A+ consists of four exams and areas of study, but you only have to get your exams in 2 of them to qualify for your A+. Because of this, many educational establishments only offer 2 paths. But giving you all four options will give you a more confident perspective of it all, which you'll come to realise is a Godsend in industry.

In addition to learning how to build PC's and fix them, trainees on A+ courses will be shown how to operate in antistatic conditions, along with remote access, fault finding and diagnostics. It could be a good idea to think about adding the CompTIA Network+ training as you can then also take care of computer networks, which is where the bigger salaries are.

'Exam Guarantees' are often bundled with training offers - this always means you have to pay for the exams before you've even made a start on the course. Before you get carried away with a course with such a promise, why not think about this:

We all know that we're ultimately paying for it - obviously it has been added into the full cost of the package supplied by the course provider. It's certainly not free - don't think these companies are so generous with their money! If it's important to you to qualify first 'go', evidence suggests you must pay for each exam as you go, give it the necessary attention and be ready for the task.

Go for the best offer you can find at the appropriate time, and keep hold of your own money. You'll also be able to choose where to do the examinations - so you can choose somewhere closer to home. Big margins are netted by many companies who get money for exam fees in advance. A number of students don't take them for various reasons and so the company is quids-in. Surprising as it sounds, providers exist that depend on students not taking their exams - and that's how they increase their profits. You should fully understand that re-takes through training course providers who offer an 'Exam Guarantee' are always heavily controlled. You will be required to do mock exams so you can prove to them you have a good chance of passing.

Exams taken at VUE and Prometric centres are currently clocking in at an average of 112 pounds in Great Britain. Students should be very wary of forking out hundreds of pounds extra in charges for 'Exam Guarantees' (often covertly rolled into the cost of the course) - when good quality study materials, the proper support and consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software is what will really see you through.

Many trainers offer a Job Placement Assistance facility, to help you into your first commercial role. But don't place too much emphasis on it - it's quite easy for eager sales people to make too much of it. In reality, the still growing need for IT personnel in the UK is why employers will be interested in you.

Bring your CV up to date as soon as possible however - you should get plenty of help from your training provider on this. Don't put it off for when you're ready to start work. It's not unusual to find that you'll land your first position whilst still on the course (occasionally right at the beginning). If you haven't updated your CV to say what you're studying (and it hasn't been posted on jobsites) then you don't stand a chance! If you don't want to travel too far to work, then it's quite likely that a local (but specialised) recruitment consultancy could be of more use than some national concern, as they're far more likely to know what's available near you.

Do ensure you don't spend hundreds of hours on your training and studies, only to stop and leave it up to everyone else to land you a job. Stop procrastinating and start looking for yourself. Channel the same focus into getting your first job as it took to pass the exams.

Usually, trainers will provide a big box of books. It's not a very interesting way to learn and not ideal for achieving retention. Recent studies into the way we learn shows that much more of what we learn in remembered when we involve as many senses as possible, and we take action to use what we've learned.

You can now study via interactive discs. Real-world classes from the instructors will mean you'll take everything in through their teaching and demonstrations. Then it's time to test your knowledge by utilising the practice lab's and modules. You really need to look at examples of the study materials provided by any company that you may want to train through. They have to utilise full motion videos of instructors demonstrating the topic with lab's to practice the skills in.

Go for CD and DVD ROM based physical training media where possible. Thus avoiding all the issues associated with internet connection failure and issues with signal quality.