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Hi, just found this forum.

I hope you can help, I have been wanting to change career for a while and have always wanted to get into I.T, but there is mine field of information on the net regarding training and certifications that are required.

I don't mind starting at the bottom, I have a few quid stashed away so I can live on a relatively low income. I will do anything to get my foot in the door.

Can anyone advise what the ideal certification track would be for somebody with no experience, and to ask a daft question how long would it generally take to say complete a Network+ cert, or a CCNA cert, or MCDST, these are the 3 that I have been told are the ones to have.

Many thanks

Ed

 

Hi & welcome to CF

Like Ken says, the 3 best to start off with are A+, N+ and MCDST. IMO I'd also suggest doing them in that order.

As to how long will it take to complete one of them is pretty much like asking 'how long is a piece of string'? It depends on how much you know beforehand, how quickly you learn new concepts, how much time you can devote to studying etc etc.

NB

 

Hey & Welcome to CF

The above two posts give sound advice, but I have chose to take my MCDST before A+ / N+ simply because I will be soon working in an in-house software company, on 1st line support. So the MCDST will give me solid ground handling calls. However this does not take the emphasis off how important A+ & N+ are as starting points, I plan to get these after my MCDST. Just I'm tailoring my certifications in conjunction with my job.

How long would it take to get these certifications? Sorry, but this question seems to come up time and time again. It's not a question of how long it takes to be certified, if you're serious about getting into IT, then time isn't a factor. Hard work and studying will see you fine, and as mentioned in a previous thread, when you are hitting 90% + on practice exams, consider yourself ready.

HTH

~Naive

 

Hi and welcome to CF

 

Hi there and welcome

 

You're right on two out of three. As the others stated, you should pursue the A+, Network+, and MCDST. The CCNA should wait until later in your IT career. It's useful... but not at this point in your career.

Don't wait until you're certified before looking for jobs... start looking NOW, while you're studying. If you get a certification, add it to your CV, start studying for the next, and keep looking for your first job.

How long does it take? As long as it takes. It's not a race. Study until you fully understand the concepts. What might take you a week to study might take me a year, and vice versa.

Welcome to the forums!