The Microsoft MCSA course (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator) is an ideal qualification for anyone wanting to become a network supporter. Whether you're already knowledgeable but want to improve your CV with certification, or you're new to the IT industry, you'll quickly see how to select a course to fulfil your needs. To become certified for an MCSA you need to pass 4 Microsoft Certified Professional exams (MCP's). If you're joining the industry for the first time, it's possible you will have to pick up some skills before having a go at the first of the four MCP's. Look for a company with people who can guide you towards the right way to tackle your goal and can match a course start point to your current skill set.

A fatal Faux-Pas that potential students often succumb to is to concentrate on the course itself, and not focus on where they want to get to. Schools are brimming over with unaware students that chose an 'interesting' course - in place of something that could gain them the career they desired. Imagine training for just one year and then end up doing the actual job for 10-20 years. Don't make the mistake of opting for what may seem to be an 'interesting' course and then put 10-20 years into a job you hate!

It's well worth a long chat to see what industry will expect from you. What qualifications you'll be required to have and how you'll go about getting some commercial experience. Spend some time thinking about how far you think you'll want to build your skill-set as it may present a very specific set of accreditations. Long before starting a study course, it makes sense to chat over the exact job requirements with a skilled advisor, to make sure the retraining programme covers all that is required.

With so much choice, does it really shock us that a large percentage of students have no idea which career they will follow. After all, if you don't have any understanding of the IT market, how can you expect to know what any qualified IT worker spends their day doing? How can you possibly choose which educational path would be most appropriate for your success. Often, the key to unlocking this problem properly lies in a thorough conversation around a number of areas:

* Your personality can play an important part - what gets you 'up and running', and what tasks you really dislike.

* Is it your desire to accomplish a specific aspiration - for example, becoming self-employed as quickly as possible?

* How important is salary to you - is it very important, or does job satisfaction rate a little higher on your list of priorities?

* Many students don't properly consider the energy required to achieve their goals.

* It makes sense to understand what differentiates all the training areas.

In these situations, your only option to research these matters is via a conversation with an advisor or professional who understands IT (and specifically the commercial needs and requirements.)

Speak with a capable advisor and they'll regale you with many worrying experiences of how students have been duped by salespeople. Ensure you only ever work with an experienced industry advisor who digs deep to discover the most appropriate thing for you - not for their paycheque! You must establish the right starting point of study for you. An important point to note is that, if you've had any relevant qualifications that are related, then you may be able to pick-up at a different starting-point to a student who's starting from scratch. Opening with a foundation module first will sometimes be the most effective way to start into your computer training, but really depends on your level of familiarity with computers.

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