MCSE

[tgoodman]

I went through the MCSE training after selling a business I had and deciding to change careers. Networking was not foreign to me but I also realized I needed further training if I ws goint to increase my skillset. The MCSE seemed like a good place for me to start. I used one of the training schools and found it helpful especially for the first couple of courses. It was harder to find a good school/instructor than any thingelse. I strongly advise anyone interested in this method to sit in on a class or two at several different schools before committing any $. Most of the instructors I met had very little experience and had just learned what to teach you so you could pass the exams. Also, out of the 13 original people in my class only 2 of us finished. This was mostly due to their desire though. There is alot of studying and most would not put forth the effort. Make sure this is a carreer you want to be in! Also, alot of the students had minimal computer expereience and had no business being in advanced classes.I also built a network at home to practice on.

Upon completion I got a job (contract) pretty easily. It was low level work but it gave me experience....THE KEY word. I finished all the certs about a year now and am in a permanent position as a network engineer/system admin. The company I work for is very generous and pays for any school I want so I am getting ready to do Exchange and then Citrex before starting win 2k.. Good luck to all of you!

 

[Voyager1]

Excellent comments and you make a couple of good points. I have managed a CTEC for the past 3 years and 4 points you made are part of our business plan:

1. Inexperienced instructors are of no value to anyone - the training center or the student.
2. Never attend a class that is designed around the exam. The goal of any technical training should be subject matter knowledge - not test passing. If you know the subject matter well, the exam will be a piece of cake.
3. Training centers should always pre-qualify prospective students. From a business standpoint the emphasis is normally to sell a class, but if the students are not qualified for the classes thay are sitting they will gain very little - and this will come back to bite the training center.
4. If a training center will not allow someone to visit and observe a class that is on progress - at least for a short while - then they are hiding something. We have observation windows into each classroom and prospective students are always given a tour of the facility, and encouraged to linger around classes that are in progress.

Congratulations on your MCSE. Good luck with Citrix as well - this is one of our specialties that is becoming VERY hot in the IT marketplace.