I.T. advise please.

I have been offered the chance to do a COMPTIA A+ course to increase
my job skills and prospects for the near future.

Basically, is it worth doing[1] and could it prove useful in gaining
employment or is there anything better out there that I should try for
instead?

ATM if DVLA have there way I will not be allowed to drive commercially
for at least 7 years and it seems that having a revokation on my
driving record will affect my chances of gaining employment for the
next 3 years in light driving work, apparently commercial insurance
co's regard licence revokations the same way as a serious ban:-(

So it looks like the insurance co is trying to reduce its potential
losses[2] by trying to get me gainfully employed until such time as I
can return to my regular employment


[1] at no cost to me of course.

[2] the more that I can earn the less that they will have to pay out
in loss of earnings and ATM money to be earned on the road is climbing
fast.

--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Lots and lots more IT employers are looking for this; I know our lot do
(and put our bods throught it, also).

Therefore, yes.

--
| Wik -UKRMHRC#10- 2003 R1150GSA -DC#1 -'FOT#0 'FOF #39 - BOD#12 BOB#12
|# You don't believe me | "Experience is the worst teacher.
|That the scenery | It always gives the test first
|Could be a cold-blooded killer. | and the instruction afterward."
***** human response from wik at blueyonder dot co dot uk *****

 

I don't even know what it is. )

 

Like most of these qualifications they won't make you an expert but if they
get you an interview rather than the next chap then they've got to be a
good thing IMHO.

 

Not looking for expert, but a small step on the ladder

It sounds as if it is within my capabilities which some of the other
offers[1] that I have already turned down are not.

[1] CLAIT type courses, my hand/wrist is not capable of long term
keyboard input.
--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Sounds good then.

--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Basic course in how to maintain, upgrade and troubleshoot problems
with PC hardware and networks, working within the Win98/NT to WinXP
environment.


--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Heh, yeah, right...
http://www.comptia.org/certification/a/default.asp

--
| Wik -UKRMHRC#10- 2003 R1150GSA -DC#1 -'FOT#0 'FOF #39 - BOD#12 BOB#12
|# You don't believe me | "Experience is the worst teacher.
|That the scenery | It always gives the test first
|Could be a cold-blooded killer. | and the instruction afterward."
***** human response from wik at blueyonder dot co dot uk *****

 

[bad form, yadda, yadda]

Coo...
http://www.comptia.org/sections/services/europe_rosters.asp

--
| Wik -UKRMHRC#10- 2003 R1150GSA -DC#1 -'FOT#0 'FOF #39 - BOD#12 BOB#12
|# You don't believe me | "Experience is the worst teacher.
|That the scenery | It always gives the test first
|Could be a cold-blooded killer. | and the instruction afterward."
***** human response from wik at blueyonder dot co dot uk *****

 

Ahh "outside world stuff" - no use at all (apparently)

 

mups wrote

Sounds about right.

 

On Mon, 15 Dec 2003 13:01:55 GMT, K Olley

Hmm, IIRC when I was at school they offered these. Stuff like word
processing, spreadsheets, setting up a network. Waste of time anyway!
But not really anything involving long-term keyboard input type stuff
....

Still, CompTIA sounds a better bet. Though the IT jobs market is
still pretty pants for someone without experience.

Why are they offering IT courses? Do they think it's some sort of
sure-fire way to riches?

Could they not train you for something else, there are a lot of
careers out there - what about getting a course + job in logistics
management, or planning, or even truck maintenance. Stuff where you
already have some experience?

 

Hey, this may help me maintain my own home network if nothing else

About the only thing so far that this careers/medical advisor could
find that is within my physical abilities and ins co's budget.

They have offered a fair range of stuff, some direct job opportunities
and some training, its just a case of finding something that is both
within my capabilities and what I am going to be happy doing.


--

Kevin - Basildon
XV535
GPZ305 (her's)
BOTAFOT#67 BOTAFOF#23
OSOS#29

 

Shame. Even when the money was good the work wasn't always nice - ask
ginge! Giving up weekends to fix servers, working through the night,
having end-users, project managers etc. bawling you out for stuff that
wasn't your fault and they don't understand anyway. If you have never
really been intersted in IT before it's probably not something you'd
want to stick at anyway.

Good, at least they're trying. I'm sure as you heal further/prove you
have healed more things will start chugging along ...

best of luck

Pete

 

Excuse me? for about 0.5 seconds maybe!
It's only work, civility is demanded.

 

Ha! A lowly software engineer standing up to a mighty project
manager, who is so sure of his facts that; "oh, er, after my half hour
rant I just realised that it's one of my staff who's cocked everything
up and this system is actually nothing whatsoever to do with you ..."

It's much easier to just stay quiet and let them wind themselves up
into a bigger and bigger temper. They expect a reaction, when they
don't get it it sends them over the edge. The brighter ones sometimes
work out the solution for themselves (as above).

I enjoy it, in a perverse kind of way

 

It's better still to say "I'll come back when you've calmed down", and
then do so.

)

 

*abusing me in the workplace might cost you your job* is another option.
There is an even better but less polite alternative.

 

I had a customer bawl me out once about 15 years ago. No one's spoken
to me with a less than civil tongue since. To be honest I've always
been civil to the people I work with, a little curt sometimes and I'll
tell them if they're a waste of space (and more importantly my time) but
I'll do it politely.

I have, however, threatended suppliers with commercial consequences if
they don't do what I want in standardisation decisions; but it's all
part of the game, innit.

 

Hmm... that's a bit likely to get they shouting after you.

Best to apologise in a not-accepting responsibility kind of way:

"It's plain we need to resolve this situation urgently and I'm sorry
that you're being pressurised by it. Currently I cannot help address
this until we change the tempo of conversation. Can I suggest we take
five minutes to get a coffee and then start again?"