Prerequisites for CCDE

There are no formal prerequisites for CCDE certification. Other professional certifications or training courses are not required.

Recommended Training and Experience

It is expected that the candidate will have an in-depth understanding of the topics in the exam blueprints, a minimum of seven years job experience, and a thorough understanding of networking infrastructure principles. Please view the written exam information page for more details.

Step One: CCDE Written Exam

You must pass the two-hour, written qualification exam which covers advanced networking infrastructure design principles and concepts. Once you pass the qualification exam, you are then eligible to schedule the practical exam.

Written Exam Information

Written exams are scheduled and taken at Pearson Vue, Cisco's authorized testing vendor. Please visit the link below for more details and to schedule exams. Be sure to use the same candidate ID number for every exam that you take. If you use a different ID number, you will create a different record in the CCIE database and you will need to contact CCIE support for help in merging the records.

Schedule and Pay for Written Exam

Step Two: CCDE Practical Exam

The CCDE Practical exam is a design-scenario exam that tests your ability to perform design analysis, justify design requirements, and develop a design implementation based on best practices. The exam will assess your ability to apply your specific body of knowledge into current business problems of technical network design.

The topics covered in the Practical exam are located within the exam blueprint. The exam scenarios will change each instance the exam is delivered, however, the topics will remain the same.

REGISTER NOW for the BETA Practical Exam - this is a limited time offer

Cisco is now registering beta candidates for the CCDE Practical Exam. Cisco has finished development of the second exam needed to attain the CCDE certification, the practical exam, and is now soliciting candidates for the beta delivery.

Cisco will be offering this beta delivery of the exam on October, 1 in Chicago, Illinois USA - at a Pearson Professional Testing Center. Only candidates that have a passing score on the CCDE qualification exam may register and participate in this exam.

The cost to participate in the beta delivery of the CCDE Practical is $980US and will only be delivered in Chicago on Oct 1, 2008. The estimated cost for the CCDE Practical exam after the October delivery will be $1,400.

Start the registration process now by sending an email with your contact information to us at: ITPC@pearson.com

Candidates who are eligible for participation(you will need to have passed the qualification exam)will receive a follow-up email and be given further instructions regarding formal registration and payment.

Recommended Reading

For further information please view the CCDE Overview VOD now.