The key factor to have in mind when you're contemplating any sort of IT training course is what you wish to accomplish out of it. Maybe you have work in your mind that demands particular PC literacy skills, or do you merely wish to know the best way to use the internet more thoroughly? And then of course, you may well be aiming to switch your job completely and get into the I.T. sector itself.

Exactly where you would like to wind up should be your 1st consideration. As soon as you've decided on your goals, it really is quite easy to determine the training program that will tick all of your required aims. Starting with the end in mind might furthermore prevent you from incurring costly mistakes.

Taking things a stage further again, you may want to consider the first level of Professional certification: 'User' & Systems-support. Usually, if you are going to provide software support to users in the business environment, then the 'MCDST' (Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician) may be appropriate. You'll normally need around a hundred hours of study with this level.

More in depth IT accreditations will lead you to the full professional grade. The most popular starting place for hardware-support, networking and security jobs would be the 'CompTIA A+' and Network+ certifications. Training courses will include hardware and network installation at a fundamental level, plus aspects of support, security and administration. Training time is usually estimated at approximately 200 to 250 hrs for both, which can be reasonably accomplished in six months on a part-time study basis.

In essence, the starting point for an absolute novice, who simply would like to get a fundamental understanding of how to get the most out of their laptop or computer, is the European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL). This will deal with how to run the standard components of 'Windows' (which is the system that 'runs' most personal PC's.) You will get to know more about how to log-on to the internet, and how to access and find your way around website pages and handle emails. You will also be taught the fundamentals of word processing and a bit about what databases and spreadsheets can be used for.

If you wish to increase your skill-set for career related purposes, you may want to have some more professional training. A competent working knowledge of 'Microsoft Office' would be the next reasonable step. The key certifications are the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) or the Microsoft 'Certified Application Specialist' ('MCAS'.) Whilst the first is based around the MS 'Office' 2003 environment under Windows XP, the second is based around Windows 'Vista' & 'Office' 2007. 'XP' is still most commonly used in industry, but 'Vista' might be more useful in the future. Each Ms 'Office' application is examined individually with both of the certifications, that is - 'Excel' for 'spreadsheets', 'Access' for databases, "Powerpoint" for 'presentations' and 'Word' for 'word processing'. The advantage of obtaining these accreditations is that they prove your in depth competency level at working with these applications.

If you're looking at a career move in to I.T., then it's possible that you will want to start out someplace amidst these courses, depending on your present degree of I.T. literacy. For any more senior courses its a good idea to talk your plans through with an advisor who has IT experience. But any full job change plans should really be discussed before diving in - it's a logical step to make sure the training you choose is right for the job. Trainees who do not arrange where they're going from the outset can end up throwing away a lot of time & money - that might have been prevented with a straight forward thirty minute conversation.

When you browse around the pages on this website you'll discover specific web-pages covering all these areas - as well as the certification tracks that are needed - so you can check things out a bit more. If you wish, we can send you our in-depth e-book 'Lollypedia' at no cost to you, which offers you the opportunity to contact our expert advisors.

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