The CompTIA A+ training program covers four areas of training; you’re thought of as competent at A+ once you’ve passed your exams for two of the four areas. This is the reason that most training providers only have two of the courses on their syllabus. You’ll find that to carry out a job effectively, you’ll need the information on each subject as many jobs will ask for an awareness of the whole A+ program. You don’t have to qualify in them all, however we’d advise that you at least have a working knowledge of every area.
Qualifying in CompTIA A+ without additional courses will mean that you’re able to repair and fix stand-alone PC’s and MAC’s; ones that are generally not connected to a network - which means the home or small business market.
If you would like to be someone who works in a multi-faceted environment - in network support, add Network+ to your CompTIA A+, or alternatively look at doing an MCSA or MCSE with Microsoft as you’ll need a more advanced experience of the way networks work.
It’s not uncommon for companies to offer inclusive exam guarantees - they always involve paying for the exam fees up-front, when you pay for the rest of your course. Before you get carried away with a course with such a promise, why not look at the following:
Patently it isn’t free - you’re still paying for it - it’s just been wrapped up in the price of the package.
If it’s important to you to get a first time pass, then you should avoid exam guarantees and pay when entering exams, focus on it intently and be ready for the task.
Do your exams as locally as possible and don’t pay up-front, but seek out the best deal for you when you’re ready.
Why tie up your cash (or borrow more than you need) for examination fees when you didn’t need to? A lot of profit is made because training colleges are getting money in early for exam fees - and then cashing in when they’re not all taken.
Don’t forget, with ‘Exam Guarantees’ from most places - they control when and how often you can re-take the exam. Subsequent exam attempts are only authorised at the company’s say so.
Due to typical VUE and Prometric tests coming in at approximately 112 pounds in Great Britain, it makes sense to pay as you go. Why splash out often many hundreds of pounds extra at the beginning of your training? Commitment, effort and practice with quality exam preparation systems are the factors that really get you through.
Finding your first job in the industry sometimes feels easier to handle if you’re offered a Job Placement Assistance service. It can happen though that too much is made of this feature, because it’s relatively easy for any motivated and trained individual to secure work in the IT environment - as employers are keen to find appropriately skilled employees.
Whatever you do, avoid waiting until you have completed your exams before updating your CV. As soon as you start studying, list what you’re working on and get it out there!
Getting your CV considered is more than not being known. A surprising amount of junior jobs are got by trainees (sometimes when they’ve only just got going.)
You can usually expect quicker service from a local IT focused recruitment consultant or service than any training course provider’s national service, as they’ll know the area better.
In a nutshell, if you put as much hard work into securing your first job as into studying, you’re not likely to experience problems. Some people strangely put hundreds of hours into their learning program and just give up once qualified and seem to expect employers to find them.
Student support is absolutely essential - locate a good company offering 24×7 direct access to instructors, as anything less will not satisfy and will also hamper your progress.
You’ll be waiting ages for an answer with email based support, and phone support is often to a call-centre who will just take down the issue and email it over to their technical team - who’ll call back sometime over the next 1-3 days, when it’s convenient to them. This isn’t a lot of good if you’re lost and confused and only have a specific time you can study.
The very best programs tend to use an online access 24×7 facility utilising a variety of support centres throughout multiple time-zones. You’ll have an environment which switches seamlessly to the best choice of centres irrespective of the time of day: Support when you need it.
Never compromise when it comes to your support. The majority of IT hopefuls who give up, are in that situation because of a lack of support.
We’re regularly asked to explain why traditional academic studies are now falling behind more commercial certificates?
As demand increases for knowledge about more and more complex technology, industry has been required to move to the specialised core-skills learning that the vendors themselves supply - in other words companies such as CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA. This usually turns out to involve less time and financial outlay.
In essence, students are simply taught the necessary specifics in depth. Actually, it’s not quite as pared down as that, but the principle objective is to concentrate on the fundamentally important skill-sets (with some necessary background) - without trying to cram in every other area (as academia often does).
Put yourself in the employer’s position - and you required somebody who had very specific skills. What should you do: Go through loads of academic qualifications from graduate applicants, asking for course details and which vocational skills they have, or choose particular accreditations that perfectly fit your needs, and make your short-list from that. The interview is then more about the person and how they’ll fit in - rather than establishing whether they can do a specific task.
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