Good for you! Discovering this piece indicates you’re probably thinking about your future, and if training for a new career’s in your mind you’ve already done more than almost everybody else. Are you aware that hardly any of us are fulfilled and satisfied with our jobs – yet most will just put up with it. Why not liberate yourself and make a start – those who do hardly ever regret it.
Before embarking on a course, look for some advice – talk to someone who’s familiar with your chosen field; an advisor who can get to the bottom of what you’ll like in a job, and analyse the training programs you may be suited to:
* Do you see yourself dealing with people? Would that be with the same people or with a lot of new people? Perhaps working alone in isolation may be your preference?
* Are you thinking carefully about which industry you maybe could work in? (In this economy, it’s vital to choose carefully.)
* Once your training has been completed, are you hoping your new skills will give you the ability to take you through to retirement?
* Do you think being qualified will make it easier to find new work easily, and stay employable until your retirement plans kick in?
When listing your options, it’s relevant that you consider the IT sector – it’s no secret that it’s getting bigger. It’s not full of geeky individuals gazing at their PC’s the whole time – we know those jobs exist, but the majority of roles are done by people like you and me who do very well out of it.
Trainees hoping to get a career in IT generally have no idea of which path to follow, let alone what sector to build their qualifications around.
As without any commercial background in IT, how should we possibly be expected to understand what someone in a particular job does?
Consideration of these different factors is important if you need to dig down the right answer for you:
* What nature of person you reckon you are – what kind of jobs you get enjoyment from, and conversely – what you hate to do.
* Are you aiming to pull off a specific objective – like being your own boss in the near future?
* What are your thoughts on job satisfaction vs salary?
* Always think in-depth about the energy required to achieve their goals.
* What effort, commitment and time you will put into the training program.
The best way to avoid the barrage of jargon, and reveal what’ll really work for you, have an informal chat with an industry-experienced advisor; an individual that can impart the commercial reality whilst covering each qualification.
Adding in the cost of examination fees upfront and offering an ‘Exam Guarantee’ is popular with a number of training colleges. However, let’s consider what’s really going on:
Certainly it’s not free – you’re still footing the bill for it – the price has simply been included in the whole thing.
People who enter their exams one by one, funding them as they go are much better placed to get through first time. They’re aware of their investment and prepare more appropriately to make sure they’re ready.
Why pay the training course provider early for examinations? Find the best deal you can when you’re ready, don’t pay mark-ups – and take it closer to home – rather than possibly hours away from your area.
Paying in advance for exams (and if you’re financing your study there’ll be interest on that) is a false economy. Why fill a company’s coffers with your hard-earned cash just to give them more interest! There are those who hope that you won’t get to do them all – so they don’t need to pay for them.
It’s also worth noting that you should consider what an ‘exam guarantee’ really means. The majority of organisations will not pay for you to re-take until you’ve completely satisfied them that you’re ready this time.
On average, exams cost approximately 112 pounds in the last 12 months when taken at VUE or Pro-metric centres in the UK. Therefore, why splash out often many hundreds of pounds extra to have ‘Exam Guarantees’, when common sense dictates that the responsible approach is consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software.
Most commercial training providers will only provide support available from 9-6 (office hours) and sometimes later on specific days; most won’t answer after 8-9pm at the latest and frequently never at the weekends.
Locate training schools where you can receive help at any time of day or night (no matter if it’s in the middle of the night on a weekend!) Make sure it’s always direct-access to qualified mentors and tutors, and not simply some messaging service that means you’re consistently being held in a queue for a call-back when it’s convenient for them.
Keep your eyes open for providers that utilise many support facilities across multiple time-zones. These should be integrated to offer a simple interface as well as 24×7 access, when it’s convenient for you, with the minimum of hassle.
Never ever take second best when it comes to your support. Many would-be IT professionals who give up, are in that situation because of a lack of support.
Many trainers supply a practical Job Placement Assistance facility, to assist your search for your first position. But don’t place too much emphasis on it – it’s quite easy for eager sales people to make too much of it. At the end of the day, the massive skills shortage in the United Kingdom is what will make you attractive to employers.
Help and assistance with preparing a CV and getting interviews might be provided (alternatively, check out one of our sites for help). It’s essential that you update that dusty old CV right away – don’t leave it till you pass the exams!
It’s possible that you won’t have even got to the exam time when you will be offered your first junior support position; but this can’t and won’t happen unless your CV is with employers.
Actually, a specialist independent regional recruitment consultant or service (who will get paid commission to place you) is going to give you a better service than a division of a training company. Also of course they should be familiar with the area and local employers better.
Various men and women, it would appear, are prepared to study their hearts out (sometimes for years), and just give up when it comes to finding the right position. Market yourself… Work hard to let employers know about you. Don’t think a job’s just going to jump out in front of you.
No related posts.
Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.
