Should you be hoping to formalise your skill set at the Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator level of study, the latest courses available are based on CD and DVD ROM’s using interactive, hands-on study. Whether you are an experienced technician but are about to formalise your skills with certification, or are new to network support, you will find technologically advanced MCSA courses to suit your requirements. To pass for an MCSA there are four MCP’s (Microsoft Certified Professional exams) needed to be passed. If you’re new to IT, you’ll probably be required to have some coaching before doing the MCP exams. Find a provider that has a team of advisors who can guide you towards the ideal program for you and can match your current skills to the right level of course.

Doing your bit in the cutting-edge of new technology really is electrifying. You’re involved with shaping the next few decades. We’re barely beginning to get a handle on what this change will mean to us. The way we communicate and interact with everyone around us will be massively affected by computers and the internet.

Should lifestyle be up there on your goal sheet, you will welcome the news that the regular income of IT employees in general is noticeably greater than with the rest of the economy. Demand for properly certified IT professionals is a fact of life for quite some time to come, thanks to the substantial increase in the marketplace and the massive skills gap that we still have.

One fatal mistake that many potential students make is to look for the actual course to take, rather than starting with the end result they want to achieve. Training academies are stacked to the hilt with students who chose a course based on what sounded good – in place of something that could gain them an enjoyable career or job. Don’t let yourself become one of those unfortunate people who select a program that seems ‘fun’ or ‘interesting’ – and end up with a certification for an unrewarding career path.

Stay focused on where you want to get to, and create a learning-plan from that – avoid getting them back-to-front. Keep your eyes on your goals and study for a career you’ll still be enjoying many years from now. Seek advice from a skilled advisor, even if there’s a fee involved – it’s usually much cheaper and safer to find out at the start if you’ve chosen correctly, instead of discovering after two full years that the job you’ve chosen is not for you and have to return to the start of another program.

You have to be sure that all your accreditations are current and what employers are looking for – you’re wasting your time with programs which lead to some in-house certificate (which is as useless as if you’d printed it yourself). You’ll discover that only industry recognised certification from the top companies like Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA and Adobe will have any meaning to employers.

A useful feature that several companies offer is a programme of Job Placement assistance. The service is put in place to help you get your first commercial position. But don’t place too much emphasis on it – it’s quite easy for training companies to overplay it. Ultimately, the still growing need for IT personnel in this country is why employers will be interested in you.

Get your CV updated straight-away though – look to your training company for advice on how to do this. Don’t put it off till you’ve finished your exams. You might not even have taken your exams when you’ll secure your initial junior support position; but this can’t and won’t happen unless you’ve posted your CV on job sites. The most reliable organisations to help you land that job are usually local IT focused employment agencies. Because they only get paid when they place you, they’ll work that much harder to get a result.

A common frustration of many course providers is how much men and women are focused on studying to become certified, but how un-prepared that student is to get the role they’re studied for. Get out there and hustle – you might find it’s fun.

A sneaky way that training companies make extra profits is by adding exam fees upfront to the cost of a course and offering an exam guarantee. It looks impressive, but is it really:

Everyone knows they’re still being charged for it – obviously it has already been included in the full cost of the package supplied by the training provider. It’s definitely not free – don’t think these companies are so generous with their money! Passing first time is everyone’s goal. Progressively working through your exams when it’s appropriate and funding them as you go makes it far more likely you’ll pass first time – you put the effort in and are aware of the costs involved.

Don’t you think it’s more sensible to hold on to your money and pay for the exam when you’re ready, rather than coughing up months or even a year or two in advance to the training college, and to do it locally – rather than possibly hours away from your area? A lot of current training providers net big margins because they’re charging for exam fees early then hoping you won’t see them all through. Most companies will require you to do mock exams and prohibit you from re-taking an exam until you’ve proven conclusively that you can pass – which actually leaves you with no guarantee at all.

Splashing out often many hundreds of pounds extra on an ‘Exam Guarantee’ is naive – when study, commitment and preparing with good quality mock and practice exams is what will really see you through.