In the modern world, support workers who can solve problems with computers and networks, and give daily advice to users, are vital in every part of the workplace. Industry’s need for more qualified personnel multiplies, as we become significantly more beholden to PC’s in the modern world.

So, which questions do we need to ask to take in the understanding necessary? Because it’s evident there are a good many fairly great possibilities for us to look at.

So many training providers focus completely on the certification process, and forget what it’s all actually about - which is a commercial career or job. You should always begin with the end in mind - don’t make the journey more important than where you want to get to. Don’t let yourself become part of that group who set off on a track that on the surface appears interesting - and end up with a certification for something they’ll never enjoy.

Make sure you investigate your leanings around career development, earning potential, plus your level of ambition. It’s vital to know what the role will demand of you, what accreditations they want you to have and how to develop your experience. Have a conversation with an experienced industry advisor that has a background in the industry you’re considering, and who can give you a detailed description of what you’re going to be doing in that job. Getting to the bottom of all this before starting out on a training course makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?

Only consider training courses which lead to industry accepted exams. There’s an endless list of minor schools suggesting their own ‘in-house’ certificates which are worthless when it comes to finding a job. All the major IT organisations such as Microsoft, Adobe, Cisco or CompTIA have nationally approved proficiency programs. These heavyweights will give some sparkle to your CV.

At the top of your shopping list for a training program should be full 24×7 support from trained professional instructors and mentors. Too many companies only seem to want to help while they’re in the office (9am till 6pm, Monday till Friday usually) and nothing at the weekends. Be wary of any training providers who use ‘out-of-hours’ call-centres - where you’ll get called back during normal office hours. This is useless when you’re stuck and could do with an answer during your scheduled study period.

It’s possible to find the top providers that offer online direct access support all the time - including evenings, nights and weekends. Don’t compromise where support is concerned. Many students who give up, are in that situation because they didn’t get the support necessary for them.

We’d hazard a guess that you’ve always enjoyed practical work - a ‘hands-on’ personality type. If you’re like us, the trial of reading reference books and manuals would be considered as a last resort, but you’d hate it. Check out video-based multimedia instruction if you’d really rather not use books. Studies have always demonstrated that connecting physically with our study, is much more conducive to long-term memory.

The latest audio-visual interactive programs with demonstrations and practice sessions will turn you off book-based study for ever more. And you’ll find them fun and interesting. All companies must be able to demonstrate a few examples of their courseware. Expect video tutorials, instructor led classes and interactive areas to practice in.

Many companies provide training that is purely available online; sometimes you can get away with this - but, consider how you’ll deal with it when you don’t have access to the internet or you get slow speeds and down-time etc. It’s much safer to rely on actual CD or DVD ROMs that will solve that problem.

Tags: Online Colleges

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