- SISE is Cisco's 300-715 exam, Implementing and Configuring Cisco Identity Services Engine, not a general-purpose security term.
- Passing earns Cisco Certified Specialist - Security Identity Management Implementation and satisfies the CCNP Security concentration requirement.
- The exam runs 90 minutes, costs USD 300 plus tax, and is closed book.
- Policy Enforcement is the heaviest domain at 25%; Web Auth, Profiler and BYOD each carry 15%.
What a SISE Actually Is
On this site, a SISE is shorthand for one specific Cisco exam: Implementing and Configuring Cisco Identity Services Engine, exam code 300-715. The letters come from Cisco's own exam naming, and the test validates your ability to deploy and operate Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) as a policy platform for network access control. If you have seen the acronym attached to other credentials elsewhere, set those aside. Everything here concerns the Cisco 300-715 exam only.
People use several phrasings to ask the same question, and our companion pages cover them from different angles: What Is SISE?, What Does SISE Stand For?, and SISE Meaning. This article goes one step further and explains what the exam covers, how it is delivered, and what the skills are used for in practice.
Where the Exam Fits in Cisco's Security Track
Cisco's professional-level certifications follow a core-plus-concentration model. For CCNP Security, the core exam is 350-701 SCOR, and you then choose one concentration exam. The SISE exam is one of the concentration choices, which means passing it does two jobs at once: it earns a standalone specialist credential and it fills the concentration slot of a full CCNP Security.
| Item | What Applies to SISE (300-715) |
|---|---|
| Issuer | Cisco |
| Credential earned on passing | Cisco Certified Specialist - Security Identity Management Implementation |
| CCNP Security role | Satisfies the concentration requirement; 350-701 SCOR is also required for full CCNP Security |
| Formal prerequisites | None; no mandatory training course |
| Blueprint version | v1.2, effective August 27, 2026 |
Because there is no formal prerequisite, you can sit the exam without holding any other Cisco certification. Cisco does recommend familiarity with Cisco IOS CLI for wired and wireless devices, Cisco Secure Client, Microsoft Windows and 802.1X. Treat that as a realistic baseline, not a gate. Our page on SISE requirements and eligibility goes deeper on this point.
What Cisco ISE Does in a Real Network
Cisco ISE is a policy engine. Devices and users try to connect to a switch port, a wireless SSID or a VPN, and ISE decides who they are, what state they are in and what access they should receive. The exam expects you to understand that decision chain end to end.
The core jobs of ISE
- Authentication and authorization using 802.1X, MAB and web authentication, with policy sets deciding the outcome.
- Profiling endpoints so that printers, phones, cameras and laptops are recognised and grouped without manual inventory.
- Guest access through portals, sponsor workflows and self-registration.
- BYOD onboarding so personal devices can receive certificates and supplicant settings.
- Posture assessment to confirm endpoint compliance before granting full access.
- Device administration using TACACS+ for network device logins, command authorization and accounting.
Notice how these map directly onto the exam's domains. The blueprint is essentially a tour of the product's major capabilities, weighted by how much hands-on judgment each one demands.
The Seven Domains Behind the Exam
The official v1.2 objectives divide the exam into seven weighted domains. Policy Enforcement is the largest at 25%, and three domains carry 15% each. Cisco also cautions that related topics may appear and that objectives can change, so use the official blueprint as the final reference. A fuller walkthrough lives in the SISE exam domains guide.
Domain 1: Architecture and Deployment (10%)
How ISE is built into a network and how its personas and nodes work together.
- Deployment models, node roles and scaling considerations
- Integration with external identity sources and certificate services
- Planning for high availability and sensible placement of policy services
Domain 2: Policy Enforcement (25%)
The heart of the exam and the area where candidates lose or gain the most points.
- 802.1X and MAB behavior on wired and wireless access
- Host mode on wired 802.1X, newly explicit in v1.2
- Authentication and authorization policy construction and condition logic
- Change of authorization (CoA) and how it moves a session from one state to another
- Policy results such as VLAN assignment, downloadable ACLs and security group tags
Domain 3: Web Auth and Guest Services (15%)
Portal-based access for visitors and for devices that cannot do 802.1X.
- Central web authentication flow and redirection
- Guest portal types, sponsor groups and account lifecycle
- Interaction between redirect ACLs on the network device and ISE policy
Domain 4: Profiler (15%)
Identifying what an endpoint is, and using that identity in policy.
- Probes and the data each one contributes
- Profiling policies, conditions and certainty factors
- Using endpoint identity groups as policy inputs
Domain 5: BYOD (15%)
Letting employees bring personal devices without sacrificing control.
- Onboarding flows and the BYOD device lifecycle, updated in v1.2
- Certificate provisioning and supplicant provisioning
- Zero-touch provisioning and revoking or blocking lost devices
Domain 6: Endpoint Compliance (10%)
Checking device health before and during network access.
- Posture policies, requirements and remediation
- Client provisioning and the role of the endpoint agent
- How compliance state feeds back into authorization
Domain 7: Network Access Device Administration (10%)
Controlling who can log in to and configure the network gear itself.
