The CCIE certification (Cisco Certified Internetwork Engineer) is the highest accreditation on the Cisco certification ladder.
With less than 15,000 CCIE's in total around the world, holders of the CCIE credential belong to quite an exclusive club, and for good reason - the CCIE certification is an extensive challenge, and requires a major commitment in both time and money to gain the coveted title. Indeed, it is report by Cisco that less than 3% of all Cisco certification holders go on to become CCIE qualified.
While there are no formal prerequisites for taking the CCIE certification (the Associate and Professional-level certifications are independent from the CCIE), the sheer scope of the exams, the cost, and the degree of knowledge required to pass effectively means that candidates who attempt the CCIE certification will have many years of experience in real-world situations and are probably likely to have gained other IT certifications along the way.
There are 5 different versions of the CCIE, or tracks as they're called and many CCIE's go on to become qualified in multiple tracks. The tracks are (each link takes you to the relevent Cisco home page):
CCIE: Routing and Switching
CCIE: Security
CCIE: Service Provider
CCIE: Storage Networking
CCIE: Voice
Irrespective of the track chosen, earning the CCIE certification requires passing two exams - one written exam which must be passed first, and one lab-based exam. If a candidate fails the written exam they must wait at least 5 days before retaking the test. Only once the written exam has been passed can the candidate book the lab exam.
The written exam is typically a two-hour, 100-question, multiple-choice affair testing the candidate on the concepts relating to the chosen CCIE track. The candidate is given a pass/fail score report at the conclusion of the exam. If the candidate is successful in passing the written exam then they may go on to take the lab exam.
The CCIE lab exam is an 8-hour, hands-on event that will test the candidate's ability in a real-world environment. The lab exam costs US$1250 (at the time of writing) for each attempt, and can only be taken at any one of 10 Cisco-approved locations globally. Candidates need to keep in mind passport and visa details if traveling to another country to take the CCIE lab exam as well as factoring in the cost of the travel. The locations of the Cisco labs can be found here.
CCIE lab exams are graded by proctors who use their training and experience, as well as automatic tools, to determine whether the candidate has passed or failed the exam. Results are typically available online within 48 hours of completing the lab exam.
After passing the CCIE written exam, a candidate has 18 months in which to make their first attempt at the lab exam. From that point on, they must make another attempt within 12 months and must pass the lab within 3 years of passing the written exam otherwise the written exam must be retaken.
While the cost of the CCIE certification will seem prohibitive to most, recent salary surveys have indicated that CCIE certification holders are likely to be recognized and rewarded by industry and as such are earning around 10% more than their non-CCIE certified peers.
General CCIE information:
General information to give you an idea into what's required to take and pass the CCIE certification:
http://www.cisco.com Cisco Home page information on the CCIE exam
http://www.certmag.com Hints, tips, suggestions on getting ready for the CCIE exams
http://ciscocert.custhelp.com FAQ's Online support and frequently asked questions
http://www.submag.com Cisco's submag - need to register to receive
http://www.certmag.com Certmag's map to CCIE certification
http://www.certcities.com CCIE recertification
