CompTIA Network Plus Training – Making The Right Choice (150509)
If we didn’t have a constant influx of qualified network and computer support workers, commerce in the United Kingdom (as elsewhere) would inevitably be brought to its knees. There is an ever growing requirement for technicians to support both users and the systems they work with. The nation’s requirement for better skilled and qualified individuals grows, as human beings become consistently more dependent upon computers in these modern times.
How are we supposed to make a good choice then? With so many opportunities, we’ll need to know where to be looking – and what it is we should be investigating.
You should remember: the training itself or the accreditation isn’t what this is about; the job or career that you’re getting the training for is. Too many training companies place too much importance on just the training course. Imagine training for just one year and then end up doing the actual job for 10-20 years. Avoid the mistake of choosing what sounds like a very ‘interesting’ program and then spend decades in a job you hate!
You also need to know how you feel about earning potential and career progression, and if you’re ambitious or not. You should understand what the role will demand of you, which exams they want you to have and how to develop your experience. All students are advised to talk with an experienced industry professional before following a particular study programme. This gives some measure of assurance that it contains the commercially required skills for the career path that has been chosen.
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.
Locate a program where you’ll get a host of CD and DVD based materials – you’ll start with videos of instructor demonstrations, followed by the chance to use virtual lab’s to practice your new skills. It’s imperative to see examples of the study materials provided by the company you’re considering. You’ll want to see that they include instructor-led video demonstrations with virtual practice-lab’s.
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.
It’s so important to understand this key point: It’s essential to obtain proper 24×7 round-the-clock support from professional instructors. Later, you’ll kick yourself if you don’t adhere to this. Locate training schools with help available at all hours of the day and night (irrespective of whether it’s the wee hours on Sunday morning!) Make sure it’s always access directly to professional tutors, and not access to a call-in service which takes messages – so you’re parked in a queue of others waiting to be called back at a convenient time for them.
Be on the lookout for training schools that incorporate three or four individual support centres across multiple time-zones. Each one should be integrated to provide a single interface and also access round-the-clock, when you need it, with no hassle. Always pick a training company that gives this level of learning support. Only true 24×7 round-the-clock live support delivers what is required.
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:
They’ve allowed costings for it one way or another. One thing’s for sure – it isn’t free – they’ve simply charged more for the whole training package. Students who take each progressive exam, funding them as they go are in a much stronger position to qualify at the first attempt. They’re thoughtful of the cost and revise more thoroughly to ensure they are ready.
Don’t pay up-front, but seek out the best deal for you when you’re ready, and hang on to your cash. In addition, it’s then your choice where to sit the exam – so you can choose somewhere closer to home. Why borrow the money or pay in advance (plus interest of course) on examination fees when you don’t need to? A lot of profit is made because training colleges are getting money in early for exam fees – and then cashing in when they’re not all taken. The majority of organisations will require you to sit pre-tests and not allow you to re-take an exam until you’ve proven conclusively that you can pass – so an ‘Exam Guarantee’ comes with many clauses in reality.
Prometric and VUE exams are in the region of 112 pounds in Britain at the time of writing. What’s the point of paying huge ‘Exam Guarantee’ costs (often covertly rolled into the cost of the course) – when good quality study materials, the proper support and consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software is what will really see you through.
Commercial qualifications are now, most definitely, starting to replace the older academic routes into the IT industry – but why is this happening? Vendor-based training (as it’s known in the industry) is far more specialised and product-specific. The IT sector has acknowledged that this level of specialised understanding is necessary to handle an acceleratingly technical workplace. CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA are the dominant players. Of course, a necessary portion of background detail must be taught, but essential specialised knowledge in the particular job function gives a vendor trained person a massive advantage.
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.
At times individuals don’t catch on to what information technology is doing for all of us. It is electrifying, revolutionary, and means you’re working on technology that will affect us all over the next generation. We are really only just starting to understand how this will truly impact our way of life. How we communicate and interact with everyone around us will be profoundly affected by technology and the internet.
If making decent money is up there on your wish list, then you will welcome the news that the usual remuneration for IT employees in general is significantly greater than salaries in the rest of the economy. Experts agree that there’s a significant UK-wide need for trained and qualified IT technicians. In addition, as growth in the industry shows little sign of contracting, it appears this pattern will continue for the significant future.
Popularity: 10% [?]
Related posts:
- Companies Training In CompTIA 2009
- Discussions on CompTIA A Plus Training (280409)
- CompTIA A Plus Career Retraining – What Are The Options 2009
- CompTIA A Plus Career Retraining – Get It Right (110509)
- Courses for CompTIA A Plus
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
