What kind of things do you expect the top of the range training companies certified by Microsoft to offer a client in Britain in this day and age? Obviously, the finest Microsoft authorised training routes, supplying a range of courses to lead you into a selection of professions with IT.

Perhaps you’d like to talk through what you’re looking to do with a person who’s got industry experience – and if you’re not sure, then take counsel on what kind of IT job would be best, dependent on your personality.

When you’ve chosen the career path you want, a relevant course has to be picked that’s is in line with your ability level and skill set. This can be personally tailored for you.

Be on the lookout that any exams you’re considering doing are recognised by industry and are the most recent versions. Training companies own certificates are usually worthless.

Only nationally recognised accreditation from the top companies like Microsoft, CompTIA, Cisco and Adobe will open the doors to employers.

Your training program should always include the very latest Microsoft (or relevant organisation’s) accredited exam simulation and preparation packages.

Some students can be thrown off course by practicing questions for their exams that aren’t from the authorised examining boards. Quite often, the phraseology is unfamiliar and you need to be ready for this.

Practice exams can be enormously valuable as a tool for logging knowledge into your brain – so that when you come to take the real deal, you will be much more relaxed.

It’s important to understand: the training itself or a certification isn’t what this is about; a job that you’re getting the training for is. Too many training companies over-emphasise the qualification itself.

Students often train for a single year but end up doing the job for 20 years. Ensure you avoid the fatal error of taking what may be an ‘interesting’ training program only to spend 20 years doing an unrewarding career!

Set targets for how much you want to earn and how ambitious you are. This will influence which precise accreditations you’ll need to attain and how much effort you’ll have to give in return.

You’d also need help from an advisor who can explain the industry you’ve chosen, and will be able to provide ‘A typical day in the life of’ type of explanation of the job being considered. These things are incredibly important as you’ll need to fully understand if you’re going down the right road.

Beginning with the understanding that it’s necessary to home-in on the market that sounds most inviting first, before we’re even able to consider which educational program fulfils our needs, how do we decide on the right direction?

Flicking through lists of IT career possibilities is a complete waste of time. Surely, most of us don’t really appreciate what the neighbours do for a living – let alone understand the complexities of any specific IT role.

To come through this, there should be a discussion of a variety of different aspects:

* Your personal interests and hobbies – as they can highlight what possibilities will give you the most reward.

* Why you’re looking at moving into the IT industry – maybe you want to achieve a particular goal such as self-employment maybe.

* What salary and timescale requirements that are important to you?

* Understanding what the main job types and sectors are – and what differentiates them.

* Having a cold, hard look at what commitment and time that you can put aside.

When all is said and done, the best way of checking this all out is by means of a good talk with a professional that through years of experience will give you the information required.

Incorporating exam fees as an inclusive element of the package price then giving it ‘Exam Guarantee’ status is common for many training course providers. However, let’s consider what’s really going on:

Thankfully, today we are a tad more knowledgeable about sales gimmicks – and the majority of us ought to know that for sure it is something we’re paying for (it’s not a freebie because they like us so much!)

Evidence shows that when students fund each examination, one after the other, the chances are they’re going to pass first time – because they’ll be conscious of the cost and will therefore apply themselves appropriately.

Doesn’t it make more sense to hold on to your money and pay for the exam when you’re ready, instead of paying a premium to the training company, and to do it in a local testing office – rather than in some remote centre?

A surprising number of so-called credible training course providers make a great deal of profit by getting in the money for exam fees early and hoping either that you won’t take them, or it will be a long time before you do.

Most companies will insist on pre-tests and not allow you to re-take an exam until you’ve completely proven that you’re likely to pass – which actually leaves you with no guarantee at all.

Splashing out often many hundreds of pounds extra on an ‘Exam Guarantee’ is remiss – when consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software is actually the key to your success.

(C) Jason Kendall. Check out LearningLolly.com for clear career advice on MCITP Training and SQL Server Training.