CompTIA Network Plus Training – Making The Right Choice (150509)
Currently in the UK, industry would struggle if it weren’t for support workers fixing networks and computers, while making recommendations to users on a constant basis. With the increasingly multifaceted levels of technological advances, greater numbers of qualified workers are required to look after the various different areas we’ve become dependent on.
Making the most fitting career development choice is hard enough – so which sectors are important to investigate and which questions should we pose?
An all too common mistake that many potential students make is to concentrate on the course itself, and not focus on where they want to get to. Schools are stacked to the hilt with unaware students who chose a course based on what sounded good – instead of what would yield the job they want. It’s possible, in some situations, to thoroughly enjoy one year of training but end up spending 10 or 20 years in a career that does nothing for you, as a consequence of not performing some quality research when it was needed – at the start.
Get to grips with what you want to earn and how ambitious you are. Sometimes, this affects what precise exams will be required and what industry will expect from you in return. Sense dictates that you look for advice and guidance from an experienced industry professional before settling on a training path, so there’s no doubt that the chosen route will give you the skill-set required for your career choice.
Consider only study courses that’ll lead to industry accepted accreditations. There are way too many trainers suggesting their own ‘in-house’ certificates that are essentially useless when you start your job-search. You’ll discover that only industry recognised accreditation from the likes of Microsoft, CompTIA, Adobe and Cisco will have any meaning to employers.
Many trainers provide a bunch of books and manuals. Learning like this is dull and repetitive and isn’t the best way to go about achieving retention. Where possible, if we can utilise all of our senses into our learning, then we often see hugely increased memory retention as a result.
Find a course where you’re provided with an array of CD and DVD ROM’s – you’ll begin by watching videos of instructors demonstrating the skills, and be able to hone your abilities through virtual lab’s. Don’t take any chances and look at some examples of the kind of training materials you’ll be using before you hand over your cheque. The minimum you should expect would be instructor-led video demonstrations and a variety of audio-visual and interactive sections.
Purely on-line training should be avoided. Physical CD or DVD ROM materials are preferable where available, 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.
Student support is absolutely essential – locate a good company that includes 24×7 access, as anything less will not satisfy and will also impede your ability to learn. Always avoid certification programs which can only support students with a message system when it’s outside of usual working hours. Colleges will try to talk you round from this line of reasoning. The simple fact of the matter is – you want to be supported when you need the help – not at times when they find it cheaper to provide it.
We recommend that you search for providers that use several support centres around the globe in several time-zones. Every one of them needs to be seamlessly combined to provide a single interface and also access round-the-clock, when it suits you, with the minimum of hassle. Don’t accept second best where support is concerned. The majority of IT hopefuls who fall by the wayside, would have had a different experience if they’d got the right support package in the first place.
Incorporating exams with the course fee then giving it ‘Exam Guarantee’ status is a popular marketing tool with many training course providers. But look at the facts:
Everyone knows they’re ultimately paying for it – it’s not so hard to see that it’s been added into the gross price invoiced by the training provider. It’s certainly not free (although some people will believe anything the marketing companies think up these days!) Passing first time is everyone’s goal. Taking your exams progressively when it’s appropriate and paying for them just before taking them puts you in a much stronger position to qualify at the first attempt – you revise thoroughly and think carefully about the costs.
Don’t you think it’s more sensible to not pay up-front, but at the appropriate time, rather than coughing up months or even a year or two in advance to the training company, and to do it in a local testing office – instead of miles away at the college’s beck and call? Many questionable training colleges secure a great deal of profit because they’re getting paid for all the exam fees up-front then hoping you won’t see them all through. Remember, with most ‘Exam Guarantees’ – they control when and how often you can re-take the exam. Subsequent exam attempts are only authorised at the company’s say so.
Spending hundreds or even thousands extra on ‘Exam Guarantees’ is short-sighted – when consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software is what will get you through.
Qualifications from the commercial sector are now, very visibly, beginning to replace the traditional academic paths into the industry – so why is this? With a growing demand for specific technological expertise, industry has had to move to specific, honed-in training only available through the vendors themselves – that is companies like Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA. Frequently this is at a far reduced cost both money and time wise. Academic courses, for example, often get bogged down in a lot of background study – with much too broad a syllabus. This prevents a student from getting enough specific knowledge about the core essentials.
What if you were an employer – and your company needed a person with some very particular skills. What should you do: Wade your way through loads of academic qualifications from graduate applicants, struggling to grasp what they’ve learned and which commercial skills they have, or select a specialised number of commercial certifications that precisely match your needs, and make your short-list from that. You can then focus on how someone will fit into the team at interview – instead of having to work out if they can do the job.
The world of information technology is amongst the most stimulating and innovative industries you could be involved with. Being a member of a team working on breakthroughs in technology is to do your bit in the gigantic changes shaping life over the next few decades. Technological changes and connections via the internet is going to spectacularly alter the direction of our lives over future years; remarkably so.
A average IT technician over this country as a whole can demonstrate that they earn significantly more money than equivalent professionals in other market sectors. Typical wages are hard to beat nationally. It’s no secret that there is a significant national requirement for professionally qualified IT workers. In addition, as the industry constantly develops, it appears this will be the case for a good while yet.
