If Cisco training is your aspiration, but you've not yet worked with routers or network switches, you should first attempt the Cisco CCNA qualification. This teaches you the knowledge you need to understand routers. The world wide web is built up of many routers, and big organisations with many locations also rely on them to allow their networks of computers to communicate.
You might end up joining an internet service provider or a large commercial venture that's on many locations but still needs contact. Both types of jobs command good salaries.
Getting your Cisco CCNA is the right level in this instance - don't be pushed into attempting your CCNP for now. Get a couple of years experience behind you first, then you will know if you need to train up to this level. Should that be the case, you'll have a much better chance of succeeding - as your experience will help you greatly.
A major candidate for the biggest issue to be got round for IT students is usually having to turn up to 'In Centre' days or workshops. Many training schools extol the virtues of the 'benefits' of going in to their classes, however, they quickly become a major problem because of:
* A lot of driving back and forth from the training centre - sometimes quite a distance away.
* Workshop availability; typically weekdays only and sometimes two to three days together. It's not easy to get the days away from work.
* With just four weeks vacation allowance, sacrificing half of them for educational days means we'll be hard-pushed to get a holiday with our families.
* 'In-Centre' workshop days often get fully subscribed quite quickly, giving us the only option of a slot that doesn't really suit.
* You may prefer to move at a somewhat more suitable pace - rather than be dictated to by the rest of the class. Often this can bring about classic classroom tension.
* A lot of trainees report that the (not inconsiderable) costs of travelling back and forth to the training venue and paying for food and accommodation gets very expensive.
* Don't risk the chance of letting yourself be overlooked for a lift up the ladder or pay-rises just because you're retraining.
* Don't think it's unusual for students to not ask questions they want answered - purely down to the fact that they're with their peers.
* You should remember, events are simply impossible to attend, if you live away for part of your week or month.
Why don't you simply watch and study with industry specialists one-on-one through videoed modules, working on them at a time that's convenient for you and you alone. You can study from home on your desktop PC or why not in the garden on a laptop. Any questions that pop up, just utilise the 24x7 Support (that should come with any technical program.) You don't have to worry about any note-taking - all the lessons and background info are laid out on a plate. If you need to cover something again, just go for it. While this won't take away every little difficulty, it unquestionably reduces stress and eases things. You also have reduced travel, hassle and costs.
The market provides an excess of job availability in IT. Arriving at the correct choice for yourself is a mammoth decision. Working through a list of IT job-titles is a complete waste of time. Surely, most of us don't even know what our own family members do for a living - so what chance do we have in understanding the intricacies of a particular IT career. Achieving any kind of right answer will only come through a meticulous study across many changing factors:
* Your hobbies and interests - these can highlight what possibilities will satisfy you.
* For what reasons you're starting in Information Technology - is it to conquer some personal goal like being self-employed for instance.
* Where is the salary on a scale of importance - is it the most important thing, or is day-to-day enjoyment higher up on the scale of your priorities?
* Learning what the main work areas and sectors are - and what differentiates them.
* How much effort you're prepared to spend on getting qualified.
To be honest, it's obvious that the only real way to seek advice on these matters is via a conversation with an experienced advisor that understands computing (and specifically it's commercial needs and requirements.)
We're often asked why academic qualifications are now falling behind more commercial qualifications? As demand increases for knowledge about more and more complex technology, industry has of necessity moved to the specialised core-skills learning only available through the vendors themselves - namely companies such as Microsoft, CompTIA, CISCO and Adobe. This often comes in at a fraction of the cost and time. Academic courses, for example, often get bogged down in a lot of background study - with a syllabus that's far too wide. This prevents a student from getting enough specific knowledge about the core essentials.
Imagine if you were an employer - and you required somebody who had very specific skills. Which is the most straightforward: Go through loads of academic qualifications from several applicants, struggling to grasp what they've learned and what workplace skills have been attained, or pick out specific commercial accreditations that precisely match your needs, and then select who you want to interview from that. The interview is then more about the person and how they'll fit in - rather than establishing whether they can do a specific task.
