Film Finder

Congratulations! As you’re reading this article you’re probably toying with the idea of re-training to work in a different industry – so already you’ve made a start. Less of us than you’d think are content with our jobs, but it’s rare anyone does more than moan. Why not be one of a small number who take responsibility for their future.

We’d politely request that in advance of taking any individual training program, you discuss your plans with a person who has knowledge of the industry and can point you in the right direction. Such a person will go through personality profiling with you and assist in finding the right role for you:

* Do you like to be around others at work? Is it meeting new people or being part of a team? Or you may prefer task-orientated work that you can complete alone?

* What elements are you looking for from the market sector you work in? – We all know that things have changed, look at building and banking for instance.

* How long a career do you hope to have once retrained, and will the industry offer you the chance to do that?

* Do you have the assurance that retraining in your chosen sector will make you employable, and offer the chance to be employed until retirement?

We would advise you to really explore the IT industry – there are a larger number of jobs than employees, plus it’s one of the few choices of career where the industry is on the grow. Contrary to the opinions of certain people, IT is not full of nerdy individuals staring at their computers the whole day (some jobs are like that of course.) The vast majority of roles are taken by ordinary men and women who enjoy better than average salaries.

The perhaps intimidating chore of finding your first job can be made easier because some trainers offer a Job Placement Assistance programme. Ultimately it’s not as hard as some people make out to get employment – once you’re trained and certified; employers in this country need your skills.

You would ideally have help with your CV and interview techniques though; and we’d encourage all students to bring their CV up to date right at the beginning of their training – don’t wait until you’ve graduated or passed any exams.

You may not have got to the stage where you’ve qualified when you will be offered your first junior support job; yet this can’t and won’t happen unless your CV is with employers.

The most efficient companies to help you find a job are generally independent and specialised local recruitment services. As they will get paid by the employer when they’ve placed you, they have the necessary incentive to try that bit harder.

Just be sure that you don’t conscientiously work through your course materials, just to give up and imagine someone else is miraculously going to find you a job. Stand up for yourself and get on with the job. Invest the same focus into getting your first job as you did to gain the skills.

Ignore a salesperson who pushes one particular program without performing a ’fact-find’ to gain understanding of your current abilities and also your experience level. Ensure that they have a wide-enough array of training from which they could solve your training issues.

Remember, if you’ve had any relevant accreditation or direct-experience, then you will often be able to begin at a different level to a trainee with no history to speak of.

If this is your initial attempt at studying to take an IT exam then it may be wise to practice with user-skills and software training first.

It only makes sense to consider training courses that’ll grow into commercially approved certifications. There are loads of small companies suggesting unknown ’in-house’ certificates which will prove unusable in today’s commercial market.

If your certification doesn’t come from a conglomerate such as Microsoft, Adobe, Cisco or CompTIA, then chances are it will have been a waste of time – as no-one will have heard of it.

Including examination fees upfront then giving it ’Exam Guarantee’ status is common for many companies. However, let’s consider what’s really going on:

Everyone knows they’re still paying for it – it’s obviously been inserted into the full cost of the package supplied by the training company. Certainly, it’s not a freebie – and it’s insulting that we’re supposed to think it is!

Evidence shows that if students pay for their own exams, one by one, they will be much more likely to get through on the first attempt – because they’ll think of the cost and their application will be greater.

Find the best exam deal or offer available when you’re ready, and save having to find the money early. You also get more choice of where you do the examinations – so you can find somewhere local.

Paying upfront for exam fees (and if you’re financing your study there’ll be interest on that) is bad financial management. Don’t line companies bank accounts with your hard-earned cash just to give them a good cash-flow! A lot bank on the fact that you don’t even take them all – but they won’t refund the cash.

It’s also worth noting that many exam guarantees are worthless. The majority of companies won’t be prepared to pay for you to re-take until you’ve completely satisfied them that you’re ready this time.

Prometric and VUE exams are in the region of 112 pounds in Britain at the time of writing. Why pay exorbitant ’Exam Guarantee’ fees (often covertly rolled into the cost of the course) – when good quality study materials, the proper support and commitment, effort and practice with quality exam preparation systems are the factors that really get you through.

(C) 2009 Scott Edwards. Navigate to MCITP Training or Click HERE.