IT Certifications and Career Paths

Service Provider Comparison Chart

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Service Provider Certification Comparison Chart
Certification Name Years of experience Job Role Product/Technology
covered in course		 Number of exams Prerequisites
CCNA Service Provider 1-3

Service provider network engineers

Service provider network technicians, support technicians

Service provider system engineers, field engineers

Service provider network designers, planners, implementers, optimizers, and support personnel

Hardware
Core products

  • Cisco CRS Series
  • Cisco XR 12000 Series

Edge products (aggregation and distribution)

  • Cisco ASR Series
  • Cisco 7600 Series

Access products

  • Cisco Catalyst and Cisco ME Series switches

Software

  • Cisco IOS
  • Cisco IOS XR
  • Cisco IOS XE
 2 None
CCNP Service Provider 3-5

Service provider network engineers

Channel partner sales engineers

Channel partner field engineers

Service provider system engineers

Service provider network specialists

Hardware
Core products

  • Cisco CRS Series
  • Cisco XR 12000 Series

Edge products (aggregation and distribution)

  • Cisco ASR Series
  • Cisco 7600 Series

Access products

  • Cisco Catalyst and Cisco ME Series switches

Software

  • Cisco IOS
  • Cisco IOS XR
  • Cisco IOS XE
 4 Valid CCNA Service Provider Certification or any CCIE Certification
CCIE Service Provider 7 plus

Service provider network engineer

Senior service provider networking professional

Hardware
Core products

  • Cisco CRS Series
  • Cisco XR 12000 Series

Edge products (aggregation and distribution)

  • Cisco ASR Series
  • Cisco 7600 Series

Access products

  • Cisco Catalyst and Cisco ME Series switches

Software

  • Cisco IOS
  • Cisco IOS XR
  • Cisco IOS XE

1-written

1-practical lab

 None

CCNP Service Provider Certification Comparison Chart (PDF - 262 KB)