My son wants to become an IT technician but has no qualifications - where do we start

tiptoes27

My son who is 19 left school with few qualifications, despite being very bright. He went on to do two years City and Guilds bricklaying which he passed, but unless he can get some work as a bricklayer and complete the 'workbased learning' part of his course he does not have a full qualification. (at least that is how I understand it). Being the way the building industry is he has found it ompossible to get work. He has been working in various casual jobs for a year and over the summer had a chance to work with his uncle who is a freelance IT tech. His uncle said he was really good with the computors and better than many of the full time so called 'qualified' staff. My son has always been interested in computors and has upgraded and fixed a few of his own, but never considered it as a job before. He really enjoyed the work and is thinking of training to do it full time. I have looked online and there are so many courses I am not sure where to start. They all seem to be very expensive as well. It there anywhere he could train for free? and which is the most recognised qualification? His uncle did his at nightschool about 15 years ago and is out of touch with what the courses are today. Any IT technicians out there who could offer some pointers in the right directon? failing that any buildier looking for a young bricklayer!!! Many thanks

A_Nice_Englishman

As an IT Manager, I recruit and employ technicians. Last time I advertised I got about 25 applications for one vacancy and probably 23 of them could have done the job. Most youngsters are confident in using a PC and that's all you need to get started - I can teach them the rest of the technical stuff.

So how did I shortlist and interview them? I looked for evidence that they had researched my organisation, showed an interest in what we did and had excellent interpersonal skills. Word processed applications scored more points than handwritten ones!

In your son's case, the fact that he had relevant work experience would be a significant advantage.

I would advise him to get advice on doing a cracking application and apply for every job going. He should also get a cv sorted and apply on spec to likely employers, with tailor-written letters explaining why he would like to work for that particular employer. He should practice his interview technique too.

DCFC79

Ive found most jobs require a microsoft certificate which i dont have, ive got experience but most employers dont want to know, i spent 2 years doing a btec diploma in IT which i thought would help but its not done that

Oldernotwiser

If he has a look at evening classes locally he may just be able to start this year, although term will have already started. If he hasn't achieved a full level 2 qualification yet then he won't have to pay any fees.

Regarding the site experience to get his NVQ in Bricklaying; has he tried to get this on a voluntary basis as it would be worthwhile trying to do this to complete his qualification.

tiptoes27

We have searched through the internet for local course, but cannot find any. All the ones on the internet appear to be private and very expensive.
As to the bricklaying, had not thought of doing that on voluntary basis. We did not realise when he started the course that he would have to complete the work based learning to get the qualification. I must admid I find all these NVQ and BTEC courses and levels very confusing.

Oldernotwiser

madcatwoman wrote: »

We have searched through the internet for local course, but cannot find any. All the ones on the internet appear to be private and very expensive.
As to the bricklaying, had not thought of doing that on voluntary basis. We did not realise when he started the course that he would have to complete the work based learning to get the qualification. I must admid I find all these NVQ and BTEC courses and levels very confusing.

I've been a Careers Adviser and have found that many people have to do their site experience on a voluntary basis; you just have to get a placement where the Assessor can come in and assess your son's skills.

All colleges will offer some kind of IT courses; have you looked at their individual websites to see what's available?

In addition, I'd suggest he makes an appointment for a careers guidance interview with Nextstep as he's now too old for Connexions. Their services are free and they can often be contacted through the Jobcentre.

zenmaster

I did a PC A+ course at my local tech a while back when I was unemployed. It was 1 day a week for about 20 weeks as I recall, and the fees were paid. I think I had to pay £35 towards the exam.

As it was less than 16 hours per week it did not affect my JSA, though I would have had to abandon the course if a job came up. As it happens, I did get a job before the end but the employer let me take a day off each week until I completed it.

I thought it was a pretty good course, though much of it was a bit dated (I see they have updated it for 2009). I have never used it in anger as I am really a software man, but it was useful and enjoyable. Several of my classmates went on to get jobs in the industry with the help of the college.

If your son does manage to get into it then he will certainly need one of these.

tiptoes27

This course looks like a great starting point - thanks very much. Not sure about the T shirt though!!

ihatebt_2

Don't bother with stuff such as BTECs at local college or A+, etc... Set your sights higher than that. There's no money to be earnt by tinkering inside someone's PC.

The two key buzzwords are Microsoft or Cisco.

Think Microsoft if you want to get into the high-end server type stuff. Look into doing MCP exams leading up to the full-blown MCSE qualification.

Think Cisco if you want to get into the world of networking. Look into doing the CCENT or CCNA exam for starters. You can buy old Cisco switches and routers cheaply on Ebay, or get some simulation software.

For more advice on these exams, there are tech exam forums where people will give you more info. You can acquire other things such as books, training videos, etc cheaply.

alunharford

Personally, I've never found anybody outside of naive HR departments who put any trust in MCP or MCSE exams - the test papers and answers can be found online for free. Not that they're difficult anyway.

You pays your money (and it's a lot of money) and you gets your 'qualification'.

Indo77

ihatebt wrote: »

Don't bother with stuff such as BTECs at local college or A+, etc... Set your sights higher than that. There's no money to be earnt by tinkering inside someone's PC.

The two key buzzwords are Microsoft or Cisco.

Think Microsoft if you want to get into the high-end server type stuff. Look into doing MCP exams leading up to the full-blown MCSE qualification.

Think Cisco if you want to get into the world of networking. Look into doing the CCENT or CCNA exam for starters. You can buy old Cisco switches and routers cheaply on Ebay, or get some simulation software.

For more advice on these exams, there are tech exam forums where people will give you more info. You can acquire other things such as books, training videos, etc cheaply.

I disagree that a MCSE qualification will get you anywhere without the experience to back it up. Employers prefer people with experience over pieces of papers - there are thousands of people with paper MCSEs.