Career Training

A fraction of the working population in this country are enjoying job satisfaction. Inevitably, huge numbers will take no action. The fact that you’ve got this far at a minimum means that change is beckoning.

We’d politely request that prior to beginning any study program, you run through some things with a mentor who is familiar with the working environment and can give you advice. The right person will be able to assess your personal likes and dislikes and help you find your ideal job to train for:

* Do you hope for interaction with others? If the answer’s yes, would you enjoy being part of a team or is meeting new people important to you? Maybe you’d rather be left alone to get on with things?

* The banks and building sector are none too stable right now, so think carefully about the sector that would suit you best?

* Once you’ve qualified, would you like this skill to serve you till you retire?

* Do you think being qualified will make it easier to find new work easily, and remain in employment until your retirement plans kick in?

The largest sector in Great Britain that can satisfy a trainee’s demands is the IT sector. There is a requirement for greater numbers of qualified people in IT, simply have a look at a local jobs website and you’ll discover what we mean. Don’t misunderstand and think it’s all nerdy people staring at theirscreens every day - there are many more roles than that. Most of employees in this sector are just like the rest of us, and they have very interesting and well paid jobs.

A sneaky way that training companies make a lot more is by charging for exams up-front and offering an exam guarantee. It looks like a good deal, but let’s just examine it more closely:

These days, we are a bit more aware of hype - and the majority of us ought to realise that of course we’re actually paying for it - they’re not just being charitable and doling out freebies! For those who want to pass first time, you must pay for one exam at a time, give it the necessary attention and be ready for the task.

Find the best exam deal or offer available at the appropriate time, and hang on to your cash. You’ll also be able to choose where to take your exam - which means you can stay local. A lot of so-called credible training companies make big margins because they’re getting in the money for all the exam fees up-front and hoping that you won’t take them all. Don’t forget, with most ‘Exam Guarantees’ - you are not in control of when you are allowed to have another go. You will have to demonstrate an excellent pass-rate before they’ll approve a re-take.

Average exam fees were 112 pounds or thereabouts twelve months or so ago when taken at local VUE or Pro-metric centres throughout the country. Therefore, why splash out often many hundreds of pounds extra to get ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when common sense dictates that the most successful method is a commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools.

Full support is of the utmost importance - look for a package offering 24×7 direct access to instructors, as anything less will not satisfy and will also impede your ability to learn. Avoid study programmes that only provide support to students with a message system after office-staff have gone home. Training companies will defend this with all kinds of excuses. Essentially - you want to be supported when you need the help - not as-and-when it’s suitable for their staff.

Keep your eyes open for colleges that have multiple support offices active in different time-zones. All of them should be combined to enable simple one-stop access together with 24×7 access, when you need it, without any problems. If you opt for less than 24×7 support, you’ll regret it. You may not need it in the middle of the night, but you’re bound to use weekends, evenings and early mornings at some point.

Be careful that the qualifications you’re working towards are commercially relevant and are the most recent versions. ‘In-house’ exams and the certificates they come with are not normally useful in gaining employment. Unless the accreditation comes from a conglomerate such as Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or Adobe, then it’s likely it could have been a waste of time and effort - as it’ll be an unknown commodity.

Getting into your first IT role sometimes feels easier to handle with a Job Placement Assistance program. However sometimes people are too impressed with this facility, for it’s really not that difficult for any motivated and trained individual to find work in this industry - as there is such a shortage of skilled employees.

Nevertheless, don’t leave it until you have finished your training before polishing up your CV. Right at the beginning of your training, enter details of your study programme and get it out there! Various junior support jobs are offered to people who are in the process of training and have still to get qualified. This will at the very least get your CV into the ‘possible’ pile and not the ‘no’ pile. In many cases, an independent and specialised local employment agency (who will get paid by the employer when they’ve placed you) should get better results than any sector of a centralised training facility. In addition, they will no doubt know the area and local employers better.

To bottom line it, as long as you put the same commitment into landing a job as into training, you won’t find it too challenging. A number of trainees strangely put hundreds of hours into their learning program and just give up once certified and appear to be under the impression that jobs will come to them.

Always expect accredited simulation materials and an exam preparation system included in your course. Confirm that your practice exams are not only asking questions from the right areas, but ask them in the exact format that the real exams will formulate them. It really messes up students if the questions are phrased in unfamiliar formats. It’s a good idea to ask for testing modules in order to test your understanding at all times. Practice or ‘mock’ exams will help to boost your attitude - then the real thing isn’t quite as scary.