Be the Best You Can Be

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As you’re in the process of finding out about Microsoft MCSE’s, it’s possible you’re in one of these categories: You might be wondering about a dynamic move to get into the IT field, and you’ve discovered a massive need for certified networking professionals. Alternatively you’re currently an IT professional - and you need to formalise your skill-set with a qualification such as MCSE.

As you try to find out more, you will discover companies that short-change you by not providing the latest version from Microsoft. Don’t use these companies as you’ll have problems when it comes to exams. If you’re learning from an old version, it could be impossible to pass. Computer training companies ought to be completely focused on establishing the best direction for prospective students. Directing study is as much concerned with helping people to work out which way to go, as it is giving them help to reach their destination.

Understanding a sensible job option is very difficult - so where do we need to look and what questions should we seek the answer to?

Frequently, the average student has no idea how they should get into the IT industry, let alone what sector to focus their retraining program on. Flicking through a list of odd-sounding and meaningless job titles is a complete waste of time. The majority of us don’t really appreciate what the neighbours do for a living - so what chance do we have in understanding the subtleties of any specific IT role. To come through this, we need to discuss a number of different aspects:

* The kind of individual you consider yourself to be - what tasks do you enjoy doing, and on the other side of the coin - what you definitely don’t enjoy.

* What length of time can you allocate for the training process?

* Is salary further up on your wish list than other requirements.

* Looking at the many markets that Information Technology covers, it’s important to be able to understand what is different.

* What effort, commitment and time you’ll put into your training.

To be honest, it’s obvious that the only real way to investigate these matters is through a chat with an advisor or professional who has a background in computing (and more importantly it’s commercial needs and requirements.)

We need to make this very clear: You have to get round-the-clock 24×7 instructor support. We can tell you that you’ll strongly regret it if you don’t follow this rule rigidly. Find a good quality service with proper support available at any time of the day or night (even 1am on Sunday morning!) Ensure you get direct-access to qualified mentors and tutors, and not simply some messaging service that means you’re consistently being held in a queue for a call-back during office hours.

The most successful trainers use multiple support centres active in different time-zones. By utilising an interactive interface to link them all seamlessly, any time of the day or night, help is at hand, with no hassle or contact issues. Find a company that is worth purchasing from. Only proper live 24×7 support truly delivers for technical programs.

Those that are drawn to this type of work often have a very practical outlook on work, and won’t enjoy sitting at a desk in class, and endless reading of dry academic textbooks. If this could be you, try the newer style of interactive study, where everything is presented via full motion video. Research over recent years has consistently demonstrated that an ‘involved’ approach to study, where we utilise all our senses, is proven to produce longer-lasting and deeper memory retention.

Locate a program where you’ll receive a library of CD and DVD ROM’s - you’ll learn by watching video tutorials and demonstrations, with the facility to use virtual lab’s to practice your new skills. It would be silly not to view some examples of the kind of training materials you’ll be using before you make your decision. You should expect videoed instructor demonstrations and audio-visual elements backed up by interactive lab’s.

Often, companies will only use training that is purely available online; sometimes you can get away with this - but, consider what happens if internet access is lost or you get a slow connection speed. It’s much safer to rely on DVD or CD discs that removes the issue entirely.

How the program is actually delivered to you isn’t always given the appropriate level of importance. How is the courseware broken down? And in what order and do you have a say in when you’ll get each part? By and large, you’ll join a programme taking 1-3 years and receive one element at a time until graduation. While this may sound logical on one level, consider this: How would they react if you didn’t complete everything at the speed they required? And maybe you’ll find their order of completion won’t be as easy as some other structure would for you.

The very best situation would see you getting all the training materials couriered to your address right at the beginning; every single thing! Then, nothing can hinder your ability to finish.

It’s not uncommon for companies to offer inclusive exam guarantees - they always involve paying for the exam fees up-front, before you’ve even made a start on the course. Before you get carried away with the chance of a guarantee, consider this:

Of course it’s not free - you’re still footing the bill for it - the cost has just been rolled into the whole training package. Should you seriously need to get a first time pass, then you should fund each exam as you take it, give it the necessary attention and apply yourself as required.

Look for the very best offer you can when you’re ready, and hang on to your cash. In addition, it’s then your choice where to take your exam - so you can choose somewhere closer to home. What’s the point in paying early for examination fees when there’s absolutely nothing that says you have to? Big margins are made by companies getting paid upfront for exams - and banking on the fact that many won’t be taken. It’s worth noting that exam re-takes with organisations who offer an ‘Exam Guarantee’ are tightly controlled. You’ll be required to sit pre-tests so you can prove to them you have a good chance of passing.

The cost of exams was about 112 pounds twelve months or so ago through Prometric or VUE centres around the United Kingdom. So don’t be talked into shelling out hundreds or thousands of pounds more to get ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when it’s no secret that the best guarantee is study, commitment and preparing with good quality mock and practice exams.

Many training companies will provide a useful Job Placement Assistance service, to help you into your first commercial role. Ultimately it isn’t a complex operation to land the right work - as long as you’re correctly trained and certified; the growing UK skills shortage sees to that.

However, what is relevant is to have advice and support about your CV and interviews though; and we’d encourage everybody to work on polishing up their CV right at the beginning of their training - don’t delay till you’ve finished your exams. Being considered a ‘maybe’ is more than not being regarded at all. Often junior support roles are got by people in the early stages of their course. The best services to help you find a job are usually specialised and independent recruitment consultants. Because they only get paid when they place you, they have the necessary incentive to try that bit harder.

Do ensure you don’t invest a great deal of time on your training course, only to stop and imagine someone else is miraculously going to secure your first position. Take responsibility for yourself and get out there. Channel the same time and energy into securing the right position as you did to get trained.

There are colossal changes flooding technology over the next few decades - and it only gets more exciting every day. We are really only just beginning to understand what this change will mean to us. How we interrelate with the rest of the world will be significantly affected by computers and the web.

Let’s not ignore salaries also - the usual income in Great Britain for a typical IT professional is significantly better than the national average. Chances are that you’ll earn a much better deal than you could reasonably hope to get in other industries. The good news is there’s no end in sight for IT jobs growth across Britain. The market sector continues to grow hugely, and as we have a skills gap that means we only typically have three IT workers for every four jobs it’s highly unlikely that this will change significantly for the significant future.