and you think that you can manage to do it then it is up to you.
The CCIE certification offers a lot of opportunities to take your career to a higher level. Obtaining the CCIE means getting the chance for higher positions and a higher salary, therefore it is totally worth it.
