If you'd like to get involved in the web design industry, Adobe Dreamweaver is an absolute must for attaining relevant certifications recognised globally. In order to take advantage of Dreamweaver professionally in web design, an in-depth understanding of the full Adobe Web Creative Suite (which includes Flash and Action Script) is something to consider very seriously. Having this knowledge will mean, you might lead on to becoming an Adobe Certified Expert (ACE) or Adobe Certified Professional (ACP).

Constructing a website is only the first aspect of the skills needed by today's web technicians. It's a good idea to only accept a course that includes important features like E-Commerce, SEO (Search Engine Optimisation,) so that you can appreciate how to create traffic, maintain content and work with dynamic database-driven web-sites.

Many trainers provide piles of reference manuals and workbooks. This can be very boring and isn't the best way to go about studying effectively. If we're able to involve all our senses in the learning process, then the results are usually dramatically better.

Interactive audio-visual materials with demonstrations and practice sessions beat books hands-down. And they're a lot more fun to do. All companies should willingly take you through a few samples of their training materials. You're looking for evidence of tutorial videos and demonstrations and a variety of interactive modules.

Go for CD or DVD ROM based materials every time. This then avoids all the potential pitfalls with broadband outages, failure and signal quality issues etc.

Many folks don't really get what information technology is doing for all of us. It is thrilling, changing, and means you're doing your bit in the gigantic wave of technology affecting everyones lives in the 21st century. Computing technology and communication on the internet is going to dramatically shape the way we live our lives in the future; incredibly so.

Let's not forget that on average, the income of a person in the IT market across the UK is considerably better than in other market sectors, therefore you'll more than likely receive a lot more as an IT specialist, than you'd expect to earn elsewhere. Because the IT market sector is still growing year on year, one can predict that the need for certified IT professionals will flourish for a good while yet.

Students hoping to build an IT career normally don't know what direction is best, let alone what sector to get qualified in. Therefore, without any know-how of the IT industry, how are you equipped to know what someone in a particular field spends their day doing? And of course decide on which certification program provides the best chances for your success. Arriving at an informed conclusion will only come from a thorough examination covering many altering areas:

• Personality factors and what you're interested in - what working tasks you enjoy or dislike.

• Are you hoping to re-train due to a precise motive - for instance, do you aim to work based at home (working for yourself?)?

• Is salary further up on your wish list than anything else.

• With everything that the IT industry covers, you really need to be able to see what is different.

• It's wise to spend some time thinking about the amount of time and effort you're going to give to gaining your certifications.

In all honesty, the only way to investigate these issues tends to be through a good talk with an advisor or professional that understands Information Technology (and more importantly the commercial needs and requirements.)

Any program that you're going to undertake has to build towards a properly recognised accreditation at the finale - definitely not some 'in-house' plaque for your wall. If your certification doesn't come from a conglomerate such as Microsoft, Cisco, CompTIA or Adobe, then chances are it won't be commercially viable - as no-one will have heard of it.