CIT Training

What "CIT Training" Actually Means

Most certifications have one exam and a pile of prep books. Certified Intrusion Technician Level II is different. It is an Electronic Security Association (ESA) coursework-and-experience credential, so "training" is not preparation for a single test. It is the credential's core requirement. You complete two specific courses, pass the assessments attached to them, document your experience, and submit a certification request.

That distinction shapes how you should prepare. If you are new to the credential, start with What Is CIT Certification? for the big picture, then return here for the training detail. The pathway has no standalone CIT examination and no unified weighted blueprint, so any plan built around "the CIT exam" will aim at something that does not exist. You are preparing for two separate components, each with its own format and rules.

The Two Required Courses

CIT Level II training consists of two required courses delivered through ESA's National Training School:

The sixteen content areas you will see referenced in study materials map directly onto these two courses: nine from AIS and seven from networking. They are public course topics, not an official sixteen-domain exam specification. For a full walkthrough of how those headings are organized, see CIT Exam Domains 2026: Complete Guide to All 16 Content Areas.

Advanced Intrusion Systems: Nine Topics to Master

AIS is the heavier of the two courses and the only one with a formal proctored exam. ESA publishes nine topics. Because no item weights are published, no topic can be called the largest, so treat all nine as fair game and let your own job experience tell you where your gaps are.

Because the exam is open book with the course manual, the skill being tested is navigation and judgment, not raw memorization. Candidates who have never used the manual under time pressure tend to lose minutes hunting for answers. Difficulty discussions often miss this point; How Hard Is the CIT Exam? Complete Difficulty Guide 2026 covers it in more depth.

Fundamentals of Networking: Seven Topics to Master

The networking course is shorter and more conceptual. It is built for technicians who install and service systems that increasingly live on IP networks. ESA publishes seven subjects:

• What a network is and what its components are: the vocabulary the rest of the course builds on.
• Common network topologies: how devices are arranged and what that arrangement means for failure and expansion.
• How networks communicate and share data: the mechanics of moving information between devices.
• Storage types used in networked systems: where data lives, which matters for video and event logs.
• Composition of a network cable: the physical layer, including what is inside the cable you pull.
• How a LAN and WAN function and how they differ: scope, reach, and typical use.
• The steps of troubleshooting network problems: a structured, repeatable process rather than guesswork.

Course Hours vs. Exam Timers

Candidates routinely confuse how long a course takes with how long an exam lasts. Keep these straight:

• The online AIS course is 14 instruction hours, and the course page is tagged Revised 2020. A current live listing shows 16 instruction hours. Either way, these are course lengths, not exam timers.
• The AIS examination itself is two hours with 50 multiple-choice questions.
• The networking course is four hours of instruction. That figure is not a quiz timer.
• The online AIS course also describes a short 70% completion quiz. That is separate from the proctored certification examination and should not be conflated with it.
• Proctoring runs through Honorlock/Absorb online or approved in-person arrangements, administered by ESA.

For the exact scoring threshold and how it applies, see CIT Passing Score 2026: Exactly What You Need to Pass. The scored/unscored split and a candidate pass rate are not publicly disclosed, so be skeptical of anyone quoting a precise figure; CIT Pass Rate 2026: What the Data Shows explains what can and cannot be said.

Training Costs and Enrollment Routes

Pricing depends on whether you are an ESA member and whether you already hold the prerequisites that let you skip bundled content.

Two additional numbers matter for budgeting. The ESA FAQ lists a $135 retake fee and a six-month window to complete the testing process. A failed first attempt therefore costs real money and consumes part of a finite window. Membership clearly pays for itself on the bundle alone. A complete breakdown, including what each route includes, lives in CIT Certification Cost 2026: Complete Pricing Breakdown.

Prerequisites That Gate Your Training

You cannot simply buy the two courses and receive the credential. The current program requires:

1. An active ESA Certified Alarm Technician Level 1 or higher ESA/accredited certificate.
2. Either 24 months of verified industry work history or at least 24 months holding the qualifying Level I credential.
3. Completion of both required courses within the previous five years.
4. A certification request with supporting documentation.

The Level I prerequisite is distinct from the two additional Level II courses. If you are weighing whether you are even eligible, CIT Requirements 2026: Eligibility, Prerequisites & How to Qualify walks through each gate. The five-year course window also matters for planning: finishing AIS and then letting years pass before completing networking can put the earlier course at risk of aging out.

Sequencing Your Preparation

Generic study systems matter less here than matching your order of work to the course structure. One reasonable approach, tied to the actual content, looks like this:

Doing the networking course after AIS is a judgment call, not a rule. Some technicians prefer to clear the shorter course first for momentum. For a fuller weekly framework and test-day habits, see CIT Study Guide 2026: How to Pass on Your First Attempt, and keep CIT Cheat Sheet 2026: One-Page Review of Must-Know Facts handy for last-minute review. You can also test your recall with realistic questions on the CIT practice test site.

After Training: Request, Renewal, and Employers

Finishing the courses is not the finish line. You still submit the documented certification request, which carries no fee. Once certified, the credential is valid for 24 months. Renewal requires 24 CEU hours per two-year period plus an application and fee; the current renewal fee is not verified, so confirm it with ESA before budgeting. Scheduling specifics for exam sessions and windows are covered in CIT Exam Dates 2026: Testing Windows, Deadlines & Scheduling.

The credential tends to matter most to employers in the electronic security and alarm industry, such as alarm and security integrators, installation and service companies, and commercial security contractors, where technicians move from basic installs into more complex intrusion work. If you are weighing the career side, CIT Jobs covers where the credential is used, and Is the CIT Certification Worth It? Complete ROI Analysis 2026 frames the investment. Earnings are best discussed qualitatively unless you have employer-specific data; the CIT Salary Guide 2026: Complete Earnings Analysis explains the limits of what can be claimed. When you are ready to drill, the main practice test is a good place to start.

Frequently Asked Questions