As I’ve mentioned previously, though I know a lot of folks in the wireless world, I’ve come to realize how very different our jobs are. Some people will be out and about surveying the world, others will be planning and others will be managing and troubleshooting. Personally, I find myself in the middle of this mess as a Wi-Fi specialist in a large university: not quite an architect though I dabble with architecture sometimes, not an analyst by title and not just your average technologist. In short, granted « it’s always the Wi-Fi », we can say I’m The Woman To Blame, as in Jimmy Buffet’s song.

Lately I’ve been seeing a trend on campus: more and more people are asking me if X or Y are allowed and whether or not it will have ill effects on our network. More IoT stuff is popping up everywhere and nobody seems to know how to handle it. Fact is, more and more systems are integrated as a single giant unit. Add to it the latest buzzword, automation, and you have it. The need for a person whose credentials will give her the know-how to be able to make everything work together. An integrator of multiple Wi-Fi solution in a single more manageable, coherent unit. A Wireless Solutions professional.

As a first step in this direction, CWNP has gathered a group of SME from all areas of Wi-Fi to define the job and the tasks of a CWSA, who is the associate level of a new train of certifications. As a panel, it was hard to agree on the material which should be covered but after a few days, we came to some conclusions on the tasks this person would be able to do. From there, CWNP derived a series of objectives which were submitted to the panel for a vote.

While the class material and courseware are still in the process of being created, here are the themes covered by this cert:

Wireless Technologies

• Maintaining continued awareness of wireless technologies.
• Understand industry standards certifications and regulatory. organization and their related development processes.
• Defining wireless network types.

Radio Frequency Communications

• Explain basic RF characteristics, behavior and measurements related to wireless communications.
• Describe the fundamentals of modulation techniques used in wireless communications.
• Explain the basic characteristics of components used in RF communications.
• Describe the basic use and capabilities of the RF bands and other wireless carriers used for communications.

Planning Wireless Solutions

• Identify and document the wireless system requirements.
• Identify and document system constraints.
• Select appropriate wireless solutions based on requirements and constraints.
• Implement effective project management practices for wireless solution planning and implementation.
• Understand the wireless solution and consider key issues related to automation, integration, monitoring, and management.
• Administer the wireless solution while considering the implications of various vertical markets.
• Plan for the technical requirements of the wireless solution.
• Understand the basic features and capabilities of common wireless solutions and plan for their implementation.

Implementing Wireless Solutions

• Use best practices in wireless solution implementations.
• Validate wireless solution implementations including RF communications and application functionality.
• Understand and implement basic installation procedures.
• Implement best practices in knowledge transfer and hand-off.

Supporting Wireless Solutions

• Troubleshoot common problems in wireless solutions.
• Understand and determine the best use of scripting and programming solutions for wireless implementations.
• Understand application architectures and their impact on wireless solutions.

Of course, there is a slight overlap with the knowledge covered by the CWNA. What you must remember is that this is a new train so the candidates may or may not have CWNA, it is not required though to get CWSA. In addition, since this cert started as the idea of an “integration” cert, the breadth of knowledge is quite wide. These objectives cover as much IoT as they do Python, AAA, wireless configuration and EIRP.

While everything is still in the process of being written, I may blog about further details later on: please note that all this information is taken from CWNP work documents stemming from the JTA process. The final wording and content will be known in a few months but this is what is known as we speak on this certification. I have sought permission from CWNP in order to share this information with you.

I am really looking forward to taking both the class and the exam for CWSA at Wi-Fi Trek. I still have a discount code (MAE10) for those of you who are planning to register for this awesome event in Nashville in Sept. 2019. Using this code will give you an extra 5% discount on the price of the conference and will help me fund my own costs since I am self-funding this event. I would really appreciate your help in getting me there!