Congratulations! Reading this subject matter means you’re likely to be contemplating your career, and if you’re considering retraining you’ve even now progressed more than the majority of people will. Are you aware that hardly any of us consider ourselves contented at work – yet the vast majority of us will take no corrective action. We implore you to be different and take action – don’t you think you deserve it.
We’d politely request that in advance of taking a course of training, you run through some things with a mentor who can see the bigger picture and can make recommendations. Such a person will go through personality profiling with you and assist in finding the right role for you:
* Do you hope for interaction with others? If the answer’s yes, would you enjoy being part of a team or are you hoping to meet new people? Maybe you’d rather be left alone to get on with things?
* Do you have a preference which market sector you could be employed in? (In this economy, it’s vital to choose carefully.)
* Is this the final time you envisage re-training, and if so, do you believe this career choice will allow you to do that?
* Do you believe that retraining in your chosen sector will offer you employment opportunities, and offer the chance to work right up to the time you want to stop?
It’s important that you don’t overlook the IT industry – everyone knows that it’s getting bigger. It’s not all nerdy people looking at computer screens all day – it’s true some IT jobs demand that, but most jobs are carried out by people like you and me who are earning rather well.
With all the options available, it’s not really surprising that the majority of trainees have no idea which career they will follow.
Scanning lists of IT career possibilities is no use whatsoever. The majority of us don’t really appreciate what our next-door neighbours do at work each day – so we have no hope of understanding the subtleties of a specific IT job.
The key to answering this dilemma in the best manner stems from a full conversation around a variety of topics:
* Personality factors plus what interests you – what work-related things you like and dislike.
* Why you want to consider moving into the IT industry – maybe you want to overcome a long-held goal like being your own boss maybe.
* Is the money you make further up on your list of priorities than other factors.
* Often, trainees don’t consider the amount of work required to get fully certified.
* Taking a proper look at the level of commitment, time and effort you can give.
For most people, getting to the bottom of so much data needs a long talk with an advisor who can explain things properly. Not only the qualifications – but also the commercial expectations and needs besides.
Have a conversation with any specialised advisor and we’d be amazed if they couldn’t provide you with many awful tales of how students have been duped by salespeople. Only deal with an industry professional that asks some in-depth questions to find out what’s appropriate to you – not for their paycheque! Dig until you find the very best place to start for you.
With a strong background, or even a touch of work-based experience (some industry qualifications maybe?) then it could be that your starting point will be quite dissimilar from someone who is just starting out.
Where this will be your first attempt at studying for an IT examination then you should consider whether to start out with some basic Microsoft package and Windows skills first.
An important area that is sometimes not even considered by trainees considering a training program is ‘training segmentation’. Essentially, this is the method used to break up the program for drop-shipping to you, which vastly changes what you end up with.
You may think that it makes sense (with most training taking 1-3 years to gain full certified status,) that a training provider will issue the courseware in stages, as you complete each part. Although:
Many students find that their training company’s standard order of study isn’t as suitable as another. It’s often the case that a slightly different order suits them better. Could it cause problems if you don’t get everything done in the allotted time?
The ideal circumstances are to get all the training materials sent to your address right at the beginning; the entire thing! This way, nothing can happen down the line which could affect your progress.
Some training providers supply a practical Job Placement Assistance service, to help you into your first commercial role. Sometimes, there is more emphasis than is necessary on this service, as it’s really not that difficult for a well trained and motivated person to get work in the IT industry – because companies everywhere are seeking qualified personnel.
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’ll often find that you will get your first job whilst still on the course (even in the early stages). If your course details aren’t on your CV (and it hasn’t been posted on jobsites) then you won’t even be considered!
If you’d like to keep travelling time and costs to a minimum, then you may well find that an independent and specialised local employment service can generally serve you better than the trainer’s recruitment division, for they’re far more likely to be familiar with the local job scene.
A regular grievance of many course providers is how hard people are focused on studying to become certified, but how un-prepared they are to work on getting the position they’re acquired skills for. Get out there and hustle – you might find it’s fun.
(C) 2009 S. Edwards. Pop to HERE or www.it-training–uk.co.uk.
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