The not-for-profit organisation CompTIA - 'Computing Technology Industry Association' - was formed in 1982. They have developed progressively & right now lead the world in IT certifications that are vendor neutral. This effectively means they're absolutely free to independently generate & monitor examinations & qualifications that are needed by the I.T. industry, irrespective of a particular company's commercial interests. Because systems regularly converge and inter connect in the business world, this supplies the IT student with a much more wholesome knowledge & understanding of cross-platform 'integration'. 'CompTIA' brings together numerous commercial and academic industry organisations when building or updating an exam, to ensure all sides are thought about & the most commercially related syllabuses are created.

Essentially the most famous of all the 'CompTIA' accreditations are undoubtedly the 'A+' & 'Network+'. These two, as a pair, create the building blocks for many current IT career tracks - and for a good reason. Students learn many important PC principles with A+ , such as support, repair, maintenance installation, security & fault-finding. In addition , it addresses various personal & communication skills needed to get your foot on the ladder of IT. The 'CompTIA' 'Network+' accreditation extends this experience to a more thorough comprehension of networks, servers and routers, and how they connect together. 'Security' is obviously paramount, & wireless-technology is dealt with to a certain extent. 'CompTIA' A+ & Network+ will give you a solid base for a Systems career in IT, & furthermore an excellent basis for other more advanced accreditation programs.

Standard learning time for these exams are judged to be about 100-150 hours for the 'A+' , & 75-100 hours for the N+ . With the correct multimedia training package that is supported by accredited exam preparation software, both qualifications could very well be achieved within just half a year for the student who's learning around employment.

Many of these roles can be starting points for more professional IT positions, therefore, as with all career tracks, it's vital that you first talk over precisely what your end-goals are, and what type of learning-style suits you. Take time to go through everything with a training and IT specialist - it will protect you against set backs in the future. IT Training companies may offer to develop a bespoke training path by putting together a series of programs to get the student from wherever they are now to wherever they want to end up.

If you are interested in any of the following roles, the A+ would certainly work for you - PC Technician, IT Administrator, Remote Support Technician, Field Service Technician, Call Centre and Depot Technician & Help Desk Technician. Job prospects will also include Network Technicians, Installers and Administrators for those who have the 'CompTIA' Network+ too.

In line with their 'ISO' standardisation drive, CompTIA have up-graded both A+ & Network+ exams to 2009 versions. 'A+' examinations that commenced using the number '600' (that is the 2006/2007 edition) are now being phased out around the world. At the close of Aug 2010, the exams will be retired in Great Britain. As 2009 examinations (version 700) are already available at test centres up and down the country, the newer study programs would be a more sensible preference for anyone just about to start. 'CompTIA' 'A+' Essentials and CompTIA A+ Practical Application are the new exam titles (220-701 & 220/702 respectively). The main changes were a total re-structuring of the previous 4 examinations in to just two examinations, & the inclusion of some teaching on newer technologies. The previous format was 1 compulsory Essentials examination and 3 electives, of which just one was required to be sat. Today the sector requires professionals with know-how that was in all four earlier examinations. Students can get that understanding from the 2 new obligatory 'A+' programs. An up-grade examination has been created by 'CompTIA' for anybody with the old accreditation. 'BR-003' is the exam reference. Further training will undoubtedly end up being required, especially for many who only initially worked on two of the four electives. The newly created topics will obviously need some extra learning.

New entrants into the I.T. market can look to 'CompTIA' for quite a number of their preliminary study programs. Trainees seeking to get into networking & support, or servers, security & systems should usually start with 'CompTIA', although it's true to say that CompTIA qualifications will improve any CV targeted towards the I.T. sector. There is certainly now also a push within CompTIA to provide their starter level STRATA products to those people who do not actually work in I.T., but would gain from an understanding of basic IT & exactly how it influences their work.

With regards to 'Network+' , the earlier N10-003 has now been updated by the N10-004, the 2009 version. As well as maintaining it's teaching on network management and infrastructure, the upgraded 2009 exam places a wider importance on security, wireless-networking skills and network-design standards.

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