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CompTIA A Plus Courses in 2009

by Jason Kendall

There are four specialised areas of training in the overall A+ programme, of which you need to pass two for competency in A+. However only studying two of the specialised areas might well not equip you for a job. Choose a course with all 4 subjects - you’ll be glad you did when it comes to interview time.

Once on the CompTIA A+, you will learn how to build computers and fix them, and work in antistatic conditions. Fault finding and diagnostic techniques through hands on and remote access are also covered. Should you be thinking of being responsible for networks of computers, add the very comprehensive CompTIA Network+ to the CompTIA A+ training you’re doing. This will prepare you to apply for more interesting jobs. You may also want to consider the Microsoft networking qualifications (MCP, MCSA and MCSE).

Many folks don’t comprehend what information technology is about. It’s stimulating, innovative, and means you’re doing your bit in the gigantic wave of technology that will change our world over the next few decades. We are really only just beginning to get a handle on what this change will mean to us. How we interact with the world will be profoundly affected by technology and the web.

A usual IT worker across the UK can demonstrate that they earn significantly more money than employees on a par in much of the rest of the economy. Average incomes are around the top of national league tables. It’s evident that we have a substantial country-wide requirement for certified IT specialists. And as the industry constantly develops, it appears this will be the case for quite some time to come.

So if the computer industry grants such an array of dazzling job possibilities for us - what are the questions we should raise and what areas are most important?

Ask any professional consultant and they’ll entertain you with many horror stories of students who’ve been sold completely the wrong course for them. Stick to an experienced industry professional who asks some in-depth questions to uncover the best thing for you - not for their wallet! It’s very important to locate the right starting point of study for you. With a strong background, or sometimes a little work-based experience (some certifications gained previously perhaps?) then it’s more than likely the point from which you begin your studies will be different from a trainee who has no experience. For those students starting IT studies and exams for the first time, it can be useful to avoid jumping in at the deep-end, kicking off with some basic user skills first. This is often offered with any educational course.

Proper support should never be taken lightly - locate a good company providing 24×7 full access, as not opting for this kind of support could hold up your pace and restrict your intake. Locate training schools where you can access help at any time of the day or night (even if it’s early hours on Sunday morning!) You’ll need direct-access to qualified mentors and tutors, and not a message system as this will slow you down - constantly waiting for a call-back during office hours.

The very best training providers incorporate three or four individual support centres across multiple time-zones. Online access provides the interactive interface to provide a seamless experience, irrespective of the time you login, there is always help at hand, without any problems or delays. Unless you insist on 24×7 support, you’ll end up kicking yourself. You may avoid using the support in the middle of the night, but you may need weekends, evenings and early mornings at some point.

If you’re like many of the students we talk to then you’re quite practically minded - a ‘hands-on’ person. If you’re like us, the painful task of reading endless manuals is something you’ll force on yourself if you absolutely have to, but you really wouldn’t enjoy it. You should use video and multimedia based materials if learning from books is not your thing. Recent studies into the way we learn shows that we remember much more when we involve as many senses as possible, and we get physically involved with the study process.

Courses are now available via DVD-ROM discs, so everything is learned directly from your own PC. Through video streaming, you are able to see your instructors showing you how it’s all done, and then have a go at it yourself - via the interactive virtual lab’s. It’s wise to view examples of the courseware provided before you sign the purchase order. Always insist on video tutorials, instructor demo’s and interactive modules with audio-visual elements.

Often, companies will only use training that is purely available online; and while this is acceptable much of the time, think what will happen when you don’t have access to the internet or you get a slow connection speed. It’s much safer to rely on CD and DVD ROM materials which removes the issue entirely.

How the program is actually delivered to you isn’t always given the appropriate level of importance. How many stages do they break the program into? What is the order and what control do you have at what pace it arrives? Normally, you’ll join a programme staged over 2 or 3 years and receive a module at a time. This may seem sensible until you think about these factors: Sometimes the steps or stages pushed by the company’s salespeople doesn’t suit all of us. You may find it a stretch to finalise all the sections within the time limits imposed?

For maximum flexibility and safety, most students now choose to request that all their modules (now paid for) are couriered out in one package, all at the beginning. It’s then your own choice how fast or slow and in what order you’d like to work.

You’ll come across courses which guarantee examination passes - this always means you have to pay for the exams before you’ve even made a start on the course. However, prior to embracing a course with such a promise, why not be aware of the facts:

Clearly it isn’t free - you’re still coughing up for it - the price has simply been included in the whole thing. Students who take exams one at a time, funding them as they go are much more likely to pass. They are thoughtful of what they’ve paid and so are more inclined to make sure they’re ready.

Shouldn’t you be looking to hold on to your money and pay for the exam when you’re ready, not to pay any mark-up to the training company, and to do it in a local testing office - instead of the remote centre that’s convenient only to the trainer? Many unscrupulous training companies secure huge profits by getting in the money for examinations upfront then hoping you won’t see them all through. You should fully understand that re-takes with organisations with an ‘Exam Guarantee’ inevitably are heavily regulated. You will be required to do mock exams until you’ve demonstrated an excellent ability to pass.

Exam fees averaged around the 112 pounds mark last year through local VUE or Pro-metric centres throughout the country. So what’s the point of paying maybe a thousand pounds extra to have ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when any student knows that the best guarantee is consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software.

It can be a nerve-racking task, but securing your first job is often eased by training colleges, through a Job Placement Assistance service. Because of the great demand for appropriately skilled people in Great Britain right now, it’s not too important to get too caught up in this feature though. It’s not as difficult as you may be led to believe to find employment once you’re well trained and qualified.

CV and Interview advice and support is sometimes offered (if not, see one of our sites for help). Ensure you update that dusty old CV straight away - don’t leave it till you pass the exams! Being considered a ‘maybe’ is far better than not even being known about. A surprising amount of junior support jobs are given to students (sometimes when they’ve only just got going.) The best services to help you land that job are usually independent and specialised local recruitment services. Because they make their money when they’ve found you a job, they’ll work that much harder to get a result.

To bottom line it, if you put the same amount of effort into securing your first job as into training, you won’t find it too challenging. A number of people curiously invest a great deal of time on their course materials and just give up once certified and seem to suppose that interviewers know they’re there.

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