You should feel pleased that you’re on the right track! A fraction of the population enjoy their work and find it stimulating, but vast numbers simply moan about it and that’s it. The fact that you’re here means it’s probable that you’ve a personal interest in re-training, so well done to you. Now you just need to get busy to find your direction.

Prior to considering any career courses, look for an advisor who can help you sort out what to look for. Someone who has the ability to get an understanding of your personality, and find out the best career for you to work towards:

* Do you see yourself dealing with people? Would that be with a small ‚tightly-knit‘ team or with a lot of new people? Maybe working on your own on specific tasks may be your preference?

* What’s important that you get from the area of industry you choose? (If it’s stability you’re after, you might think twice about banks or the building industry right now.)

* How long a career do you hope to have once retrained, and can your chosen industry give you the confidence that will happen?

* Are you worried with regard to the possibility of getting new work, and being gainfully employed right up to retirement?

The most significant market sector in Great Britain to tick all of the above boxes is the IT industry. There’s a need for more skilled people in this market, – take a look at any jobs website and you’ll discover what we mean. Don’t let people tell you it’s all techie people looking at their computerscreens all day long – it’s much more diverse than that. Most of the people in the industry are just like you and me, with well paid and stimulating jobs.

If you’re like many of the students we talk to then you probably enjoy fairly practical work – a ‚hands-on‘ type. If you’re anything like us, the painful task of reading endless manuals would be considered as a last resort, but you’d hate it. Consider interactive, multimedia study if book-based learning really isn’t your style. Studies in learning psychology have shown that much more of what we learn in remembered when we involve as many senses as possible, and we take action to use what we’ve learned.

Fully interactive motion videos utilising video demo’s and practice lab’s will forever turn you away from traditional book study. And they’re a lot more fun to do. Be sure to get a look at some courseware examples from the training company. You should ask for slide-shows, instructor-led videos and virtual practice lab’s for your new skills.

Opt for CD and DVD ROM based physical training media where possible. You’re then protected from internet connection failure and issues with signal quality.

Most people don’t even think to ask about a painfully important area – how their company actually breaks down and delivers the courseware sections, and into how many bits. Individual deliveries for each training module piece by piece, according to your own speed is the normal way of receiving your courseware. This sounds logical, but you must understand the following: What could you expect if you didn’t actually complete everything at the required speed? Sometimes their preference of study order doesn’t work as well as an alternative path could be.

An ideal situation would be to have all the training materials packed off to you immediately; the complete package! Then, nothing can hinder your capacity to get everything done.

So many training providers only look at the plaque to hang on your wall, and completely avoid what it’s all actually about – which is of course employment. Always begin with the final destination in mind – don’t make the vehicle more important than the destination. It’s a sad fact, but the majority of trainees kick-off study that often sounds spectacular from the syllabus guide, but which delivers a career that doesn’t satisfy. Just ask several university leavers for a real eye-opener.

Set targets for what you want to earn and the level of your ambition. This can often control what precise qualifications will be expected and what industry will expect from you in return. Chat with a skilled advisor who knows about the sector you’re looking at, and is able to give you a detailed description of what tasks are going to make up a typical day for you. Establishing this before beginning a learning path will prevent a lot of wasted time and effort.

At times people don’t really get what IT means. It is stimulating, innovative, and means you’re a part of the huge progress of technology that will impact the whole world for generations to come. Many people are of the opinion that the increase in technology we’ve been going through is easing off. This couldn’t be more wrong. Terrific advances are ahead of us, and the internet particularly will be the most effective tool in our lives.

Let’s not forget that the average salary in the IT sector in Great Britain is noticeably more than average salaries nationally, therefore you will most likely receive significantly more once qualified in IT, than you’d get in most other industries. Because the IT market sector is still emerging at an unprecedented rate, the chances are that the requirement for professionally qualified and skilled IT workers will continue actively for quite some time to come.

Finding your first job in the industry can be a little easier with the help of a Job Placement Assistance service. The honest truth is that it isn’t so complicated as you might think to land your first job – as long as you’ve got the necessary skills and qualifications; because there’s still a great need for IT skills in the UK today.

Help with your CV and interview techniques may be available (if not, see one of our sites for help). Make sure you polish up your CV immediately – not after you’ve qualified! Getting your CV considered is far better than not even being known about. A decent number of junior positions are offered to people (who’ve only just left first base.) If you don’t want to travel too far to work, then you may well find that a specialist locally based employment agency can generally be more appropriate than some national concern, for they’re far more likely to be familiar with what’s available near you.

In a nutshell, if you put the same amount of effort into securing a job as into training, you won’t find it too challenging. A number of students inexplicably spend hundreds of hours on their course materials and then just stop once qualified and would appear to think that businesses will just discover them.