- TACACS+ authentication, authorization and accounting, with accounting now explicit in v1.2
- Command sets and shell profiles
- Comparing TACACS+ with RADIUS for device administration
Exam Format, Fees and Booking Mechanics
The SISE exam is a proctored, computer-delivered written exam lasting 90 minutes. You can take it at a Pearson VUE test center or, where eligible, through an OnVUE online appointment. It is closed book, and Cisco's Candidate Rules Agreement excludes personal books and notes. Current policies also require you to accept the confidentiality agreement before testing.
Cost and payment
The exam fee is USD 300 plus tax, and Cisco Learning Credits are accepted. Preparation costs such as training, lab access and practice material are separate; our SISE certification cost breakdown lays out the full picture.
Question style
Cisco has not published a fixed question count for this exam, and no official pass rate was verified. Cisco's general guidance for Associate and Professional exams mentions multiple-choice items, drag-and-drop items and possibly performance-based lab items. It does not guarantee a specific mix for every SISE delivery, so prepare for configuration-flavored scenarios rather than pure recall. Questions often present a symptom, such as an endpoint landing in the wrong authorization result, and ask you to identify the policy or configuration element responsible.
Scoring and retakes
Cisco does not publish fixed numeric passing scores. Standards are set statistically and can change, which is why any claim of an exact SISE passing score deserves skepticism. If you do not pass, you must wait five calendar days, beginning the following day, before retaking the same exam. Language availability is worth verifying at booking: the individual exam page lists English, while the CCNP Security catalog also lists Japanese.
Key Takeaway
Because the exam is closed book and the pass standard is not published, you cannot rely on memorizing a target score. Aim for working fluency: be able to trace an authentication from the access device through ISE policy to the final result without notes.
Who Hires People With This Skill Set
The 300-715 skill set maps to roles that design, deploy and troubleshoot network access control. Typical job families include network security engineers, security architects, network engineers who own wired and wireless access, and engineers at integrators and managed service providers who deploy ISE for customers. Organizations with large campuses, healthcare environments, universities and distributed enterprises tend to need people who can run identity-based access at scale.
Employers usually pair ISE experience with strength in switching, wireless, certificates and directory services, so the exam works best as proof of depth on top of a networking foundation. To see how the credential is positioned in the market, browse the SISE jobs overview and the SISE salary guide, and weigh your own situation with the SISE ROI analysis.
A Domain-Ordered Preparation Plan
Rather than a generic schedule, order your preparation by how the domains depend on each other. Architecture comes first because every later topic assumes a working deployment. Policy Enforcement comes next because it is the largest domain and underpins most of the others.
Architecture and Policy Enforcement
- Build or access a lab and learn the node roles and external identity source integration
- Configure 802.1X and MAB, including host mode, and build policy sets from scratch
- Practice CoA and confirm you can explain what triggers it
Profiler, Web Auth and Guest
- Enable probes and watch endpoints get classified
- Build redirect-based flows and match the switch-side ACLs to ISE policy
- Create guest portals and sponsor workflows
BYOD, Compliance and Device Administration
- Walk through the full BYOD onboarding lifecycle and certificate issuance
- Configure posture requirements and remediation
- Set up TACACS+ with command authorization and accounting
Finish with timed practice. The SISE practice tests are useful for finding which domains still slow you down, and the SISE study guide and one-page cheat sheet help with final review. For a realistic read on effort, see how hard the SISE exam is. Official training also exists: Cisco's Implementing and Configuring Cisco Identity Services Engine course prepares for v1.2 and awards 32 CE credits, and our SISE training page covers the options. Training is recommended preparation, not a requirement.
Validity and Renewal
The Specialist certification is valid for three years. The continuing education route requires 40 credits before expiry, so the 32-credit course alone is not enough to renew. For CCNP, renewal requires 80 CE credits, with qualifying concentration exam passes earning 40 CE and core exam passes earning 80. Keep in mind that the three-year window for combining CCNP exam passes is separate from renewal of an earned certification, and CE renewal does not extend that exam-completion window. Planning your sequence of exams matters if you want the full CCNP Security. Check exam scheduling guidance when you are ready to book.
Frequently Asked Questions
On this site, SISE refers to Cisco's Implementing and Configuring Cisco Identity Services Engine exam, code 300-715. It validates skills for deploying and operating Cisco ISE, and passing earns the Cisco Certified Specialist - Security Identity Management Implementation credential.
Not by itself. It satisfies the concentration requirement, but CCNP Security also requires the 350-701 SCOR core exam. Passing SISE alone earns the Specialist certification.
Policy Enforcement, at 25% of the blueprint. Web Auth and Guest Services, Profiler and BYOD each carry 15%, while Architecture and Deployment, Endpoint Compliance and Network Access Device Administration carry 10% each.
No. Cisco lists no formal prerequisite qualifications or mandatory training. Familiarity with Cisco IOS CLI, Cisco Secure Client, Microsoft Windows and 802.1X is recommended preparation only.
The exam is 90 minutes, closed book, and costs USD 300 plus tax. Cisco Learning Credits are accepted, and delivery is through Pearson VUE test centers or eligible OnVUE online appointments.
You must wait five calendar days, beginning the following day, before retaking the same exam. Cisco does not publish a fixed numeric passing score, so use practice results and domain-level review to decide when you are ready. See the pass rate discussion for what can and cannot be said about outcomes.
For more on the credential itself, visit the SISE certification hub, or read companion explainers such as What Is A SISE? and What Does SISE Mean?. When you are ready to test yourself against realistic scenarios, start with the practice questions on the main SISE Exam Prep site.