It’s really great that you’ve made it this far! Just ten percent of people say they enjoy their work, but the majority just bitch about it and nothing happens. By looking for this we have a hunch that you’re giving retraining some thought, so you’ve already stood out from the crowd. Now you just need to research and follow-through.
Prior to considering specific training programs, look for an advisor who will be able to guide you on which area will be right for you. An advisor who will take time to get an understanding of your personality, and discover what type of job will be right for you:
* Do you operate better working alone or is being part of a team an essential criteria for you?
* What’s important that you get from your chosen industry? (If it’s stability you’re after, you might think twice about banks or the building industry right now.)
* Is this the final time you want to study, and based on that, do you believe this career choice will give you scope to do that?
* Do you believe that retraining in your chosen sector will offer you employment opportunities, and provide the facility to be employed until your pension kicks in?
It’s important that you consider the IT sector – it’s well known that it is one of the few growth sectors. IT isn’t all techie people looking at computer screens the whole time – of course those roles do exist, but the majority of roles are done by people like you and me who are earning rather well.
Getting your first commercial position sometimes feels easier to handle if you’re supported with a Job Placement Assistance program. Don’t get overly impressed with this service – it isn’t unusual for companies marketing departments to make it sound harder than it is. The fact of the matter is, the huge shortage of staff in Great Britain is the reason you’ll find a job.
CV and Interview advice and support may be available (if it isn’t, consult one of our sites). Be sure to you polish up your CV right away – not after you’ve qualified!
Quite often, you’ll land your first position while still studying (sometimes when you’ve only just got going). If your CV doesn’t say what you’re learning – or it’s not getting in front of interviewers, then you’re not even going to be known about!
Generally, you’ll receive better results from a specialist independent regional employment service than you’ll get from a training course provider’s recruitment division, because they’ll know the local area and commercial needs better.
Various students, it seems, spend evenings and weekends on their training and studies (sometimes for years), and then just stop instead of attempting to secure their first job. Market yourself… Work hard to get in front of employers. A job isn’t just going to bump into you.
Always expect the most up to date Microsoft (or relevant organisation’s) authorised exam preparation packages.
Steer clear of depending on non-official exam papers and questions. Their phraseology is sometimes startlingly different – and this leads to huge confusion when it comes to taking the real exam.
Ensure that you analyse whether you’re learning enough by doing tests and mock ups of exams to get you ready for the proper exam.
Make sure you don’t get caught-up, as many people do, on the certification itself. Your training isn’t about getting a plaque on your wall; you should be geared towards the actual job at the end of it. Stay focused on what it is you want to achieve.
It’s not unheard of, in some situations, to thoroughly enjoy one year of training only to end up putting 20 long years into a tiresome job role, as an upshot of not doing the correct research at the outset.
You also need to know how you feel about career development, earning potential, and whether you intend to be quite ambitious. It’s vital to know what (if any) sacrifices you’ll need to make for a particular role, which particular exams are needed and in what way you can develop commercial experience.
Chat with a skilled advisor that has a background in the industry you’re considering, and could provide a detailed run-down of what you actually do in that role. Contemplating this before commencement of any study course makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?
Traditional teaching in classrooms, involving piles of reference textbooks, is usually pretty hard going. If this sounds like you, find training programs which have a majority of interactive, multimedia parts.
Our ability to remember is increased with an involvement of all our senses – experts have been clear on this for as long as we can remember.
Study programs now come in disc format, where your computer becomes the centre of your learning. Through video streaming, you are able to see your instructors showing you how it’s all done, with some practice time to follow – in a virtual lab environment.
All companies should be able to show you some examples of the materials provided for study. You’re looking for evidence of tutorial videos and demonstrations and many interactive sections.
Often, companies will only use just online versions of their training packages; while you can get away with this much of the time, consider what happens when you don’t have access to the internet or you get a slow connection speed. A safer solution is the provision of DVD or CD discs that don’t suffer from these broadband issues.
Copyright Scott Edwards 2010. Pop to PHP Training or www.learninglolly.com/Database_Training_Courses.html.