Monday January 05, 2009
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College Knowledge
Smarter Kids, Smarter Parents, Smarter College Days!
Monday January 05, 2009
Check out the site's
top 100 article listing
Smarter Kids, Smarter Parents, Smarter College Days!
Welcome To College Knowledge!
The point of this article is not to bash technical training schools. That's how I got my start in IT eight years ago, and today I'm a CCIE? and own my own Cisco training company and my own consulting firm.
Before I ever put down the first dime, though, I asked some tough questions. So should you.
What are my true job prospects and legitimate salary levels after I graduate from your school?
We've all heard the ads on the radio? "Did you know the average salary of an MCSE is $80,000?" "Are you worth $65,000 a year? If not, call us!"
I'm an optimist, and I often tell people that no field rewards individual achievement and drive like IT does. Having said that, none of us start at the top, and darn few of us start at that kind of salary.
I'm sure that there are some people who broke in at $80,000, but I haven't met very many of them. Be very wary of technical schools that use the famous/infamous MCSE Salary Survey as a marketing tool. They tend to represent those salaries as starting salaries.
Ask your technical school what the average starting salary of their graduates is. And keep in mind that salary is not the most important factor to consider when looking for your first job in IT; it's the experience you'll be able to put on your resume later on that you should weigh heavily at this point.
In short, be very careful about schools that brag about starting salaries. It's not where you start, it's where you end up.
How up-to-date are the courses you're offering?
Make sure the school you're going to attend has made efforts to keep their courses relevant. Ask what changes have been made to their curriculum in the last three years. No field changes faster than IT. If the answer to that question is "none", look somewhere else.
I want to work in IT security. Have you placed anyone in this field lately? If so, can I talk to them?
Technical schools are jumping on the security bandwagon, with a couple of schools running ads about training you to work in Homeland Security. If that's your goal, that's great, but keep in mind that you have to get a security clearance for any job like that.
And how do you get a security clearance? You have to be sponsored.
And who will sponsor you? Your employer.
Can you get employed in a Homeland Security job without having the clearance in the first place?
Hmmm. Probably not.
Hello, Catch-22.
Again, I'm certainly not saying you can't eventually get an IT security job; if that's where you want to go, you can eventually get there. The key word there is "eventually". Ask the school you're thinking of attending whether they've actually been able to place graduates in such jobs. Ask to talk to them. If the school's managed to do so, they'll be glad to put you in touch with such graduates.
What textbooks does your school use?
Some technical school chains use only books that someone in their organization wrote. I've heard some of their own teachers complain about the quality of these books. The technical school I attended used off-the-shelf books, and the quality was very good.
If you're looking into entering the IT field, you probably know someone who's already in it. Use that resource for everything it's worth. Ask that person what they think about the books, or for that matter, what the local reputation of the school is. IT is a small world, if the school has a good or bad reputation, most of the IT personnel in your city or town probably know about it.
The fifth question is a question to ask of HR representatives. Every technical school lists companies where they've placed their graduates on their promotional material. Pick up the phone, call these companies, and ask to speak to someone in HR. Ask that person about the reputation of the school. Five to eight phone calls will give you a good picture of where the school stands with local employers.
Making the decision to attend a technical school can be the best decision you've ever made; it certainly was for me. Make sure to ask the right questions before writing a check or taking a loan to attend; the answers to those questions will indicate to you whether this school is truly the school that can help you achieve your dreams.
Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage. The Bryant Advantage's website offers FREE ebooks and tutorials for the CCNA and CCNP exams, FREE subscriptions to "Cisco Certification Central", and sells the best CCNA and CCNP prep courses and books on the market today. Visit his site at www.thebryantadvantage.com today !
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Academia Fraud and Brain Washing Cartels
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Caribbean Single Market and Economy - Who Says UWI isn't Doing Enough?
CARICOM member states are now considering the establishment of a single market economy. This will mean the general removal of all legal and administrative restrictions to trade. Increased competition among these states is therefore inevitable. The ability of member states to survive the effects of trade liberalisation will among other things depend on the capacity of its human resources and its learning institutions. The role that UWI is playing in enabling the people and countries of the region to make the transition will therefore come under great scrutiny. Many, including graduates of the University, believe that "UWI simply isn't doing enough!"
Saving For College - Your Number Two Priority
Planning for college can begin as early as birth, and for that matter, even before birth. Financial planning in the early years can make all the difference in the world when it comes time to have to cough up all that cash! The following are some of the best ways to save for college:
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Scholarships not Working for You Neither, Huh?
First of all, you should know that there aren't billions of dollars out there just waiting to fall in your lap. In fact most counselors and financial aid assitants wonder why this rather enormous figure is stated so often, but its not the case. So don't feel bad or think you "suck" because you haven't won some of this dough. However, there IS some money to be made out there that many people either overlook or figure it isnt worth pursuing. Trust me, its worth taking a look at and worth pursuing.
Who Should Earn an Online Associate Degree?
To get an online associate degree, an individual does not need to have any prior college credits. But if you do have prior credits from an accredited college, these credits can be transferred to your online school to cut down on the time it will take to earn your degree. To apply for a degree program, individuals must have a high school diploma or G.E.D.