If you want training in Cisco, the chances are you’re looking for a CCNA. The Cisco training is the way to go for those who wish to understand and work with routers and switches. Routers connect computer networks to another collection of computer networks over dedicated lines or the internet.

As routers connect networks together, seek out training that includes basic networking skills (for example Network+, perhaps with A+) prior to starting your CCNA course. It’s essential to have this background understanding on networks prior to starting your Cisco training or you’ll probably struggle. When you’ve qualified and are on the job market, you’ll benefit from having a good knowledge of networks in addition to the CCNA.

Should this be your first introduction to routers, then qualifying up to the CCNA level is all you’ll be able to cope with – don’t be pushed into attempting your CCNP. With a few years experience behind you, you can decide if it’s relevant for you to have this next level up.

It would be wonderful to believe that our careers will remain secure and our work prospects are protected, however, the truth for most jobs throughout England at the moment seems to be that there is no security anymore. Of course, a marketplace with high growth, where there just aren’t enough staff to go round (because of an enormous shortage of commercially certified staff), creates the conditions for lasting job security.

Offering the computer market as an example, a key e-Skills study brought to light a skills deficit throughout the UK of over 26 percent. Essentially, we only have the national capacity to fill just 3 out of each four job positions in the computing industry. This alarming certainty highlights the requirement for more technically accredited IT professionals throughout Great Britain. Without a doubt, now really is the very best time for retraining into the computer industry.

Many training companies offer a Job Placement Assistance program, to help you into your first commercial role. At the end of the day it’s not as difficult as you may be led to believe to land the right work – once you’re trained and certified; the growing UK skills shortage sees to that.

You would ideally have help and assistance with preparing a CV and getting interviews though; and we’d encourage all students to work on polishing up their CV the day they start training – don’t procrastinate and leave it until you’ve qualified. Quite often, you will be offered your first position while still studying (sometimes when you’ve only just got going). If your course details aren’t on your CV (and it’s not being looked at by employers) then you won’t even be considered! Generally, you’ll receive quicker results from a specialist independent regional employment service than you’ll get from a training provider’s recruitment division, as they will be more familiar with the area and local employers.

Do be sure that you don’t spend hundreds of hours on your training and studies, just to give up and imagine someone else is miraculously going to land you a job. Stand up for yourself and get out there. Invest as much energy and enthusiasm into securing your new role as you did to gain the skills.

We’re often asked why qualifications from colleges and universities are now falling behind more commercially accredited qualifications? With university education costs becoming a tall order for many, together with the IT sector’s recognition that corporate based study often has more relevance in the commercial field, there’s been a big surge in Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA based training paths that educate students for much less time and money. Essentially, only required knowledge is taught. It isn’t quite as lean as that might sound, but principally the objective has to be to cover the precise skills needed (including a degree of required background) – without trying to cram in everything else (as universities often do).

Just as the old advertisement said: ‚It does what it says on the tin‘. The company just needs to know what areas need to be serviced, and then advertise for someone with the specific certification. Then they know that anyone who applies can do the necessary work.

Authorised exam preparation and simulation materials are a must – and absolutely ought to be offered by your training company. Some students can get thrown by trying to prepare themselves with questions that don’t come from official boards. Often, the phraseology is unfamiliar and it’s important to prepare yourself for this. Mock exams are very useful in helping you build your confidence – so when it comes to taking the proper exam, you will be much more relaxed.

Ignore a salesperson that offers any particular course without a thorough investigation to better understand your current abilities plus your level of experience. They should be able to select from a generous range of products so they can give you a program that suits you.. If you have a strong background, or maybe some work-based experience (possibly even some previous certification?) then it’s more than likely your starting level will be very different from someone who is just starting out. Commencing with a basic PC skills program first is often the best way to get up and running on your computer training, but really depends on your level of familiarity with computers.

CompTIA A + has a total of four exams and areas of study, but you’re just expected to get your exams in 2 of them to be considered A+ competent. As this is the case, most training colleges simply offer two. But giving you all four options will give you a far greater perspective of the subject, which you’ll find vital in industry.

Passing the A+ exam on its own will give you the ability to mend and maintain computers and Macs; ones that are most often not part of a network – essentially the domestic or small business sector. If you would like to be a man or woman who is a member of a large organisation – supporting, fixing and maintaining networks, you’ll need to add CompTIA Network+, or consider an MCSA or MCSE with Microsoft to give you a wider knowledge of how networks work.

Every program under consideration has to build towards a widely recognised accreditation at the finale – and not a worthless ‚in-house‘ diploma – fit only for filing away and forgetting. From an employer’s viewpoint, only the big-boys such as Microsoft, Adobe, CompTIA or Cisco (for example) will get you short-listed. Anything less just doesn’t cut the mustard.

