In today's high speed society, support workers who are qualified to fix networks and PC's, plus give daily solutions to users, are hugely valuable in every part of the workplace. Our country's need for better technically qualified people is growing, as society becomes ever more dependent on computers in the modern world.
Bearing in mind the sheer volume of discussion on the area of computing technology nowadays, how can we understand what in particular to look for? ...In order for us to obtain the evidence needed to come to the right verdict for us?
Get rid of any salesperson who recommends a training program without a thorough investigation to assess your abilities and level of experience. Ensure that they have a expansive product range so they're actually equipped to provide you with what's right for you. Where you have a strong background, or sometimes a little live experience (possibly even some previous certification?) then obviously the point from which you begin your studies will be different from a student that is completely new to the industry. Working through a foundation program first may be the ideal way to start into your IT program, depending on your current skill level.
Consider only training paths that'll lead to industry approved qualifications. There's a plethora of minor schools suggesting minor 'in-house' certificates which will prove unusable when it comes to finding a job. You'll find that only recognised qualifications from the likes of Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA and Adobe will have any meaning to employers.
One thing you must always insist on is full 24x7 support through dedicated instructors and mentors. Far too often we see trainers who only provide support to you inside of office hours (typically 9am-6pm) and sometimes a little earlier or later (but not weekends usually). some companies only provide email support (slow), and telephone support is usually to a call-centre that will chat nicely with you for 5 minutes to ask what the issue is and then simply send an email to an instructor - who'll call back sometime over the next 1-3 days, when it's convenient to them. This is no use if you're stuck and can't continue and only have certain times available in which to do your studies.
Keep looking and you'll come across professional companies which offer online support 24x7 - including evenings, nights and weekends. Never compromise when it comes to your support. The vast majority of IT hopefuls who throw in the towel, are in that situation because they didn't get the support necessary for them.
Trainees looking at this market can be very practical by nature, and aren't really suited to the classroom environment, and struggling through thick study-volumes. If you're thinking this sounds like you, opt for more involving, interactive learning materials, with on-screen demonstrations and labs. Learning psychology studies show that we remember much more when we receive multi-sensorial input, and we take action to use what we've learned.
Find a course where you'll receive a selection of CD and DVD ROM's - you'll learn by watching video tutorials and demonstrations, and be able to hone your abilities through virtual lab's. You'll definitely want a study material demo' from your training provider. You should ask for demo's from instructors, slideshows and fully interactive skills-lab's.
Seek out actual CD or DVD ROM's wherever available. You're then protected from broadband outages, failure and signal quality issues etc.
Adding in the cost of examination fees with the course fee then including an exam guarantee is popular with many companies. However, let's consider what's really going on:
It's become essential these days that we are a tad more knowledgeable about sales gimmicks - and most of us realise that of course it is actually an additional cost to us (it isn't free or out of the goodness of their hearts!) Evidence shows that when trainees fund each examination, one by one, they'll be in a better position to pass every time - because they're aware of their investment in themselves and will therefore apply themselves appropriately.
Do your exams somewhere local and go for the best offer you can find when you're ready. A great deal of money is made by a number of companies who get money for exam fees in advance. A number of students don't take them for various reasons but no refunds are given. Surprising as it sounds, there are providers who actually rely on students not sitting all the exams - and that's how they increase their profits. In addition to this, you should consider what an 'exam guarantee' really means. Most companies won't be prepared to pay again for an exam until you can prove to them you're ready to pass.
Spending hundreds or even thousands extra on 'Exam Guarantees' is remiss - when a commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools is what will really see you through.
Many people assume that the state educational track is the way they should go. So why is commercial certification becoming more in demand? Accreditation-based training (as it's known in the industry) is most often much more specialised. Industry has become aware that specialisation is essential to service the demands of a technologically complex world. CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA dominate in this arena. Obviously, a certain portion of associated knowledge needs to be covered, but core specialised knowledge in the particular job function gives a commercially educated student a real head start.
If an employer is aware what areas need to be serviced, then they just need to look for the exact skill-set required to meet that need. Vendor-based syllabuses are set to meet an exact requirement and do not vary between trainers (in the way that degree courses can).
Discovering job security in this economic down-turn is very unusual. Businesses can remove us out of the workplace at the drop of a hat - as and when it suits them. But a quickly growing market-place, where staff are in constant demand (as there is a massive shortfall of properly qualified people), provides a market for true job security.
Using the computer market for example, a key e-Skills study demonstrated massive skills shortages throughout the United Kingdom of over 26 percent. It follows then that for each four job positions in existence across Information Technology (IT), organisations are only able to locate properly accredited workers for three of them. Achieving proper commercial computing exams is thus a quick route to succeed in a life-long as well as gratifying living. Unquestionably, it really is the very best time to retrain into IT. - 16039
Bearing in mind the sheer volume of discussion on the area of computing technology nowadays, how can we understand what in particular to look for? ...In order for us to obtain the evidence needed to come to the right verdict for us?
