If it weren’t for a constant influx of knowledgeable network and PC support personnel, business in the UK (and around the world) would surely grind to a halt. There is an ever growing requirement for people to support both the systems and the users themselves. Because we become massively more dependent on advanced technology, we simultaneously find ourselves increasingly dependent on the skilled and qualified networking professionals, who keep the systems going.

A lot of training providers will only provide basic 9am till 6pm support (maybe a little earlier or later on certain days); not many go late into the evening (after 8-9pm) or cover weekends properly.

Always avoid certification programs which can only support trainees through a message system when it’s outside of usual working hours. Companies will try to talk you round from this line of reasoning. But, no matter how they put it – you need support when you need support – not when it’s convenient for them.

We recommend looking for training schools that incorporate three or four individual support centres active in different time-zones. Every one of them needs to be seamlessly combined to offer a simple interface and round-the-clock access, when it’s convenient for you, with no hassle.

Look for a company that goes the extra mile. Only true round-the-clock 24×7 support provides the necessary backup.

An all too common mistake that we encounter all too often is to focus entirely on getting a qualification, and take their eye off where they want to get to. Colleges are brimming over with unaware students who took a course because it seemed fun – rather than what would get them an enjoyable career or job.

Avoid becoming part of the group who choose a training program that sounds really ‘interesting’ and ‘fun’ – and end up with a certification for a career they’ll never really get any satisfaction from.

It’s essential to keep your focus on where you want to get to, and create a learning-plan from that – not the other way round. Stay focused on the end-goal – making sure you’re training for something you’ll still be enjoying many years from now.

Talk to an experienced industry professional who knows about the sector you’re looking at, and could provide a detailed run-down of what you actually do in that role. Contemplating this long before commencement of any retraining course will prevent a lot of wasted time and effort.

Let’s face it: There really is pretty much no individual job security anywhere now; there’s only industry or business security – companies can just drop any single member of staff if it suits their business interests.

We can however hit upon security at market-level, by digging for high demand areas, tied with work-skill shortages.

The IT skills-gap in the United Kingdom is standing at approximately twenty six percent, according to the most recent e-Skills survey. That means for each four job positions existing across computing, we have only 3 certified professionals to fulfil that role.

This disquieting fact shows the requirement for more appropriately accredited computing professionals in the United Kingdom.

In reality, acquiring professional IT skills as you progress through the next year or two is probably the greatest career choice you could ever make.

We’re regularly asked to explain why academic qualifications are less in demand than the more commercial qualifications?

With a growing demand for specific technological expertise, industry has moved to the specialised core-skills learning only available through the vendors themselves – in other words companies such as Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA. This usually turns out to involve less time and financial outlay.

Obviously, a necessary amount of background information needs to be learned, but precise specialised knowledge in the required areas gives a vendor educated student a real head start.

Think about if you were the employer – and your company needed a person with some very particular skills. What’s the simplest way to find the right person: Wade your way through loads of academic qualifications from various applicants, struggling to grasp what they’ve learned and which workplace skills they have, or choose particular accreditations that exactly fulfil your criteria, and make your short-list from that. You can then focus on how someone will fit into the team at interview – rather than establishing whether they can do a specific task.

(C) 2009 – S. Edwards. Look at Flash Training or CLICK HERE.