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Computers And Internetby Scott Edwards
Should you be looking for Microsoft certified training, it stands to reason you’ll want companies to provide a wide range of the finest training courses currently available. Maybe you’d choose to find advisors with experience of the IT industry, who can offer guidance on what sort of job would suit you, and what sort of tasks are suitable for someone with a personality like yours. When you’ve settled on the job you’d like to get into, an appropriate course has to be singled out that’s a match for your current skills and aptitude. This can be personally tailored for your needs.
How can we go about making the right choice then? With all these possibilities, we have to know where we should dig – and of course, what to actually be looking for.
A ridiculously large number of organisations only look at the plaque to hang on your wall, and forget the reasons for getting there – getting yourself a new job or career. Always start with the final destination in mind – too many people focus on the journey. Imagine training for just one year and then end up doing the actual job for 10-20 years. Avoid the mistake of finding what seems like an ‘interesting’ training program only to spend 20 years doing something you don’t even enjoy! You also need to know your leanings around earning potential, career development, and how ambitious you are. It’s vital to know what (if any) sacrifices you’ll need to make for a particular role, which particular certifications are required and in what way you can develop commercial experience. Before setting out on a learning programme, you’d be well advised to discuss specific career needs with an experienced industry professional, in order to be sure the retraining program covers all that is required.
Be watchful that any certifications you’re studying for will be recognised by employers and are the most recent versions. ‘In-house’ certificates are not normally useful in gaining employment. Unless the accreditation comes from a major player like Microsoft, Adobe, CompTIA or Cisco, then you’ll probably find it will have been a waste of time – because it won’t give an employer any directly-useable skills.
Training support for students is an absolute must – find a program offering 24×7 direct access to instructors, as not obtaining this level of support will severely impede your ability to learn. Locate training schools where you can access help at any time of day or night (no matter if it’s in the middle of the night on a weekend!) Ensure you get access directly to professional tutors and not simply some messaging service that means waiting for tutors to call you back – probably during office hours. The best training colleges utilise an online access 24 hours-a-day package pulling in several support offices over many time-zones. You’re offered a simple interface which seamlessly selects the best facility available irrespective of the time of day: Support when you need it. Never make the mistake of compromise where support is concerned. Many students who can’t get going properly, would have had a different experience if they’d got the right support package in the first place.
If you’re like many of the students we talk to then you’re a practical sort of person – the ‘hands-on’ personality type. Typically, the world of book-reading and classrooms would be considered as a last resort, but you’d hate it. So look for on-screen interactive learning packages if book-based learning really isn’t your style. Many studies have proved that much more of what we learn in remembered when we involve as many senses as possible and take action to use what we’ve learned. The latest audio-visual interactive programs with demonstrations and practice sessions will turn you off book-based study for ever more. And you’ll find them fun and interesting. You must see examples of the study materials provided by the company you’re considering. It’s essential they incorporate instructor-led video demonstrations with virtual practice-lab’s. Purely on-line training should be avoided. Always choose CD or DVD based study materials where obtainable, enabling them to be used at your convenience – you don’t want to be reliant on your broadband being ‘up’ 100 percent of the time.
A subtle way that training providers make extra profits is via an ‘exam inclusive’ package and presenting it as a guarantee for your exams. It looks impressive, but is it really… It’s very clear we’re still paying for it – it’s not so hard to see that it’s been added into the overall figure from the college. It’s definitely not free – and it’s insulting that we’re supposed to think it is! For those who want to pass first time, you must pay for one exam at a time, give it the necessary attention and apply yourself as required. Why pay a training course provider up-front for exam fees? Find the best deal you can at the appropriate time, instead of paying any mark-up – and take it closer to home – instead of miles away at the college’s beck and call. What’s the point in paying early for exam fees when you don’t need to? A great deal of money is made because training colleges are charging all their exam fees up-front – and hoping either that you won’t take them, or it will be a long time before you do. Many training companies will insist on pre-tests and with-hold subsequent exam entries from you until you’ve proven conclusively that you can pass – which makes an ‘Exam Guarantee’ frankly useless. Exams taken at VUE and Prometric centres are currently clocking in at an average of 112 pounds in the UK. Why pay exorbitant ‘Exam Guarantee’ costs (usually wrapped up in the course package price) – when a quality course, support and consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software is what will really see you through.
What is the reason why qualifications from colleges and universities are now falling behind more commercial qualifications? With the costs of academic degree’s becoming a tall order for many, plus the industry’s recognition that corporate based study is closer to the mark commercially, we have seen a large rise in CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA authorised training courses that supply key solutions to a student at a far reduced cost both money and time wise. In essence, students are simply taught the necessary specifics in depth. It’s not quite as straightforward as that, but the most important function is always to focus on the exact skills required (including a degree of required background) – without overdoing the detail in all sorts of other things (as universities often do). Imagine if you were an employer – and you wanted someone who could provide a specific set of skills. What is easier: Wade your way through a mass of different academic qualifications from hopeful applicants, having to ask what each has covered and what trade skills they’ve mastered, or choose a specific set of accreditations that perfectly fit your needs, and make your short-list from that. The interview is then more about the person and how they’ll fit in – rather than on the depth of their technical knowledge.
We’d all like to believe that our jobs are safe and the future is protected, but the growing likelihood for most jobs in England at the moment seems to be that security may be a thing of the past. Of course, a quickly growing market-place, where staff are in constant demand (because of a massive shortfall of fully trained people), creates the conditions for real job security. The Information Technology (IT) skills deficit around Great Britain currently stands at over 26 percent, as reported by the latest e-Skills study. It follows then that for each 4 job positions that exist across Information Technology (IT), organisations can only find trained staff for 3 of them. This single reality on its own highlights why the country desperately needs considerably more workers to get trained and enter the IT industry. Because the IT sector is developing at the speed it is, it’s unlikely there’s any better sector worth considering for a new future.
About the Author:
Scott Edwards has worked in the IT industry for 30 yrs. He should understand what he’s doing by now. For advice on
IT Courses, visit LearningLolly
Computer Courses.