I've been asked to give some insight about how students should best be prepared to take a CCIE bootcamp. The general idea is that different people have different views about what a "bootcamp" should or should not be. And thus there is a shift in expectations and preparations along the way.
Ultimately what ends up happening is that some people are sorely disappointed, discouraged and otherwise irritated which leads us to the "who should be blamed?" question, to which there is no really good answer.
So let's start with a very basic operating premise: The CCIE lab is TOUGH! And it covers a LOT of very IN DEPTH material.
We're ok with that, right? Shouldn't be any Earth-shattering news there. So let's start with the next premise which will shape the rest of the way this is going: In one week (or even in two weeks depending on the bootcamp) there is NO WAY that a student can be taught, or can possibly REALLY LEARN everything in the blueprint for the CCIE Lab exam. It ain't gonna happen.
So, ok, what do we do? Well. In a nutshell. Prepare. This is why (insert deity du jour here) created CCIE practice labs and study materials. So that individuals can begin preparing LONG before attending the bootcamp. Get the basics down. In fact get the "intermediates" down too. Your goal should really be to NOT learn very much new material in a bootcamp. You should spend the time honing your skills, rearranging your recall structures and verifying the things you knew.
On the same note (and I see this all the time, as would any other CCIE instructor), it is not possible to ask good questions if you are learning material for the first time. Especially in a CCIE bootcamp where the hose is definitely pushing a lot of material out. If you are seeing things for the first time, there is frequently the "deer in headlights" look occuring. This means not much retention will be occuring either.
If you have worked on the technologies for a long, long time. And you really KNOW the materials, honestly, you should be borderline bored (I say "borderline" because of all the verifying and fill-in-the-blank parts you'll be doing!). But at the same time you'll be able to ask very specific questions or scenarios and know exactly what gaps of knowledge you have! Part of the learning process is identifying that which you do not know (and fixing them!).
While a bootcamp may involve doing a lot of labs, that doesn't make it a waste of time. People do often ask, what is it that makes a bootcamp with labs different than just taking time at home to do labs? Well, chiefly, the instructor. Hopefully it is a good, experienced instructor that you have. You can get feedback on the labs. Have instant access (no e-mail delays, bad answers or archive searching) to any questions. You also may get different materials than you had before.
Hopefully the bootcamp has unique materials compared to the workbook practice labs. But along with a lab comes the answer guides. Are they just configurations? Or are they explanations? Do you spend time reviewing the lab and talking about HOW a task should be approached, or what things to WATCH OUT for along the way?
Those things are the invaluable parts that will make the difference on your lab exam. If you believe that a bootcamp is that you will be taught everything via some form of osmosis, then that's a good sign you are not ready for the bootcamp yet. The more preparation time spent ahead of time will make the bootcamp all that much more valuable for you. It should be used as part of the "last step" mechanism in your study plan towards the CCIE lab.
But like anything, the more effort put in yeilds the higher value obtained. And the goal for everyone taking a CCIE bootcamp should be to obtain "the number" after passing the CCIE lab!
Do everyone a favor though, and look at managing your own individual expectations before just rushing out to a bootcamp. Don't hesitate to talk it over with the sales folks as well. Or if there are any questions BEFORE a bootcamp, you should be able to talk with the instructors (e-mail is likely the best!). Any of the reputable bootcamps/instructors should be able to answer a quick question or two.
No matter which CCIE track we are talking about, the same basic premises apply. There's a LOT to learn. There's a finite amount of time in a bootcamp. There's a seemingly infinite amount of combinations of tasks that can be created on the CCIE Lab itself. The entire thing becomes a focus on process. And the entire process cannot be created, learned, gleaned or otherwise osmosed in a one-to-two week period of time!
Scott Morris, a four-time CCIE (#4713) and JNCIE (#153) is one of the CCIE Instructors for Internetwork Expert. He has over 22 years experience in all sorts of aspects of the networking industry and is an all-around Uber-Geek! Catch him around at Internetwork Expert's Online Community (www.ieoc.com) and many other places!