This area of IT is possibly one of the most sweeping & comprehensive there is. It could take many years to become an authority in all factors, & so specialisation is vital to some level. Both Microsoft & Cisco produce systems for this market place. The software side of Networking is MS's department, and the hardware side (routers, controllers & data switches and so on.) is where Cisco mainly work. Both companies have branched heavily into Security over the last several years, by commercial need. Also in this field we are witnessing the substantial growth of wireless networking. Even though Digital Forensics and 'Ethical Hacking' have fingers in all these areas, they are also professions by themselves, and require considerable instruction & real-life experience to become fully effective.

Computer (or Digital) Forensics is comparatively new in this area - Television programmes like CSI-Crime Scene Investigation may have familiarised us with the term. There may however be a touch less glamour to the actual workload than that performed by the characters on television! Even so, technological-forensics provides a fascinating occupation for a lot of individuals right now. The basic principle being to collect & evaluate 'digital footprints', to supply evidence in either a criminal or civil enquiry.

Located in a similar field to Forensics and I.T. Security is 'Ethical Hacking' - another fairly new discipline to control criminal activity. These are certifications provided through the EC Council which teach advanced candidates the more dark principles of 'hacking' - but with the goal of employing these skills to protect and raise the security within a system, instead of damaging it.

The vendor neutral international association 'CompTIA' now delivers possibly the most recognised & widely respected impartial IT qualifications. Additional institutions also provide worthy accreditations, for example 'CWNP' ('Certified Wireless Network Professional') & ISC2 ('International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium'). Of course Microsoft & Cisco provide a full range of professional level qualifications. As there are so many training and career options available in this sector, it is prudent to get more personal guidance from an experienced advisor before choosing your particular route. You might save a whole lot of time and expense, not to mention frustration and disappointment.

There are now broader alternatives beyond Microsoft & Cisco to become trained in these areas. In fact, there's a great deal of certification that's offered by extremely respected unbiased organisations -- & this has grown to be increasingly significant. It's now extensively recognised that understanding inter connectivity and technological convergence is becoming tremendously fundamental in networks. We are witnessing an essential generational shift within network technologies right now, particularly the movement toward Cloud or Internet based computing (both in terms of data-storage, and actual processing power), and the attitude shift towards 'green' I.T.. The development of 'green' I.T. addresses 2 important elements : minimising the impact to the earth is one, but of equal or more relevance to industry is cost. Lower power processors and computers create less heat, so less cooling is necessary. These two things together vastly reduce the energy bill, & so affect a business' bottom line - particularly in data-centres and high-volume processing areas.

Microsoft provide a number of specialist areas at MCSE level, for example in Security or in Messaging for trainees with a special interest. Maybe, the 'CompTIA' Security+ , advancing onto the 'CISSP' (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) could be appropriate. 'CISSP' applicants have to have considerable professional experience, so make sure you research this thoroughly. As always, we suggest talking with a knowledgeable IT training advisor to avoid any mishaps.

If you are looking to progress a career in IT, begin by developing some networking know-how. You must know precisely how PCs operate and communicate with each other before you can do anything else. If you have decent literacy skills, you will find packages such as CompTIA's A+ and Network+ offers you an excellent grounding to start your career. They're dealt with within the CompTIA section of this site.

Moving on you can choose to follow the MS MCSE or MCSA path if you're interested in software, or the Cisco 'CCNA' or 'CCNP' path if you're thinking about hardware. Nonetheless, a good knowledge of Microsoft's operating systems is very beneficial as they're such a key aspect of most networking environments. You'll find further qualification information on this web site in the specific MS and 'Cisco' pages.

Of course you could enhance your Wi-Fi (wireless) skill-sets with qualifications like the CWNA and CWNP, or keep going down the 'CompTIA' path with Security+, Server+ or Linux+ .

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