Ill be Blunt as can be! -
Failed School Passed science and eng lit with C's
im 17 At the moment
I Dropped out of College i was taking -
(DJ technology) A level over 2 years
(Btec i.t practitioners - 4 gcses, then onto level 3 A level)

I Also took up CCNA @ Nightschool at the same time,
(i had to beg my way onto it as college would not let me take lvl 3 i.t diploma)
this was thus making my college suffer,
i am on 4th semester of ccna at the moment,
i quit college a month back to focus on my ccna as those college qualifications didnt seem to mount up to where i wanted to be and how fast i could get there.

now i know at 17 i will 99% not get a job as a ccna eventhough i have the qualification, sure you know the reasons.....
i was told to take A+ and N+, which i probably know most of anyway (not bragging just ccna is like over those anyway as it seems?) i been studying to take A+ and N+ from hallam uni costing me 108 quid each for the exams, thing is all the studying im doing myself, i dont actually know if the knowledge from the books etc is going to be whats even close to the exam, i am experienced in all areas of i.t really, networking, admin servers, policies, pc maintainance and stuff etc, (i worked at my school over 6 weeks holiday 2 years ago ghosting machines and stuff for the admin there, and spet alot of time with the schools admin learning up on loads of other things, i was an eager beaver, also i.t is probably my main interest so alot of stuff i have done at home also over the past years!.

anyone got any advice to help me get into a job or pass this A+ and N+ quicker? i was thinking maybe to contact someone at tritec and maybe see if they will do a quick cover session with me to make sure i know all thats on the exams?? not a clue at the moment im at a fork in the road it seems!!!!

regards,

liam kimpton!

Download some test papers from the internet, this will give you a good guide as to what to expect. I don't think you will have a problem, my cat could pass the A+ exam! You are still going to find getting work tricky, not many jobs in Sheffield for such work. Leeds is a bit better but Smelly London is the place to be.

Good luck.

To be honest I wouldn't bother with the A+ & N+, the IT industry almost never request them. Sit down and really think about the best path to take if you want to get into IT. CCNA and such are industry recognised however networking as such offers less opportunities than other disciplines just because companies employ less networking guys. Seriously look at going down the Microsoft Certification route as this will put you in a good position for most jobs. Then try and get your foot in the door by taking a hands-on position irrespective of salary, try to avoid 1st line support if all you are doing is answering queries over the phone.

As Neek says Sheffield is very poor for IT jobs, however there are plenty in Leeds & Manchester so you don't have to resort to going to London.

Most of the contracts I've had over the years have bene in Sheffield or Leeds, and I've never had to work in London or Manchester. However, I've got a sellable skill set and experience.

I'm often involved in recruiting staff for clients (though NOT currently) and at the risk of being a pedant I would say that I hope your written English in your applications is better than that expressed here. The Forum IS read by a number of IT professionals and so when you post here for job-related stuff, make a good job of it because you don't know who might be reading.

So capitalise your sentences! I recently binned an application form because it was badly written and lacking some skills. The main reason I binned it was, in fact, the presentation. I had other CVs to read and if the applicant couldn't be bothered to put on a good show, then I can't be bothered to read it.

But, good luck with your quest.

Joe

Ill Apologise for my lack of english there!. I was in a bit of a rush to write it as it was 2am yesterday when i got round to posting!
Im going to draw up a c.v plan this week ready for either Editing or Printing off to use etc, Thankyou for Advice, i honestly dont know what move i should be taking at the moment, i mean im cabable of going somewhere for work based training or something i just dont enjoy learning things that ive already done, work based i.t training will probably be like building pc's and such....
i just want to secure a job or some training or something as soon as possible to make sure i can get in there and earn some money etc.

I'd be interested to meet you sometime, I might be able to offer you a junior position sometime in the future, or at the least offer you some work experience to add to your CV.
Drop me a PM.

Ok i sent You across an email through this forum as i cannot use the private messaging system as of yet!.

Regards,

Liam kimpton

I know someone who is also looking for a foot on the ladder as far as the IT industry is concerned and is doing everything he can to try and land his first position. He has not been very successful so far, but remains optimistic that something will happen soon.

If you are amenable, perhaps you could extend your generosity to him also and pm me your email address so I could pass it on to him?

Thank you for your time,

MO