In first place for the biggest single let-down for IT trainees is often the 'in-centre' workshop requirement. Most training academies wax lyrical on the so-called 'benefits' of these classes, it's almost certain though that you'll find them a growing difficulty due to:

- All the travelling required - multiple visits and normally over 100 miles a pop.

- Access to classes; usually Mon-Fri and 2-3 days in a row. This can be difficult to get the days away from work.

- Usually, we discover four weeks vacation allowance isn't enough by far. Sacrifice a good 50 percent of that for training workshops and you'll experience even more problems.

- Training workshops fill up quickly and will likely end up bigger than you'd hoped.

- The pace of the class - classes usually consist of trainees of varied skill, therefore tension can be created between students that want a quicker pace to those with less experience.

- Let's not ignore the extra cost of driving and bed and breakfast either. Often, this will cost 00's or even 000's extra. Take some time to add it all up - you'll be (unpleasantly) surprised.

- We all enjoy our privacy. We should never risk giving up any lift up the ladder that we're owed while we're training.

- Many of us find that, at times, it's uncomfortable to raise questions when surrounded by our fellow attendees - as we don't want to look silly.

- Working and living away - a lot of students find they're living or working away for certain parts of their training. Events end up being very difficult then, but you've already paid for them with your initial fees.

It has to make so much more sense to be trained when it suits you -- not the training company - and exploit instructor-led videos with interactive lab's. Study can happen anywhere that suits. Got a laptop?... Then why not get a bit of sunshine in your garden as you learn. Any problems and get onto the live 24x7 support. It's never going to matter how many times you feel you need to repeat something, on-screen teachers will never get annoyed or frustrated! Also, with this method, note-taking becomes a thing of the past. Everything is already there for you when you need it. Could it be simpler: No travelling, wasted time or money; and you've got a much more relaxed learning environment.

There are colossal changes about to hit technology as we approach the second decade of the 21st century - and this means greater innovations all the time. It's a common misapprehension that the technological revolution that's been a familiar part of our recent lives is lowering its pace. There is no truth in this at all. There are huge changes to come, and the internet significantly will become an increasingly dominant part of our lives.

A usual IT professional in Great Britain can demonstrate that they get considerably more money than employees on a par in another industry. Mean average wages are some of the best to be had nationwide. It seems there is no end in sight for IT industry development throughout this country. The market sector is continuing to expand quickly, and as we have a significant shortage of skilled professionals, it's highly unlikely that there'll be any kind of easing off for decades to come.

One area often overlooked by people mulling over a new direction is the issue of 'training segmentation'. Essentially, this is the method used to break up the program to be delivered to you, which completely controls where you end up. Training companies will normally offer some sort of program spread over 1-3 years, and send out each piece as you finish each section. This sounds reasonable until you consider the following: It's not unusual for trainees to realise that the trainer's standard order of study isn't ideal for them. Sometimes, a slightly different order suits them better. And what happens if they don't finish in the allotted time?

For future safety and flexibility, it's not unusual for students to make sure that every element of their training is posted to them in one go, with nothing held back. You can then decide in which order and at what speed you want to go.

Most trainers typically provide piles of reference manuals and workbooks. It's not a very interesting way to learn and not really conducive to taking things in. Where possible, if we can study while utilising as many senses as possible, then the results are usually dramatically better.

Search for a course where you'll get a host of DVD-ROM's - you'll be learning from instructor videos and demo's, and be able to use virtual lab's to practice your new skills. All companies must be able to demonstrate some simple examples of their training materials. You should hope for instructor-led videos and a variety of interactive modules.

Many companies provide just online versions of their training packages; and although this is okay the majority of the time, consider what happens if your access to the internet is broken or you get intermittent problems and speed issues. A safer solution is the provision of DVD or CD discs that removes the issue entirely.

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