October 24th, 2009Careers Training for CompTIA A Plus Compared
Four specialist training areas feature in the overall A+ programme, of which 2 passes are needed for competency in A+. Be aware though that restricting yourself to two of the four specialities could leave gaps in your knowledge. Look for training that covers all the specialist areas – you’ll be glad you did when it comes to interview time.
Alongside being taught how to build and fix computers, trainees on A+ courses will be shown how to operate in antistatic conditions, how to fault find, to diagnose and to remotely access problems.
You might also choose to consider supplementing the A+ with Network + as you can then also take care of computer networks, and become a more senior IT professional.
You should look for accredited simulation materials and an exam preparation system as part of your training package.
Some students can get confused by trying to prepare themselves with questions that don’t come from authorised sources. Quite often, the way questions are phrased is unfamiliar and you need to be ready for this.
Always request some practice exams so you’ll be able to test your knowledge whenever you need to. Mock exams log the information in your brain – then the real thing isn’t quite as scary.
Students will sometimes miss checking on a vitally important element – how their company segments the courseware elements, and into how many parts.
Many think it logical (when study may take one to three years to gain full certified status,) that a training provider will issue the training stage by stage, as you complete each part. However:
What if you don’t finish every single section? What if you don’t find their order of learning is ideal for you? Through no fault of your own, you may go a little slower and consequently not get all your materials.
In a perfect world, you’d ask for every single material to be delivered immediately – meaning you’ll have all of them for the future to come back to – at any time you choose. This allows a variation in the order that you attack each section where a more intuitive path can be found.
You have to make sure that all your accreditations are what employers want – don’t even consider courses that only give in-house certificates.
All the major IT organisations such as Microsoft, Adobe, CompTIA or Cisco all have widely renowned proficiency courses. Major-league companies like these will ensure your employability.
It’s not uncommon for companies to offer inclusive exam guarantees – this always means exams have to be paid for upfront, at the very beginning of your studies. Before you get carried away with the chance of a guarantee, consider this:
They’ve allowed costings for it one way or another. It certainly isn’t free – they’ve just worked it into the package price.
Should you seriously need to pass in one, evidence suggests you must fund each exam as you take it, focus on it intently and give the task sufficient application.
Does it really add up to pay the training course provider at the start of the course for examination fees? Hold on to your money and pay for the exam at the time, don’t pay mark-ups – and do it locally – not at somewhere of their bidding.
Buying a course that includes payments for exam fees (and interest charges if you’re borrowing money) is insane. Resist being talked into filling the training company’s account with your money just to give them a good cash-flow! There are those who hope that you won’t get round to taking them – so they get to keep the extra funds.
Re-takes of any failed exams with training course providers who offer an ‘Exam Guarantee’ are monitored with tight restrictions. You will be required to do mock exams until you’ve demonstrated an excellent ability to pass.
With the average price of Pro-metric and VUE exams coming in at around 112 pounds in the UK, it makes sense to pay as you go. It’s not in the student’s interests to fork out hundreds or thousands of pounds for exams when enrolling on a course. A commitment to studying and the use of authorised exam preparation tools are actually the key to your success.
(C) Jason Kendall. Navigate to LearningLolly.com for excellent career advice on Comptia Certification and Comptia Networking.