Without a constant influx of knowledgeable network and computer support staff, commerce in Great Britain (as elsewhere) could well be drawn to a standstill. There is an on-going demand for people to support both the users themselves and their networks. As we’re all becoming massively more beholden to advanced technology, we also inevitably become increasingly dependent on the well trained IT networkers, who ensure the systems function properly.
The somewhat scary thought of landing your first computer related job is often relieved by some companies, via a Job Placement Assistance service. Because of the growing shortage of skills in Britain today, there isn’t a great need to get too caught up in this feature though. It’s not as difficult as you may be led to believe to secure a job as long as you’ve got the necessary skills and qualifications.
You would ideally have help and assistance with preparing a CV and getting interviews though; and we’d recommend everybody to get their CV updated as soon as training commences – don’t delay until you’ve graduated or passed any exams. It can happen that you haven’t even passed your first exam when you’ll secure your initial junior support role; yet this is not possible if interviewers don’t get sight of your CV. The most efficient companies to get you a new position are generally local IT focused employment agencies. Because they make their money when they’ve found you a job, they’ll work that much harder to get a result.
Fundamentally, if you put as much hard work into getting your first IT position as into training, you’re not going to hit many challenges. A number of trainees curiously conscientiously work through their training course and then call a halt once certified and seem to expect employers to find them.
Lately, do you find yourself questioning your job security? For the majority of us, this issue only becomes a talking point when something goes wrong. But in today’s marketplace, the painful truth is that job security doesn’t really exist anymore, for most of us. Security only exists now through a rapidly increasing marketplace, driven by a shortage of trained workers. This shortage creates the appropriate conditions for a higher level of market-security – a far better situation.
The computer industry skills deficit around the United Kingdom currently stands at roughly 26 percent, as shown by the 2006 e-Skills survey. Accordingly, for each 4 job positions available across the computer industry, businesses are only able to find enough qualified individuals for three of the four. Properly skilled and commercially accredited new professionals are as a result at a total premium, and in all likelihood it will stay that way for many years to come. It’s unlikely if a better time or market settings will exist for obtaining certification in this rapidly growing and developing industry.
The classroom style of learning we remember from school, using textbooks and whiteboards, is often a huge slog for most of us. If this describes you, find training programs which feature interactive and multimedia modules. Where we can utilise all of our senses into our learning, our results will often be quite spectacular.
Courses are now available on CD and DVD discs, where everything is taught on your PC. Utilising the latest video technology, you can watch instructors demonstrating how it’s all done, and then have a go at it yourself – in an interactive lab. It’s very important to see the type of training provided by any company that you may want to train through. They have to utilise video, demonstrations and various interactive elements.
Avoiding training that is delivered purely online is generally a good idea. You want physical CD/DVD ROM course materials where offered, enabling them to be used at your convenience – it’s not wise to be held hostage to your broadband being ‘up’ 100 percent of the time.
With so much choice, it’s not really surprising that a large majority of newcomers to the industry don’t really understand the best career path they could be successful with. Because having no solid background in IT, in what way could we understand what any job actually involves? The key to answering this dilemma appropriately lies in a deep chat, covering some important points:
* Your hobbies and interests – these can reveal the possibilities will provide a happy working life.
* Do you want to re-train for a certain reason – i.e. is it your goal to work based from home (maybe self-employment?)?
* Any personal or home requirements you have?
* With many, many areas to train for in IT – you will have to achieve a solid grounding on what differentiates them.
* You will need to understand what differentiates each individual training area.
At the end of the day, the only real way of covering these is by means of a good talk with an advisor or professional that understands the market well enough to give you the information required.
You should look for an authorised exam preparation system included in your course. Make sure that the mock exams are not just posing the correct questions on the correct subjects, but additionally ask them in the way that the actual final exam will structure them. It completely unsettles people if the questions are phrased in unfamiliar formats. Mock exams can be very useful for confidence building – so that when you come to take your actual exams, you don’t get phased.
