As you’re considering studying for an MCSE, it’s probable that you fall into one of the following categories. You’re either just starting to come into the computer world, and you’ve found the industry has a great need for men and women who are commercially qualified. Alternatively you might be a knowledgeable person wanting to gain accreditation with a qualification such as MCSE.

When researching training companies, steer clear of those who cut costs by not upgrading their courses to the latest version from Microsoft. Overall, this will cost the student much more as they will have been educated in an outdated MCSE program which will have to be revised pretty much straight away.

A company’s mission statement must be based upon doing the most for their students, and they should care greatly about getting things right. Working towards an MCSE isn’t just about the certification – the process must also include guiding you on the most suitable route for you.

One interesting way that colleges make more money is through up-front charges for exams and offering an exam guarantee. It looks impressive, but is it really:

Clearly it isn’t free – you’re still paying for it – the price has simply been included in the whole thing.

Should you seriously need to pass in one, then you should pay for one exam at a time, give it the priority it deserves and give the task sufficient application.

Don’t you think it’s more sensible to not pay up-front, but at the time, not to pay the fees marked up by the training college, and also to sit exams more locally – instead of the remote centre that’s convenient only to the trainer?

A lot of extra profit is made by a significant number of organisations who incorporate exam fees into the cost of the course. A number of students don’t take them for various reasons but no refunds are given. Believe it or not, there are companies around who actually bank on it – as that’s where a lot of their profit comes from.

It’s also worth noting that you should consider what an ‘exam guarantee’ really means. Many training companies won’t be prepared to pay for re-takes until you can prove to them you’re ready to pass.

Average exam fees were around the 112 pounds mark last year when taken at VUE or Pro-metric centres in the UK. Therefore, why splash out often many hundreds of pounds extra for ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when common sense dictates that the most successful method is study, commitment and preparing with good quality mock and practice exams.

A lot of training providers only provide basic 9am till 6pm support (maybe a little earlier or later on certain days); very few go late in the evening or at weekends.

Locate training schools where you can receive help at any time of the day or night (irrespective of whether it’s the wee hours on Sunday morning!) You’ll need access directly to professional tutors, and not a message system as this will slow you down – consistently being held in a queue for a call-back at a convenient time for them.

We recommend looking for training schools that use several support centres from around the world. All of them should be combined to give a single entry point and round-the-clock access, when you want it, with no hassle.

Look for a trainer that is worth purchasing from. As only true round-the-clock 24×7 support truly delivers for technical programs.

Have a conversation with almost any knowledgeable consultant and they can normally tell you many awful tales of how students have been duped by salespeople. Make sure you deal with a skilled professional that quizzes you to find out what’s right for you – not for their paycheque! You need to find a starting-point that will suit you.

If you’ve got any work-based experience or qualifications, your starting-point of learning is now at a different level to a new student.

Opening with a basic PC skills course first may be the ideal way to start into your IT program, but depends on your skill level.

Accredited exam simulation and preparation packages are crucial – and really must be supplied by your training company.

Students regularly can find themselves confused by practicing questions for their exams that don’t come from authorised sources. Quite often, the terminology in the real exams is unfamiliar and you need to be ready for this.

It’s a good idea to ask for testing modules in order to check your understanding along the way. Simulated or practice exams will help to boost your attitude – then the actual exam is much easier.

(C) Jason Kendall. Hop over to LearningLolly.com for quality information. MCSE 2003 or www.computer-courses-uk.co.uk.