Retraining in IT

[ambrosia2001]

Hi I did my BIT degree in 2003 just to learn the basics but have not worked in the industry at all. I am looking to get back into the industry and am aware that my degree is no longer valid and looking to retrain. I saw a post a few weeks ago about CompTia and have tried finding info but no luck and cannot find the thread. I live in North London and I remember reading in here that I can buy the book and do it on my own just book the exam or do it at a local college. Any advice on what I should do? I really want to work in the industry so any help/advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

[gpjt]

Try the professor Messor site depending on which CompTia certs you want to do there are free training videos for A+. Network+

Professor Messer, CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, Microsoft Certification Training

[wagnerk]

Hi I did my BIT degree in 2003 just to learn the basics but have not worked in the industry at all. I am looking to get back into the industry and am aware that my degree is no longer valid and looking to retrain. I saw a post a few weeks ago about CompTia and have tried finding info but no luck and cannot find the thread. I live in North London and I remember reading in here that I can buy the book and do it on my own just book the exam or do it at a local college. Any advice on what I should do? I really want to work in the industry so any help/advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

First things first... A degree is for life not just for Christmas.

Second, you can do the A+ via any Prometric or Vue testing centre. Like it's been mentioned before, you can use free sites like Professor Messer, another study resource would be the Mike Meyers AiO - however it is thick and a bit overkill (but it covers everything). Could can always do a class at college or a private training centre, but it does cost. Which way is better (self-study or class based)? Well it depends on how you learn.

Stay away from braindumps as if/when caught using them, the person can be decertified, banned from further/future exams and in some case face legal action.

[ambrosia2001]

"a degree is for life etc. ..." I know, it's just that I felt I didn't get that much out of mine, well not enough to get me a good job especially since being out of the industry. Thanks ever so much, will check them out and let you know how I get on.

[nephilim]

Look at the Microsoft Digital Literacy qualification to get the absolute basics, then go on from there

[GREED]

Interested to know how you might be caught using the brain dump websites by the examiners etc? Unless someone is stupid enough to say/tweet/FB it...

[wagnerk]

Interested to know how you might be caught using the brain dump websites by the examiners etc? Unless someone is stupid enough to say/tweet/FB it...

You'd be surprised on what people say in general conversion and you're being watched during the exam. There have been incidents where the person who came to sit the exam wasn't the person who was suppose to sit the exam (hence why only certain ID are allowed) and people caught trying to use their mobile phones and crib sheets/braindump sheets in exams (test centres aren't allowed to strip search exam takers for some strange reason).

Added to that alot of vendors implement and use a data forensics program that can find cheaters through statistical analysis of their exams. Microsoft is not the only vendor using them, other vendors include CWNP and Cisco to name a couple. Lets face it, alarms may start to ring if a person scores 1000 on an exam within 20 minutes if the exam is 4 hours long.

[dwhyte85]

You'd be surprised on what people say in general conversion and you're being watched during the exam. There have been incidents where the person who came to sit the exam wasn't the person who was suppose to sit the exam (hence why only certain ID are allowed) and people caught trying to use their mobile phones and crib sheets/braindump sheets in exams (test centres aren't allowed to strip search exam takers for some strange reason).

Added to that alot of vendors implement and use a data forensics program that can find cheaters through statistical analysis of their exams. Microsoft is not the only vendor using them, other vendors include CWNP and Cisco to name a couple. Lets face it, alarms may start to ring if a person scores 1000 on an exam within 20 minutes if the exam is 4 hours long.

The test centres I've been to (Global Knowledge [Pearson] & Mass [Prometric]) have been very good, the room layouts would not allow for you to do this because of camera coverage... yes, it doesn't stop people remembering answers... that's the same for University, you had a good chance that the same types of question would pop up from a previous exam... you should have seen the library the evening before test day, many people huddling around a previous exam.

I'm pretty sure they both now record any writing on those doublesided boards in-case people do go in and dump answers?

I would say that Cisco has now become a joke, I know an ex-colleague who has passed his CCNA, I passed ICND1 recently and I know full well he doesn't know any of the material for ICND1... let alone ICND2, what can you do? I have also heard of a Prometric center offering guaranteed passes for MS exams at the cost of the exam + 90... it is not suprising... they are important to have on the CV to get an entry level job now unless you can find a recruiter with a bit of common sense.

[GREED]

I know a local testing company, very good and very professional (despite Prometric buggering up their new test software meaning they had to close for a month!).

Anyways, the test admin was telling me that on those brain dump sites, the vendors themselves are now subvertly publishing 'sets of answers' which some are right some are wrong, and this allows the vendors to track who is using them, as mentioned above, using analysis of the answers given.