You might end up joining an internet service provider or a large commercial venture that's on many locations but still needs contact. Both types of jobs command good salaries.
Getting your Cisco CCNA is the right level in this instance - don't be pushed into attempting your CCNP for now. Get a couple of years experience behind you first, then you will know if you need to train up to this level. Should that be the case, you'll have a much better chance of succeeding - as your experience will help you greatly.
A major candidate for the biggest issue to be got round for IT students is usually having to turn up to 'In Centre' days or workshops. Many training schools extol the virtues of the 'benefits' of going in to their classes, however, they quickly become a major problem because of:
* A lot of driving back and forth from the training centre - sometimes quite a distance away.
* Workshop availability; typically weekdays only and sometimes two to three days together. It's not easy to get the days away from work.
* With just four weeks vacation allowance, sacrificing half of them for educational days means we'll be hard-pushed to get a holiday with our families.
* 'In-Centre' workshop days often get fully subscribed quite quickly, giving us the only option of a slot that doesn't really suit.
* You may prefer to move at a somewhat more suitable pace - rather than be dictated to by the rest of the class. Often this can bring about classic classroom tension.
* A lot of trainees report that the (not inconsiderable) costs of travelling back and forth to the training venue and paying for food and accommodation gets very expensive.
* Don't risk the chance of letting yourself be overlooked for a lift up the ladder or pay-rises just because you're retraining.
* Don't think it's unusual for students to not ask questions they want answered - purely down to the fact that they're with their peers.
* You should remember, events are simply impossible to attend, if you live away for part of your week or month.
Why don't you simply watch and study with industry specialists one-on-one through videoed modules, working on them at a time that's convenient for you and you alone. You can study from home on your desktop PC or why not in the garden on a laptop. Any questions that pop up, just utilise the 24x7 Support (that should come with any technical program.) You don't have to worry about any note-taking - all the lessons and background info are laid out on a plate. If you need to cover something again, just go for it. While this won't take away every little difficulty, it unquestionably reduces stress and eases things. You also have reduced travel, hassle and costs.
The market provides an excess of job availability in IT. Arriving at the correct choice for yourself is a mammoth decision. Working through a list of IT job-titles is a complete waste of time. Surely, most of us don't even know what our own family members do for a living - so what chance do we have in understanding the intricacies of a particular IT career. Achieving any kind of right answer will only come through a meticulous study across many changing factors:
* Your hobbies and interests - these can highlight what possibilities will satisfy you.
* For what reasons you're starting in Information Technology - is it to conquer some personal goal like being self-employed for instance.
* Where is the salary on a scale of importance - is it the most important thing, or is day-to-day enjoyment higher up on the scale of your priorities?
* Learning what the main work areas and sectors are - and what differentiates them.
* How much effort you're prepared to spend on getting qualified.
To be honest, it's obvious that the only real way to seek advice on these matters is via a conversation with an experienced advisor that understands computing (and specifically it's commercial needs and requirements.)
We're often asked why academic qualifications are now falling behind more commercial qualifications? As demand increases for knowledge about more and more complex technology, industry has of necessity moved to the specialised core-skills learning only available through the vendors themselves - namely companies such as Microsoft, CompTIA, CISCO and Adobe. This often comes in at a fraction of the cost and time. Academic courses, for example, often get bogged down in a lot of background study - with a syllabus that's far too wide. This prevents a student from getting enough specific knowledge about the core essentials.
Imagine if you were an employer - and you required somebody who had very specific skills. Which is the most straightforward: Go through loads of academic qualifications from several applicants, struggling to grasp what they've learned and what workplace skills have been attained, or pick out specific commercial accreditations that precisely match your needs, and then select who you want to interview from that. The interview is then more about the person and how they'll fit in - rather than establishing whether they can do a specific task.
About the Author:
(C) Jason Kendall. Try LearningLolly.com for in-depth career advice on CCNA Certification and CCNA Training.