The CompTIA A+ training program covers four areas of training; you\’re considered an achiever in A+ when you\’ve passed the test for just two specialist areas. For this reason, most training providers offer only two of the training courses. You\’ll find that it\’s necessary to have the training for all four areas as many jobs will demand knowledge and skills of the entire course. You don\’t have to complete all 4 certifications, although it would seem prudent that you study for all four areas.

Training courses in A+ are about fault finding and diagnosing – both remote access and hands-on, alongside building and fixing and understanding antistatic conditions.

In addition, you could look to think about doing Network+ as it will enable you to look after networks of computers, which is where the bigger salaries are.

At the top of your shopping list for a training program should be full 24×7 support with trained professional instructors and mentors. Too many companies only provide support to you inside of office hours (typically 9am-6pm) and sometimes a little earlier or later (but not weekends usually).

Locate training schools where you can receive help at any time of day or night (no matter if it\’s in the middle of the night on a weekend!) You\’ll need direct-access to qualified mentors and tutors, and not a call-centre that will take messages so you\’re constantly waiting for a call-back during office hours.

The best training colleges opt for an online round-the-clock package pulling in several support offices over many time-zones. You get a single, easy-to-use environment that seamlessly selects the best facility available irrespective of the time of day: Support when it\’s needed.

Never settle for less than you need and deserve. 24×7 support is the only viable option with IT training. Maybe burning the midnight-oil is not your thing; but for the majority of us however, we\’re out at work while the support is live.

Ask a skilled advisor and they can normally tell you many horror stories of students who\’ve been sold completely the wrong course for them. Only deal with a skilled advisor that asks some in-depth questions to find out what\’s appropriate to you – not for their wallet! Dig until you find the very best place to start for you.

Remember, if you\’ve got any accreditation or direct-experience, then you can sometimes expect to begin at a different level to a student who\’s starting from scratch.

It\’s wise to consider user-skills and software training first. This can help whip your basic knowledge into shape and make the transition to higher-level learning a bit more manageable.

Considering the amount of options that are available, there\’s no surprise that nearly all trainees have no idea which career they should even pursue.

Flicking through a list of IT job-titles is next to useless. The majority of us don\’t really appreciate what the neighbours do for a living – so what chance do we have in understanding the subtleties of a particular IT career.

The key to answering this dilemma in the best manner lies in a thorough talk over some important points:

* The kind of person you reckon you are – what kind of jobs you really enjoy, and on the other side of the coin – what makes you unhappy.

* Are you driven to get qualified due to a specific motive – for example, is it your goal to work based from home (working for yourself?)?

* How highly do you rate salary – is it very important, or is enjoying your job a lot higher on the priority-scale?

* Looking at the many markets that Information Technology encompasses, you\’ll need to be able to see what\’s different.

* The level of commitment and effort you\’re prepared to set aside for your training.

In actuality, it\’s obvious that the only real way to investigate these matters will be via a meeting with an advisor or professional that has a background in the IT industry (as well as the commercial requirements.)

Be careful that the certifications that you\’re considering are recognised by industry and are bang up to date. Training companies own certificates are often meaningless.

Unless your qualification is issued by a big-hitter like Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or Adobe, then chances are it won\’t be commercially viable – as it\’ll be an unknown commodity.

(C) Scott Edwards 2009. Browse around Mature Student Training or Career Qualifications.