Network and PC support staff are ever more in demand in the UK, as organisations are becoming more reliant upon their knowledge and capacity to solve problems. With the increasingly complex nature of technology, greater numbers of IT professionals are being looked for to look after the many areas we need to be sure will work effectively.
Usually, a average student doesn’t have a clue where to start with Information Technology, or which market they should be considering getting trained in.
After all, if you don’t have any background in IT in the workplace, what chance is there for you to know what a particular IT employee fills their day with? Let alone decide on what certification program is the most likely for ultimate success.
Consideration of these areas is important if you need to uncover the right answers:
* What nature of individual you reckon you are – which things you find interesting, and on the other side of the coin – what you definitely don’t enjoy.
* Are you aiming to accomplish a specific aim – for example, working for yourself sometime soon?
* Is your income higher on your wish list than some other areas.
* There are many areas to train for in the IT industry – there’s a need to pick up a solid grounding on what sets them apart.
* It makes sense to understand the differences across the myriad of training options.
For most people, dissecting all these ideas requires a good chat with someone that can investigate each area with you. And we don’t just mean the accreditations – but also the commercial requirements and expectations also.
All programs you’re considering should always lead to a fully recognised major exam at the end – not a useless ‘in-house’ piece of paper.
From the perspective of an employer, only the top companies such as Microsoft, CompTIA, Cisco or Adobe (as an example) really carry any commercial clout. Anything less just won’t hit the right spot.
How the program is actually delivered to you is often missed by many students. In what way are your training elements sectioned? And in what sequence and do you have a say in when you’ll get each part?
By and large, you will purchase a course staged over 2 or 3 years and receive one element at a time until graduation. This may seem sensible until you think about these factors:
Maybe the order of study pushed by the company’s salespeople doesn’t suit all of us. You may find it a stretch to finalise all the modules within the time limits imposed?
The ideal solution is to have every piece of your study pack posted to you immediately; the complete package! Thus avoiding any future problems that could impede your capacity to get everything done.
The sometimes daunting task of securing your first computer related job is often eased by some training providers because they offer a Job Placement Assistance programme. Sometimes, too much is made of this feature, because it is genuinely quite straightforward for well qualified and focused men and women to find work in this industry – as employers are keen to find appropriately qualified personnel.
You would ideally have advice and support about your CV and interviews though; and we’d recommend any student to get their CV updated as soon as training commences – don’t put it off for when you’re ready to start work.
It can happen that you haven’t even passed your first exam when you’ll secure your initial junior support position; although this is not possible unless you’ve posted your CV on job sites.
If you don’t want to travel too far to work, then it’s quite likely that a local (but specialised) recruitment consultancy might be more appropriate than the trainer’s recruitment division, because they’re going to be familiar with the jobs that are going locally.
Many trainees, apparently, spend evenings and weekends on their training and studies (for years sometimes), only to do nothing special when finding a good job. Promote yourself… Make an effort to get yourself known. Good jobs don’t just knock on your door.
(C) Jason Kendall. Go to LearningLolly.com for the best information. Network+ Training Course or IT Training Course.
