Courses in London/Essex - A+ MCDST Etc

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Hi,

I'm Mark, I'm 20, and I left school with 3 A-Levels (with one in IT). I'm now in an adminstrator role (although I am classed as an Analyst), but I'd really like to take a step into IT - preferably moving onto a Technician role (although I do enjoy the Analyst side of IT too)!

I'm finding it hard to get a job in IT, so I would like to gain some more qualifications. I've started looking at the Comptia A+ qualification, which looks a very good starting point, along with the MCDST qualification afterwards.

Would you be able to recommend courses/places to learn in preparation for the exam? A quick Google brings up 100's of places, but the costs vary and I don't want to get into something which ends up being a con! Perhaps there are places I could study in the evenings or at weekends? I'd also like the idea of a 5-day course or something similar depending on the options available. Can places guarantee you'll pass?

I'm based in Essex, but can easily travel to London if need-be (I'm presuming there are more companies offering these services in London).

Thanks for your help in advance.

 

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Go the self study route.

 

Hi mate,

There is no need to do courses to gain certifications you can go the self study route.

If you are wanting to study the A+ get the book called compTIA A+ all in one exam guide 6th edition and PC Technician street smarts by James Pyles and old pc would help too.

Once you have learned and understand the concepts book the exams with either vue or prometric whichever centre is near you and bobs your uncle.

 

sorry meant to post links to test centres http://www.prometric.com/default.htm or http://www.vue.com/

 

Your own living room, bedroom, study, or home office. Yep, this is another recommendation for self-study.

 

Agreed, I was in a pretty similar situation to yourself a few years ago. 3 A Levels, one in IT, got my IT job, and then self studied for A+, passed, and now going after Net+.

 

Thanks guys. As you've all suggested, you can save a fortune if you home study; I only asked about courses because I did start looking up A+ a few months ago and kind-of lost interest!

I've just purchased Mike Meyers' A+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Sixth Edition (All-In-One) book which from what I've read about so far, should be very useful (£24.29 delivered from The Book Depository)!

Only problem I can see in the near future is that I'm buying a Mac soon, but well I'll keep this computer for some hardware tasks, and I can always use Bootcamp or Parallels for the software side!

How did you end up in your IT job nXPLOSi, and what do you do, out of interest?

 

Welcome to the forums.

I think it is better that you self study because that is a skill that you are going to need in the future. New technology is constantly arriving, and the ability to teach your self this new technology will give a nice boost and save you a lot of money on taking courses. Self study is a great way to go about learning the material and obtaining the certifications.