Get rid of any salesperson who recommends a training program without a thorough investigation to assess your abilities and level of experience. Ensure that they have a expansive product range so they're actually equipped to provide you with what's right for you. Where you have a strong background, or sometimes a little live experience (possibly even some previous certification?) then obviously the point from which you begin your studies will be different from a student that is completely new to the industry. Working through a foundation program first may be the ideal way to start into your IT program, depending on your current skill level.
Consider only training paths that'll lead to industry approved qualifications. There's a plethora of minor schools suggesting minor 'in-house' certificates which will prove unusable when it comes to finding a job. You'll find that only recognised qualifications from the likes of Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA and Adobe will have any meaning to employers.
One thing you must always insist on is full 24x7 support through dedicated instructors and mentors. Far too often we see trainers who only provide support to you inside of office hours (typically 9am-6pm) and sometimes a little earlier or later (but not weekends usually). some companies only provide email support (slow), and telephone support is usually to a call-centre that will chat nicely with you for 5 minutes to ask what the issue is and then simply send an email to an instructor - who'll call back sometime over the next 1-3 days, when it's convenient to them. This is no use if you're stuck and can't continue and only have certain times available in which to do your studies.
Keep looking and you'll come across professional companies which offer online support 24x7 - including evenings, nights and weekends. Never compromise when it comes to your support. The vast majority of IT hopefuls who throw in the towel, are in that situation because they didn't get the support necessary for them.
Trainees looking at this market can be very practical by nature, and aren't really suited to the classroom environment, and struggling through thick study-volumes. If you're thinking this sounds like you, opt for more involving, interactive learning materials, with on-screen demonstrations and labs. Learning psychology studies show that we remember much more when we receive multi-sensorial input, and we take action to use what we've learned.
Find a course where you'll receive a selection of CD and DVD ROM's - you'll learn by watching video tutorials and demonstrations, and be able to hone your abilities through virtual lab's. You'll definitely want a study material demo' from your training provider. You should ask for demo's from instructors, slideshows and fully interactive skills-lab's.
Seek out actual CD or DVD ROM's wherever available. You're then protected from broadband outages, failure and signal quality issues etc.
Adding in the cost of examination fees with the course fee then including an exam guarantee is popular with many companies. However, let's consider what's really going on:
It's become essential these days that we are a tad more knowledgeable about sales gimmicks - and most of us realise that of course it is actually an additional cost to us (it isn't free or out of the goodness of their hearts!) Evidence shows that when trainees fund each examination, one by one, they'll be in a better position to pass every time - because they're aware of their investment in themselves and will therefore apply themselves appropriately.
Do your exams somewhere local and go for the best offer you can find when you're ready. A great deal of money is made by a number of companies who get money for exam fees in advance. A number of students don't take them for various reasons but no refunds are given. Surprising as it sounds, there are providers who actually rely on students not sitting all the exams - and that's how they increase their profits. In addition to this, you should consider what an 'exam guarantee' really means. Most companies won't be prepared to pay again for an exam until you can prove to them you're ready to pass.
Spending hundreds or even thousands extra on 'Exam Guarantees' is remiss - when a commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools is what will really see you through.
Many people assume that the state educational track is the way they should go. So why is commercial certification becoming more in demand? Accreditation-based training (as it's known in the industry) is most often much more specialised. Industry has become aware that specialisation is essential to service the demands of a technologically complex world. CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA dominate in this arena. Obviously, a certain portion of associated knowledge needs to be covered, but core specialised knowledge in the particular job function gives a commercially educated student a real head start.
If an employer is aware what areas need to be serviced, then they just need to look for the exact skill-set required to meet that need. Vendor-based syllabuses are set to meet an exact requirement and do not vary between trainers (in the way that degree courses can).
Discovering job security in this economic down-turn is very unusual. Businesses can remove us out of the workplace at the drop of a hat - as and when it suits them. But a quickly growing market-place, where staff are in constant demand (as there is a massive shortfall of properly qualified people), provides a market for true job security.
Using the computer market for example, a key e-Skills study demonstrated massive skills shortages throughout the United Kingdom of over 26 percent. It follows then that for each four job positions in existence across Information Technology (IT), organisations are only able to locate properly accredited workers for three of them. Achieving proper commercial computing exams is thus a quick route to succeed in a life-long as well as gratifying living. Unquestionably, it really is the very best time to retrain into IT. - 16039
About the Author:
Jason Kendall advises and writes on the very latest forms of interactive PC education. If you're interested in IT Courses, visit LearningLolly Computer Training Courses.
