A very small number of men and women in the UK today are pleased and contented with their working life. Inevitably, huge numbers will do nothing about it. The fact that you've got this far at least tells us that you know it's time to make a change.
For those thinking of re-training, it's important that you have in mind what you want and don't want from the career you'd like to train for. Be sure that you would be more satisfied before much time and effort is spent changing the direction of your life. We recommend looking at the big picture first, to avoid disappointment:
* Is having company at work important to you? Perhaps you like being a team player? Or you may prefer task-orientated work that you can complete alone?
* The building trade and the banking industry are struggling today, so think carefully about the sector that will answer your needs?
* Once you've trained, how many years work do anticipate working, and can your chosen industry offer you the chance to do that?
* Do you feel uncomfortable about the possibility of new employment opportunities, and being gainfully employed all the way until retirement?
The biggest industry in this country to meet the above criteria is the IT sector. There's a demand for more skilled staff in this sector, just search any jobs website and you will find them yourself. But don't think it's all nerdy people staring at theirscreens all day long - it's much more diverse than that. Most of staff in the computer industry are just like the rest of us, and they have very interesting and well paid jobs.
You have to be sure that all your exams are current and commercially required - don't even consider programmes which lead to some in-house certificate (which is as useless as if you'd printed it yourself).
From an employer's perspective, only the big-boys such as Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or Adobe (to give some examples) give enough bang for your buck. Anything less just doesn't cut the mustard.
Coming across job security these days is very unusual. Companies will remove us out of the workplace at the drop of a hat - whenever it suits.
However, a fast growing sector, where staff are in constant demand (through a growing shortage of properly qualified staff), provides a market for proper job security.
The IT skills shortfall throughout Great Britain currently stands at around twenty six percent, according to a recent e-Skills survey. Meaning that for every four jobs in existence across the computer industry, there are only 3 trained people to fill that need.
Attaining proper commercial computing qualification is accordingly a 'Fast Track' to a continuing and satisfying line of work.
For sure, now, more than ever, really is such a perfect time for retraining into Information Technology (IT).
Starting from the viewpoint that it's necessary to home-in on the job we want to do first and foremost, before we can even weigh up what career training meets that requirement, how can we choose the right path?
After all, without any know-how of the IT market, what chance is there for you to know what any qualified IT worker does each day? Let alone decide on what educational path provides the best chances for your success.
Arriving at a well-informed choice only comes from a meticulous investigation of several altering areas:
* Your personality type and what you're interested in - which work-centred jobs you enjoy or dislike.
* What sort of time-frame do you want for the training process?
* Is salary further up on your wish list than other requirements.
* Because there are so many ways to train in Information Technology - there's a need to gain some key facts on what makes them different.
* It makes sense to appreciate the differences between the myriad of training options.
At the end of the day, the most intelligent way of covering these is through an in-depth discussion with an advisor who knows the industry well enough to give you the information required.
What is the reason why qualifications from colleges and universities are being replaced by more qualifications from the commercial sector?
Key company training (to use industry-speak) is more effective in the commercial field. The IT sector has acknowledged that a specialist skill-set is what's needed to service the demands of a technologically complex commercial environment. Microsoft, CISCO, Adobe and CompTIA are the key players in this arena.
Of course, a necessary amount of background knowledge must be learned, but essential specialisation in the areas needed gives a vendor trained person a real head start.
The crux of the matter is this: Commercial IT certifications tell an employer precisely what skills you have - 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 identify just what their needs are and what certifications are required to fulfil that.
(C) 2009 - S. Edwards. Navigate to Click HERE or Cisco Course.
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