Is instructor led training still required for VCP6/VCP6.5?

[imrazor]

I'm interested in learning more about VMWare and virtualization, and would love to make a career of it, to the point that I've set up a VMWare ESXi home lab up. However, instructor led training presents an insurmountable barrier for me. There is no way that I can afford to fly to a strange city, pay for five days of food and lodging, and cough up another $2K or $3K for tuition. That's not to mention 5 days of lost pay from my job. And, there's no way my employer is paying for any of this.

My other certification (admittedly more basic than a VCP) I acquired with self-study. Other highly desirable certifications do not have this requirement. So if I'm interested in learning virtualization, it'd be far cheaper for me to get a Hyper-V or Red Hat cert. Why should I cough up thousands of dollars to get a VMWare cert?

[scott28tt · Accepted solution]

You can consume the training via 1 of 3 different delivery methods: classroom, live online, or on-demand.

Only classroom-based will incur travel/expense costs for you.

Full requirements for VCP6.5-DCV here: VMware Certified Professional 6.5 - Data Center Virtualization

[dsohayda]

This community college offers an online version that apparently qualifies towards getting your VCP and costs around $200.

https://www.stanly.edu/future-students/continuing-education/technology-courses/vmware-vsphere-instal...

sign up for the waiting list.

I've never taken the class, but if I were in your situation this would be the way I'd go.

[ilogan]

I'd just like to add, The Stanly Community College course does count. You just have to take a special version of the exam (same content just a different exam code). If you're eligible to take the class its a great way to go.