Careers Training for Cisco CCNA 2009
The CCNA qualification is your entry level for training in Cisco. With it, you’ll learn how to work on maintaining and installing routers. Fundamentally, the internet is based upon huge numbers of routers, and large companies who have several locations rely on them to allow their networks to keep in touch.
Because routers are linked to networks, it is important to have an understanding of the operation of networks, or you will be out of your depth with the qualification and be unable to follow the work. Look for a course that features the basics on networks (CompTIA is a good one) prior to starting your CCNA.
Qualifying up to the CCNA level is what you should be aiming for - don’t be pushed into attempting your CCNP straight away. After gaining experience in the working environment, you will know if you need to train up to this level. If so, you’ll have a much better chance of succeeding - because you’ll have so much more experience.
Huge changes are flooding technology as we approach the second decade of the 21st century - and it becomes more and more thrilling each day. It’s a common misapprehension that the revolution in technology that’s been a familiar part of our recent lives is lowering its pace. This couldn’t be more wrong. Terrific advances are ahead of us, and the internet in particular will be the biggest thing to affect the way we live.
Incomes in IT are not a problem moreover - the average salary in Great Britain for a typical person working in IT is noticeably more than in the rest of the economy. Odds are you’ll make a whole lot more than you’d expect to earn doing other work. It would appear there is a lot more room for IT industry increases in the UK. The industry is continuing to expand hugely, and as we have a skills gap that means we only typically have three IT workers for every four jobs it’s highly unlikely that there’ll be any kind of easing off for a good while yet.
How can we reach an informed choice then? With all these possibilities, we have to know where we should be looking - and what to be investigating.
There are a glut of employment in computing. Arriving at the correct choice in this uncertainty often proves challenging. I mean, if you don’t have any background in the IT market, what chance is there for you to know what someone in a particular field does each day? And of course decide on what accreditation path will be most suitable for success. Achieving a well-informed resolution can only grow from a careful study of several different factors:
* Personalities play a significant role - what kind of areas spark your interest, and what tasks really turn you off.
* Are you hoping to re-train for a specific reason - for example, are you looking at working based from home (maybe self-employment?)?
* What scale of importance is the salary - is it the most important thing, or is enjoying your job further up on your list of priorities?
* Getting to grips with what the normal job types and markets are - and what makes them different.
* Taking a serious look at what commitment and time that you’re going to put into it.
For most people, sifting through each of these concepts tends to require the help of an advisor that has direct industry experience. And not just the qualifications - but the commercial requirements of the market as well.
Many training companies 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. Find a good quality service where you can access help at any time of day or night (irrespective of whether it’s the wee hours on Sunday morning!) Ensure you get access directly to professional tutors, and not a call-centre that will take messages so you’re constantly waiting for a call-back when it’s convenient for them.
The best training colleges opt for an online access 24×7 package involving many support centres over many time-zones. You will have a simple interface which seamlessly selects the best facility available no matter what time of day it is: Support when you need it. Seek out an educator that offers this level of study support. Only true 24×7 round-the-clock live support provides the necessary backup.
The old fashioned style of teaching, involving piles of reference textbooks, is often a huge slog for most of us. If you’re nodding as you read this, check out study materials which feature interactive and multimedia modules. If we can involve all our senses in the learning process, then the results are usually dramatically better.
Study programs now come via DVD-ROM discs, so everything is learned directly from your own PC. Using video-streaming, you can watch instructors demonstrating how to do something, and then practice yourself - in a virtual lab environment. It’s imperative to see the type of training provided by the company you’re considering. It’s essential they incorporate video demo’s and interactive elements such as practice lab’s.
Purely on-line training should be avoided. Ideally, you should opt for CD and DVD ROM courseware where available, as you need to be able to use them whenever it’s convenient for you - you don’t want to be reliant on your broadband being ‘up’ 100 percent of the time.
The way in which your courseware is broken down for you is often missed by many students. How is the courseware broken down? What is the order and how fast does each element come? A release of your materials one piece at a time, according to your exam schedule is how things will normally arrive. Of course, this sounds sensible, but you should consider these factors: Maybe the order of study prescribed by the provider doesn’t suit you. What if you find it hard to complete each and every section within their timetable?
Truth be told, the best option is to have a copy of their prescribed order of study, but make sure you have all of your learning modules right from the beginning. You then have everything should you not complete it inside of their required time-scales.
Think about the following points very carefully if you believe the marketing blurb about a guarantee for your exam looks like a reason to buy:
It’s very clear we’re still footing the bill for it - it’s not so hard to see that it’s been added into the overall price charged by the college. Certainly, it’s not a freebie - don’t think these companies are so generous with their money! If it’s important to you to qualify first ‘go’, evidence suggests you must avoid exam guarantees and pay when entering exams, give it the priority it deserves and apply yourself as required.
Doesn’t it make more sense to hold on to your money and pay for the exam at the time, rather than coughing up months or even a year or two in advance to a college, and also to sit exams more locally - instead of miles away at the college’s beck and call? Many unscrupulous training companies make a great deal of profit by getting paid for exams at the start of the course then cashing in if they’re not all taken. It’s worth noting that exam re-takes through companies with an ‘Exam Guarantee’ inevitably are heavily regulated. They will insist that you take pre-tests first until you’ve demonstrated an excellent ability to pass.
Average exam fees were 112 pounds or thereabouts last year when taken at local VUE or Pro-metric centres throughout the country. So why pay hundreds or thousands of pounds extra to have ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when any student knows that what’s really needed is consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software.
Getting your first commercial position can be a little easier if you’re supported with a Job Placement Assistance facility. Because of the growing skills shortage in the UK right now, there’s no need to place too much emphasis on this feature however. It isn’t so complicated as you might think to find a job once you’re properly qualified.
However, don’t procrastinate and wait until you have finished your training before polishing up your CV. As soon as you start studying, enter details of your study programme and get promoting! You might not even have qualified when you’ll secure your initial junior support job; although this isn’t going to happen unless you’ve posted your CV on job sites. The top companies to help you find a job are generally local IT focused employment agencies. As they will get paid by the employer when they’ve placed you, they have the necessary incentive to try that bit harder.
Please ensure you don’t invest a great deal of time on your training course, and then just stop and imagine someone else is miraculously going to find you a job. Stop procrastinating and get out there. Invest the same time and energy into getting your new role as you did to get trained.
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