If you’re seeking Microsoft authorised training, you’ll obviously be expecting training providers to supply a good number of the most superior courses available today.
You might also hope to have a discussion on the types of jobs that are available when you’ve finished studying, and which personalities those jobs may be appropriate for. Lots of people feel happier if they can be advised on what would suit them individually.
When you’ve chosen the area you want to get into, your next search is for a relevant course matched to go with your skills and abilities. The quality of training ought to be of an excellent standard.
One area often overlooked by trainees weighing up a particular programme is the concept of ‘training segmentation’. This basically means the breakdown of the materials for drop-shipping to you, which can make a dramatic difference to how you end up.
The majority of training companies will set up some sort of program spread over 1-3 years, and send out each piece as you finish each section. On the surface this seems reasonable – until you consider the following:
Often, the staged breakdown insisted on by the company won’t suit you. And what if you don’t finish each and every section within the time limits imposed?
In a perfect world, you want ALL the study materials up-front – meaning you’ll have all of them to come back to in the future – whenever it suits you. This also allows you to vary the order in which you complete your exams if you find another route more intuitive.
Don’t put too much store, as many people do, on the accreditation program. Your training isn’t about getting a plaque on your wall; you’re training to become commercially employable. Stay focused on what it is you want to achieve.
Avoid becoming part of that group who select a program that seems ‘fun’ or ‘interesting’ – only to end up with a qualification for a job they hate.
Set targets for the income level you aspire to and whether you’re an ambitious person or not. Sometimes, this affects what accreditations you’ll need to attain and what you can expect to give industry in return.
Obtain help from an experienced industry advisor that ‘gets’ the commercial realities of the area you’re interested in, and will be able to provide ‘A day in the life of’ synopsis of what duties you’ll be performing during your working week. It’s good sense to know if this change is right for you well before you commence your studies. There’s really no point in kicking off your training and then discover you’re on the wrong course.
Exam ‘guarantees’ are sometimes offered as part of a training package – they always involve paying for the exam fees up-front, at the very beginning of your studies. However, prior to embracing the chance of a guarantee, look at the following:
These days, we have to be a bit more aware of hype – and generally we cotton on to the fact that we are actually being charged for it – it’s not because they’re so generous they want to give something away!
If you want to pass in one, then you should pay for one exam at a time, give it the necessary attention and apply yourself as required.
Look for the very best offer you can at the time, and keep hold of your own money. You’ll then be able to select where you do the examinations – which means you can stay local.
A surprising number of unscrupulous training colleges net big margins by asking for exam fees early then banking on the fact that many won’t be taken.
The majority of companies will insist on pre-tests and prohibit you from re-taking an exam until you’ve proven conclusively that you can pass – which makes an ‘Exam Guarantee’ frankly useless.
Exams taken at VUE and Prometric centres are in the region of 112 pounds in the United Kingdom today. Students should be very wary of forking out hundreds of pounds extra in charges for ‘Exam Guarantees’ (often covertly rolled into the cost of the course) – when good quality study materials, the proper support and a commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools are actually the key to your success.
Qualifications from the commercial sector are now, undoubtedly, starting to replace the traditional academic paths into IT – but why is this happening?
Industry is now aware that to cover the necessary commercial skill-sets, the right accreditation from the likes of CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA is closer to the mark commercially – and a fraction of the cost and time.
They do this by focusing on the skills that are really needed (together with an appropriate level of background knowledge,) as opposed to spending months and years on the background detail and ‘fluff’ that computer Science Degrees often do – to pad out the syllabus.
The crux of the matter is this: Accredited IT qualifications provide exactly what an employer needs – the title says it all: as an example – I am a ‘Microsoft Certified Professional’ in ‘Designing Security for a Windows 2003 Network’. So companies can look at the particular needs they have and which qualifications are needed for the job.
(C) Scott Edwards 2010. Check out MCDST Courses or www.Alternative-Careers.co.uk/AltCarL.html.
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