Newbie MCSE with Advent!

Discussion in 'Training & Development' started by ButtersIT, Aug 29, 2007.

  1. ButtersIT

    ButtersIT New Member

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    Hello all,

    I am thinking about starting an MCSE with advent, the cost of the course is a grand total of £4750 and the guy that came round was not trying to push/sell like some do, also he said that even if i fail they will keep paying for the exams until i do pass. I have had a bit of a read through the forum but cannot find much info on advent.

    Has anyone had experience with these or does any of you know if these are any good?

    Are there any other ways in which to obtain an MCSE i.e could i get MCP, get into a job and the company pay for further training?

    And also what wage should i expect in entry level with an MCSE?

    Any help or advice would be great guys.
     
    Certifications: GCSE ICT, AVCE ICT
    WIP: ECDL,N+,MCSE
  2. simongrahamuk
    Honorary Member

    simongrahamuk Hmmmmmmm?

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    Hi there!

    I suggest that you use this forums seach facility to search for 'Advent'. You will find that your question has been asked many times before, and I'm sure that you will find the answers you are looking for.

    8)
     
  3. Modey

    Modey Terabyte Poster

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    You could expect the same wage as someone without an MCSE to be totally honest with you. Many training companies are 'selling' these certifications as a way into good IT jobs etc.. but that's not what they are for. They are meant to certify the experience you already have with a particular technology. An MCSE on Windows Server 2003 would be expected to have at least 12months experience in a large network environment as a pre-requisite to taking on an MCSE.

    If I was interviewing for an entry level IT job and I had two candidates, one with an MCSE and one with an MCDST and neither with actual hands on experience, the MCSE candidate wouldn't even get shortlisted, their application would go straight in the bin. I would see an MCSE without experience going for an entry level job as a BIG security risk to my network.

    Where I work now, we were actually advertising for a Junior tech at one point (no IT qualifications necessary, just willing to learn) and we actually had two guys apply. One had an MCSE and one had a degree in IT and some other certs. Suffice to say neither of them were even shortlisted for interviews.

    To summarise, go an do the A+ or the MCDST (both easy to self study), I think you would be making a big mistake by going for an MCSE if you don't already have real experience of Server 2003.

    If you do decide to go ahead, good luck to you, but be very wary of the claims these companies make. Some will (for example) not actually allow you to sit an exam until you score over 90% on one of their preparation tests. So they can say 'we will let you keep taking exams till you pass' till the cows come home, but if you don't know what other conditions are attached to that statement, then you could end up being duped ...
     
    Certifications: A+, N+, MCP, MCDST, MCSA 2K3, MCTS, MOS, MTA, MCT, MCITP:EDST7, MCSA W7, Citrix CCA, ITIL Foundation
    WIP: Nada
  4. Kitkatninja
    Highly Decorated Member Award 500 Likes Award

    Kitkatninja aka me, myself & I Moderator

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    Remember:

    The MCSE is a professional cred that should reflect your job role and not used as a entry certificate. And as BosonMichael said here, "And keep in mind that that's not one year of IT experience... that's one year of actually doing network support... which typically doesn't start until you've built up a bit of IT experience to begin with."

    I agree with Modey, go for your A+, Network+ and MCDST first. Build up your basic's first.

    -Ken
     
    Certifications: MSc, PGDip, PGCert, BSc, HNC, LCGI, MBCS CITP, MCP, MCSA, MCSE, MCE, A+, N+, S+, Server+
    WIP: MSc Cyber Security
  5. ButtersIT

    ButtersIT New Member

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    Thanks for the advice and i do see what you mean by experience is what you need, not certs. I am going to look in to self studying A+ & N+.

    I have just enrolled to do an ECDL locally, is this worth doing as i understand it is just the basics of general IT which an office clerk would need.

    Thanks
     
    Certifications: GCSE ICT, AVCE ICT
    WIP: ECDL,N+,MCSE
  6. Modey

    Modey Terabyte Poster

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    If you aren't very familiar with using typical office applications (Word Processors, Presentation Software, Databases etc ..) then the ECDL is a good starting point. It will also give you some basic IT knowledge and teach you how to handle files and folders etc... All very worthwhile if that's the kind of thing you want to learn about. It's become very well accepted as a indication of basic competence on a computer and is backed by the BCS (British Computing Societey).
     
    Certifications: A+, N+, MCP, MCDST, MCSA 2K3, MCTS, MOS, MTA, MCT, MCITP:EDST7, MCSA W7, Citrix CCA, ITIL Foundation
    WIP: Nada
  7. rax

    rax Megabyte Poster

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    I was looking to go with Advent like you and after I had the 1-to-1 interview with their course 'advisor', I came online looking for more info about Advent. I found this forum and decided, like you, to go the self study route. I have made another post about the Advent route to MCSE, it might help you when selecting your courses.

    http://www.certforums.co.uk/forums/thread18782.html

    The above was a post I made on another persons thread about Advent, or some such training provider.

    This is a self-study guide - stickied in the training section:

    http://www.certforums.co.uk/forums/thread11894.html

    Hope this helps.

    Dave
     
    Certifications: ITIL v3 Foundation, CompTIA Network+
  8. ManicD

    ManicD Byte Poster

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    You only get one retake that they pay for ask them and if they tell you different ask for it in writing!!!!
     
    Certifications: MCSA, N+, A+(Tech), ECDL
    WIP: 70-294, 70-298

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