It’s likely that you probably enjoy fairly practical work – the ‚hands-on‘ person. Typically, the trial of reading reference books and manuals is something you’ll make yourself do if you have to, but you really wouldn’t enjoy it. So look for on-screen interactive learning packages if learning from books is not your thing. Memory is vastly improved when multiple senses are involved – this has been an accepted fact in expert circles for many years.

You can now study via self-contained CD or DVD materials. Instructor-led tutorials will mean you’ll absorb the modules, one by one, through the expert demonstrations. Then it’s time to test your knowledge by using practice-lab’s. You really need to look at the type of training provided by the company you’re considering. It’s essential they incorporate full motion videos of instructors demonstrating the topic with lab’s to practice the skills in.

Avoiding training that is delivered purely online is generally a good idea. Ideally, you should opt for CD and DVD ROM courseware where offered, so you can use them wherever and whenever you want – it’s not wise to be held hostage to your broadband being ‚up‘ 100 percent of the time.

It’s important to understand: the course itself or an accreditation isn’t what this is about; a job that you want is. Far too many training organisations put too much weight in the piece of paper. Don’t let yourself become one of those unfortunate students that choose a course which looks like it could be fun – and get to the final hurdle of an accreditation for a career they’ll never really get any satisfaction from.

Take time to understand your leanings around career development, earning potential, and how ambitious you are. It makes sense to understand what will be expected of you, what particular exams are needed and in what way you can develop commercial experience. Have a chat with someone that understands the work you’re contemplating, and who’ll explain to you detailed descriptions of what you actually do in that role. Contemplating this well before you start on any learning path will prevent a lot of wasted time and effort.

A key package of training will undoubtedly also include accredited exam simulation and preparation packages. As a lot of IT examining boards tend to be American, you’ll need to be used to the correct phraseology. You can’t practice properly by just going through the right questions – they must be in an exam format that exactly replicates the real thing. Mock exams can be invaluable as a resource to you – so that when you come to take the real thing, you will be much more relaxed.

The way a programme is physically sent to you isn’t always given the appropriate level of importance. How is the courseware broken down? What is the order and what control do you have at what pace it arrives? Individual deliveries for each training module stage by stage, as you pass each exam is the typical way that your program will arrive. This sounds logical, but you should take these factors into account: Maybe the order of study prescribed by the provider doesn’t suit you. It may be difficult to get through every element within the time limits imposed?

To be honest, the very best answer is to have their ideal ‚order‘ of training laid out, but get everything up-front. You’re then in possession of everything if you don’t manage to finish at their required pace.

Should you be doing a search for Microsoft certified training, then you’ll naturally expect training providers to offer a good number of the most superior training courses available today. Maybe you’d choose to talk through what you’re looking to do with an advisor – and if you haven’t come to a decision, then take counsel on whereabouts in industry would be right for you, based on your likes and dislikes and your character. Be sure your course is put together to your skills and abilities. A reputable training company will make sure that the course is designed for the career you want to get into.

Commencing with the idea that it’s necessary to find the job we want to do first, before we can even mull over which development program fulfils our needs, how can we choose the way that suits us? Reading long lists of different and confusing job titles is no use whatsoever. Surely, most of us have no concept what the neighbours do for a living – so we have no hope of understanding the complexities of a particular IT career. Getting to an informed decision really only appears through a meticulous examination covering many shifting factors:

* The type of personality you have and interests – what kind of working tasks you enjoy or dislike.

* What sort of time-frame do you want for your training?

* Does salary have a higher place on your list of priorities than other requirements.

* With everything that the IT industry encapsulates, you’ll need to be able to understand how they differ.

* You should also think long and hard about what kind of effort and commitment you’re going to invest in your training.

In actuality, your only option to seek advice on these matters is through a chat with someone who has experience of IT (and more importantly it’s commercial needs.)

You have to make sure that all your exams are what employers want – don’t bother with studies that only give in-house certificates. Unless your qualification is issued by a company like Microsoft, CompTIA, Cisco or Adobe, then chances are it could have been a waste of time and effort – as it’ll be an unknown commodity.

Don’t accept anything less than accredited simulation materials and an exam preparation system as part of your training package. Confirm that the mock exams haven’t just got questions from the right areas, but additionally ask them in the way that the actual final exam will pose them. This can really throw some trainees if the questions are phrased in unfamiliar formats. Clearly, it’s very crucial to know that you’ve thoroughly prepared for the real exam prior to going for it. Going over mock-up tests adds to your knowledge bank and will save a lot of money on wasted exam attempts.

There are colossal changes washing over technology in the near future – and it becomes more and more thrilling each day. We’re barely beginning to get a handle on what this change will mean to us. The way we interrelate with the rest of the world will be significantly affected by technology and the web.

Should receiving a good salary be way up on your scale of wants, you’ll welcome the news that the usual remuneration for a typical IT worker is a lot higher than with other market sectors. As the IT industry keeps developing year on year, it’s looking good that demand for qualified professionals will continue to boom for a good while yet.

