CompTIA Network Plus Training Courses Compared

Computer and network support staff are constantly sought after in this country, as institutions rely heavily upon their knowledge and skills. The need for more commercially qualified individuals grows, as human beings become significantly more beholden to computers in the modern world.

Any program that you’re going to undertake really needs to work up to a nationally accepted qualification at the finale – and not some unimportant ‘in-house’ printed certificate to hang in your hallway.

Unless your qualification is issued by a big-hitter like Microsoft, Adobe, CompTIA or Cisco, then you’ll probably find it won’t be commercially viable – because it won’t give an employer any directly-useable skills.

With all the options available, it’s not really surprising that a large percentage of trainees don’t really understand the best career path they should even pursue.

After all, if you don’t have any know-how of the IT market, how could you possibly know what any qualified IT worker fills their day with? How can you possibly choose what educational path is the most likely for a successful result.

To get through to the essence of this, we need to discuss a number of different aspects:

* What hobbies you have and enjoy – as they can reveal the possibilities you’ll get the most enjoyment out of.

* What time-frame are you looking at for the retraining?

* What are your thoughts on salary vs job satisfaction?

* Many students don’t properly consider the level of commitment required to achieve their goals.

* You’ll also need to think hard about any sacrifices you’ll need to make, as well as what commitment and time you’ll put into the accreditation program.

The best way to avoid the barrage of jargon, and discover the best route for you, have an in-depth discussion with an advisor with years of experience; someone who can impart the commercial reality while explaining the accreditations.

The way a programme is physically sent to you is often missed by many students. How many stages do they break the program into? And in what order and do you have a say in when you’ll get each part?

Most companies will sell you a program spread over 1-3 years, and courier the materials in pieces as you pass each exam. On the surface this seems reasonable – until you consider the following:

What if for some reason you don’t get to the end of all the sections or exams? What if you don’t find their order of learning is ideal for you? Due to no fault of yours, you may go a little slower and therefore not end up with all the modules.

The ideal solution is to have all the learning modules couriered to your home before you even start; the complete package! This way, nothing can happen down the line which could affect your ability to finish.

A number of men and women assume that the state educational path is the right way even now. So why then is commercial certification beginning to overtake it?

With a growing demand for specific technological expertise, industry has of necessity moved to the specialised core-skills learning only available through the vendors themselves – in other words companies like CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA. This usually turns out to involve less time and financial outlay.

This is done by focusing on the skill-sets required (together with a proportionate degree of background knowledge,) as opposed to spending months and years on the background ‘padding’ that degree courses can get bogged down in (to fill up a syllabus or course).

When it comes down to the nitty-gritty: Authorised IT qualifications let employers know exactly what you’re capable of – the title is a complete giveaway: for example, I am a ‘Microsoft Certified Professional’ in ‘Designing Security for a Windows 2003 Network’. Consequently companies can look at the particular needs they have and what certifications are required to perform the job.

(C) Jason Kendall. Navigate to LearningLolly.com for smart advice. CLICK HERE or Network+ Certification.