It’s no secret that IT is one of the fastest growing fields in the UK. What’s less well known is that there are so many career opportunities to choose from – if you have an IT certification, that is!
So, what certificates and certifications are right for you?
CompTIA offers a number of certificates and certifications that can put your career on a fast track, including security, data networks, imaging and printing equipment, voice over IP (VoIP), project management, and more. You can get a full list of certificates and certifications by heading here: http://www.comptia.org/certifications or take a look at the certification roadmap to the right.
Technical credentials help you grow in your career
Certification is an ongoing process: you start by learning the fundamentals, then keep earning different levels of certification denoting new skills as you grow in your job and assume greater responsibilities.
Get recognition for the skills you already have
Suppose you already have some technical skills and experience solving basic computer and networking problems for friends and relatives—will that count at all? Absolutely. There’s a CompTIA exam you can take to evaluate your knowledge and abilities, and to certify that you possess basic computer skills.
Once you’ve mastered the fundamentals, you may choose to specialise in a specific area such as networking, security, software technology, or hardware support.
Move up step by step
Your journey starts with a solid technical foundation, and CompTIA has a number of certifications and programmes to help you build one. For example, you may want to take a CompTIA Strata exam before starting on your CompTIA A+ or CompTIA Network+ certification. Several of the Strata exams are designed as stepping stones to bigger things.
If you already have a year or so of experience in IT, get certified with CompTIA A+. Like all CompTIA certifications, A+ is “vendor-neutral,” meaning that it covers a wide spectrum of technologies from different companies. It’s the recognised industry baseline for most first-year IT job seekers. As the best known certification CompTIA offers, A+ is what some of the most successful IT professionals used to launch their own careers.
Why CompTIA?
As a global non-profit trade association, CompTIA is unbiased. That alone gives our certifications enormous credibility, especially for entry-level job seekers. Ask IT hiring managers why they regard CompTIA certifications so highly, and they’ll tell you it’s because vendor-independent validation of your technical skills matters a great deal. Find out more at www.comptia.org or join us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/comptiauk) for job offers, competitions and more!
* Growth rates (Experian 2009) applied to data from Office for National Statistics Labour Force Survey (ONS LFS) April-June 2009
** IT & Telecoms Insights 2009: Employment Forecasts’, e-skills UK / Experian