We’re often asked why traditional degrees are being replaced by more commercial certificates? Industry is of the opinion that to learn the appropriate commercial skills, certified accreditation supplied for example by Microsoft, CompTIA, CISCO and Adobe most often has much more specialised relevance – at a far reduced cost both money and time wise. Higher education courses, for example, become confusing because of vast amounts of background study – and a syllabus that’s too generalised. Students are then prevented from getting enough specific knowledge about the core essentials.

Assuming a company is aware what work they need doing, then they simply need to advertise for the particular skill-set required. Vendor-based syllabuses are all based on the same criteria and can’t change from one establishment to the next (in the way that degree courses can).

If Cisco training is your aspiration, but you’ve not yet worked with routers or network switches, you should first attempt the Cisco CCNA qualification. This teaches you the knowledge you need to understand routers. The world wide web is built up of many routers, and big organisations with many locations also rely on them to allow their networks of computers to communicate.

You might end up joining an internet service provider or a large commercial venture that’s on many locations but still needs contact. Both types of jobs command good salaries.

Getting your Cisco CCNA is the right level in this instance – don’t be pushed into attempting your CCNP for now. Get a couple of years experience behind you first, then you will know if you need to train up to this level. Should that be the case, you’ll have a much better chance of succeeding – as your experience will help you greatly.

If you’re considering a training company which is still using workshops as a benefit of their course, then listen to these difficulties encountered by most students:

* Constant travelling to and from the centre – often very long trips.

* If you’re working, then Monday to Friday workshops cause problems at work. Typically you are facing 2-3 days at a time as well.

* Let’s not disregard lost holiday time. Often, we get 4 weeks annual leave. If half is given up to classes, then we aren’t going to be doing much vacationing.

* Classes usually become quickly full, leaving us with the ‚2nd best‘ solution.

* You may prefer to move at a somewhat more suitable pace – rather than be dictated to by the rest of the class. Sometimes this causes a lot of tension amongst the class.

* The cost of travel – driving to and from the training centre together with several days accommodation can mount up every time you have to go. Assuming just 5-10 centre-days at a cost of 35 pounds for an over-night room, plus 40 pounds petrol and food at 15 pounds, we find an extra four to nine hundred pounds of hidden costs that we now have to fund.

* Training privacy is often very important to many trainees. You don’t want to give up any job advancement, income boosts or achievement in your job because of your studies. If your work discovers you’re putting yourself through accreditation in another area entirely, what do you think they’ll do?

* Who amongst us hasn’t avoided putting our hand’s up, because we wanted to look smarter?

* Working and living away – a fair few attendees need to live or work somewhere else for certain parts of their study. Days in-centre are hard to get to, yet the monies have already been handed over with your initial fees.

Why don’t you simply watch and study with industry specialists one-on-one through videoed modules, working on them at a time that’s convenient for you and you alone. You can study from home on your desktop PC or why not in the garden on a laptop. Any questions that pop up, just utilise the 24×7 Support (that should come with any technical program.) You don’t have to worry about any note-taking – all the lessons and background info are laid out on a plate. If you need to cover something again, just go for it. While this won’t take away every little difficulty, it unquestionably reduces stress and eases things. You also have reduced travel, hassle and costs.

The market provides an excess of job availability in IT. Arriving at the correct choice for yourself is a mammoth decision. Working through a list of IT job-titles is a complete waste of time. Surely, most of us don’t even know what our own family members do for a living – so what chance do we have in understanding the intricacies of a particular IT career. Achieving any kind of right answer will only come through a meticulous study across many changing factors:

* Your individual personality and interests – what work-oriented areas please or frustrate you.

* Are you aiming to realise a specific aim – like working from home as quickly as possible?

* Where is the salary on a scale of importance – is it the most important thing, or is day-to-day enjoyment higher up on the scale of your priorities?

* Considering all that IT covers, it’s a requirement that you can understand the differences.

* Our advice is to think deeply about the level of commitment that you will set aside for your education.

To be honest, it’s obvious that the only real way to seek advice on these matters is via a conversation with an experienced advisor that understands computing (and specifically it’s commercial needs and requirements.)

Many students assume that the school and FE college track is the way they should go. Why then are commercially accredited qualifications beginning to overtake it? As we require increasingly more effective technological know-how, industry has had to move to specialist courses that can only be obtained from the actual vendors – that is companies such as Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA. Often this saves time and money for the student. Clearly, a reasonable amount of associated detail must be learned, but precise specialisation in the areas needed gives a vendor trained person a huge edge.

As long as an employer is aware what work they need doing, then they simply need to advertise for someone with a specific qualification. Syllabuses all have to conform to the same requirements and can’t change from one establishment to the next (as academic syllabuses often do).