There are four specialised areas of training in the A+ syllabus, of which you’ll need certification in two subjects to be considered A+ qualified. Be aware though that restricting yourself to two of the specialised areas could leave gaps in your knowledge. Try to cover all four – you’ll be glad you did when it comes to interview time.
A+ certification in isolation will give you the ability to fix and repair laptops, Macs and PC’s; ones which are usually not part of a network – which is for the most part the home market. If you feel it appropriate to add Network+ to your CompTIA A+ training course, you’ll also have the ability to look after networks, which means you’ll be able to expect a better remuneration package.
One crafty way that training companies make a big mark-up is through up-front charges for exams and then including an ‘Exam Guarantee’. This sounds impressive, until you think it through:
You’ll pay for it by some means. It certainly isn’t free – they’ve simply charged more for the whole training package. Trainees who take each progressive exam, paying as they go are much more likely to pass. They’re thoughtful of their investment and prepare more appropriately to ensure they are ready.
Doesn’t it make more sense to go for the best offer at the time, not to pay any mark-up to a training college, and also to sit exams more locally – instead of miles away at the college’s beck and call? A surprising number of so-called credible training providers net big margins through getting paid for all the exam fees up-front then hoping either that you won’t take them, or it will be a long time before you do. Also, many exam guarantees are worthless. Many training companies won’t pay again for an exam until you have demonstrated conclusively that you won’t fail again.
With average prices for VUE and Pro-metric exams coming in at around 112 pounds in the UK, it’s common sense to fund them one by one. It’s not in the student’s interests to fork out hundreds or thousands of pounds for exams when enrolling on a course. Commitment, effort and practice with quality exam preparation systems are the factors that really get you through.
What is the reason why traditional academic studies are being overtaken by more commercial certificates? With a growing demand for specific technological expertise, industry has had to move to the specialised training that the vendors themselves supply – for example companies such as Microsoft, CompTIA, CISCO and Adobe. Often this saves time and money for the student. Academic courses, for instance, can often get caught up in vast amounts of background study – and much too wide a syllabus. This prevents a student from learning the core essentials in sufficient depth.
What if you were an employer – and you needed to take on someone with a very particular skill-set. What’s the simplest way to find the right person: Pore through reams of different degrees and college qualifications from hopeful applicants, trying to establish what they know and what vocational skills they have, or select a specialised number of commercial certifications that exactly fulfil your criteria, and make your short-list from that. You can then focus on how someone will fit into the team at interview – rather than on the depth of their technical knowledge.
There is a tidal wave of change washing over technology in the near future – and the industry becomes more ground-breaking every year. It’s a common misapprehension that the revolution in technology we’ve been going through is easing off. Nothing could be further from the truth. There are huge changes to come, and most especially the internet will become an increasingly dominant part of our lives.
Always remember that income in the IT sector in the United Kingdom is a lot better than in other market sectors, therefore you’ll probably gain much more with professional IT knowledge, than you’d expect to earn elsewhere. Demand for professionally qualified and skilled IT workers is assured for many years to come, thanks to the continuous expansion in IT dependency in commerce and the massive skills gap still present.
With all the options available, there’s no surprise that a large majority of students have no idea which career they should even pursue. Reading a list of IT job-titles is next to useless. Surely, most of us don’t even know what our good friends do at work – so we have no hope of understanding the ins and outs of a particular IT career. Getting to any kind of right resolution only comes via a thorough investigation of many altering criteria:
* What hobbies you’re involved with in your spare-time – often these reveal the areas will provide a happy working life.
* Are you aiming to accomplish a specific dream – like working for yourself sometime soon?
* Is the money you make further up on your priority-scale than other factors.
* Looking at the many markets that Information Technology encapsulates, you’ll need to be able to absorb the differences.
* You’ll also need to think hard about any sacrifices you’ll need to make, as well as what commitment and time you’re going to give to gaining your certifications.
When all is said and done, the best way of understanding everything necessary is through a meeting with an advisor that understands the market well enough to lead you to the correct decision.
A key training course package should have accredited exam preparation systems. Be sure that the practice exams aren’t just asking you the right questions in the right areas, but ask them in the same way that the proper exam will phrase them. It really messes up people if they’re faced with unrecognisable phrases and formats. Ensure that you request some practice exams so you’ll be able to check your understanding along the way. Mock exams will help to boost your attitude – so you won’t be quite so nervous at the actual exam.
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