Commercial qualifications are now, undoubtedly, already replacing the older academic routes into the industry - so why is this the case? Accreditation-based training (as it's known in the industry) is far more effective and specialised. Industry has acknowledged that this level of specialised understanding is essential to handle an increasingly more technical world. CISCO, Adobe, Microsoft and CompTIA dominate in this arena. In a nutshell, only that which is required is learned. It's not quite as straightforward as that, but principally the objective has to be to master the precisely demanded skill-sets (along with a certain amount of crucial background) - without attempting to cover a bit about everything else (as degree courses are known to do).

Put yourself in the employer's position - and your company needed a person with some very particular skills. What's the simplest way to find the right person: Wade your way through a mass of different academic qualifications from several applicants, having to ask what each has covered and which workplace skills they've mastered, or choose a specific set of accreditations that specifically match what you're looking for, and then choose your interviewees based around that. You'll then be able to concentrate on getting a feel for the person at interview - rather than on the depth of their technical knowledge.

IT has become amongst the most electrifying and revolutionary industries that you can get into right now. Being a member of a team working on breakthroughs in technology means you're a part of the huge progress that will impact the whole world for generations to come. We've barely started to get a feel for how technology will influence everything we do. Computers and the web will massively revolutionise how we view and interact with the world around us over the years to come.

If money is way up on your list of priorities, you will be pleasantly surprised to hear that the average salary for a typical IT worker is noticeably greater than salaries in other market sectors. Experts agree that there's a substantial national need for trained and qualified IT technicians. And as growth in the industry shows little sign of contracting, it seems there's going to be for a good while yet.

Coming across job security nowadays is incredibly rare. Businesses can remove us from the workforce at a moment's notice - as long as it fits their needs. We can however hit upon security at the market sector level, by digging for areas of high demand, together with a lack of qualified workers.

Taking the IT business for instance, the most recent e-Skills investigation showed a skills shortage around Great Britain in excess of 26 percent. That means for every four jobs that exist around Information Technology (IT), we have only 3 certified professionals to perform that task. Accomplishing the appropriate commercial computer qualification is as a result a fast-track to a continuing and satisfying profession. Undoubtedly, now really is such a perfect time for retraining into the IT industry.

Of all the important things to consider, one of the most essential is always comprehensive 24x7 direct-access support via dedicated instructors and mentors. Far too often we see trainers who only seem to want to help while they're in the office (9am till 6pm, Monday till Friday usually) and nothing at the weekends. Email support is too slow, and so-called telephone support is normally just routed to a call-centre who will just take down the issue and email it over to their technical team - who'll call back sometime over the next 1-3 days, when it's convenient to them. This is no use if you're stuck with a particular problem and only have certain times available in which to do your studies.

If you look properly, you'll find the top providers that offer direct-access support 24x7 - no matter what time of day it is. Never settle for less than this. Direct-access 24x7 support is the only way to go with IT study. Maybe burning the midnight-oil is not your thing; but for most of us, we're at work when traditional support if offered.

Some certification companies are still offering the slightly musty old method of classroom attendance. Quite often pushed as a positive point, following a chat with most students who've had to attend a couple, you'll hear a common theme of many or all of these:

- All the travelling required - many trips and often hundreds of miles each time.

- Weekday access for events is typically the case, and with 2-3 days to book off work, this can represent quite a problem for most working students.

- The majority of us think four weeks vacation allowance is not really enough. Spend at least half of this for study classes and see your problems doubled.

- 'In-Centre' days can fill up very quickly and will likely end up bigger than you'd hoped.

- There is often tension in classes because most students want to move at a pace comfortable for them.

- Count the cost of all the travel, fares, parking, accommodation and food and you'll be in for a big surprise. Trainees talk of increased costs of between several hundred and a couple of thousand pounds. Sit down and add it up - and understand where they're coming from.

- Study privacy will be of paramount importance to quite a lot of attendees. Why would you want to sacrifice any job advancement, wage increases or accomplishment in your job because of your studies. If your boss finds out you're putting yourself through accreditation in a different industry, how will they regard you?

- Most of us avoid posing questions in a room full of other attendees - so we don't appear ignorant.

- It should be remembered that classes are virtually undoable, in cases where you live or work away from home for part of the week.

An altogether more elegant solution rests with watching a filmed workshop - enabling you to learn any time of the day that suits. You can train wherever you want. If you own a laptop, you could get a bit of sun in your garden while you learn. Any problems and utilise the 24x7 Support. You could repeat the learning modules at any time you need to. And of course, you don't have to jot down any notes as you have the lesson indefinitely. Whilst this doesn't remove each and every issue, it unquestionably vastly reduces stress and simplifies things. Plus you've got less travel, hassle and costs.

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