You have to be sure that all your qualifications are what employers want - don't bother with programs which provide certificates that are worthless because they're 'in-house'. You'll find that only recognised accreditation from the likes of Microsoft, CompTIA, Adobe and Cisco will be useful to a future employer.

OK, why ought we to be looking at commercially accredited qualifications instead of traditional academic qualifications obtained from the state educational establishments? As demand increases for knowledge about more and more complex technology, the IT sector has moved to specialist courses only available through the vendors themselves - that is companies such as CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA. This frequently provides reductions in both cost and time. Many degrees, for example, can often get caught up in too much loosely associated study - and much too wide a syllabus. Students are then held back from understanding the specific essentials in enough depth.

Think about if you were the employer - and your company needed a person with some very particular skills. What is easier: Trawl through loads of academic qualifications from graduate applicants, struggling to grasp what they've learned and what trade skills they've acquired, or choose particular accreditations that specifically match what you're looking for, and then choose your interviewees based around that. You'll then be able to concentrate on getting a feel for the person at interview - instead of long discussions on technical suitability.

The old fashioned style of teaching, using textbooks and whiteboards, is often a huge slog for most of us. If this describes you, check out study materials which have a majority of interactive, multimedia parts. Research over recent years has always demonstrated that becoming involved with our studies, to utilise all our senses, is much more conducive to long-term memory.

Modern training can now be done at home via interactive CD and DVD ROM's. Through instructor-led video classes you'll learn your subject via the expert demonstrations. You can then test yourself by utilising the practice lab's and modules. Be sure to get a study material demo' from any training college. The materials should incorporate demo's from instructors, slideshows and virtual practice lab's for your new skills.

Avoid training that is purely online. You want physical CD/DVD ROM course materials where possible, so you can use them wherever and whenever you want - ISP quality varies, so you don't want to be totally reliant on your internet connection always being 'up' and available.

Technology and IT is one of the most stimulating and innovative industries that you can get into right now. To be working on the cutting-edge of technology puts you at the fore-front of developments shaping life over the next few decades. We're at the dawn of beginning to get a handle on how all this will mould and change our lives. The way we interrelate with the rest of the world will be inordinately affected by computers and the web.

And don't forget salaries either - the average salary across the UK for an average IT worker is noticeably more than the national average. Odds are you'll bring in a much better deal than you could reasonably hope to get in other industries. The good news is there's not a hint of a downturn for IT industry expansion throughout this country. The market is continuing to expand hugely, and as we have a significant shortage of skilled professionals, it's highly unlikely that there'll be any kind of easing off for quite some time to come.

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