CompTIA (Computing Technology Industry Association) is a not for profit organisation formed in the early 1980's. They've developed over time to become the leader in vendor neutral IT certification. This means they are able to supply and oversee independent industry-recognised I.T. exams & qualifications that don't reflect a single company's interests more than another. With today's move towards 'inter-connectivity' & systems convergence, this is seen as a great move for the IT student, as it offers cross-platform learning & an understanding of 'integration'. When a new exam is being developed (or an earlier one up-dated), CompTIA discusses the content with leading associates of the industrial and academic world to create balanced & highly relevant material.

Obviously these jobs can often lead on to more senior jobs if the relevant certifications have been put in place. That's why it's essential to examine your long term plans prior to selecting your career-training route. Do take time to go through the whole thing with a training and I.T. professional - it will help safeguard you from any set backs down the road. it is often a good suggestion to think about tailored career training bundles that include the A+ and 'Network+' courses. Bundling various course materials together is usually quite cost effective.

Expect to give yourself close to one hundred to one hundred and fifty hours learning time for the A+ exams, and for the 'Network+' about seventy five to one hundred hours. Using the right multimedia training package that is supported by accredited examination preparation software, the two accreditations could be achieved within half a year for the student who's learning around employment.

As a part of their ISO standardisation move, CompTIA have upgraded both A+ and N+ examinations to '2009' versions. Internationally the 2006/2007 versions of 'A+' (with examination pre-fix 600) will be retired within the coming year. At the end of August 2010, the examinations will be retired in Britain. As 2009 exams (700) are currently available at test-centres up and down the country, the newer study programs are probably a more sensible choice for anyone just getting started. A+ '09 is now offered as '220/701' 'CompTIA' A+ Essentials and 220-702 'CompTIA' 'A+' Practical Application. The principle changes were a complete re-structuring of the previous 4 exams into only 2 examinations, & the addition of some teaching on newer relevant technologies. Even though the previous A+ had 4 examinations within the total program, just two were necessary for the accreditation. During the last several years, the marketplace has developed to the point where all four examinations are now considered essential - hence the reformatting in to 2 required exams. An upgrade examination has been produced by 'CompTIA' for those with the previous accreditation. 'BR-003' is the exam number. This would probably involve extra study, although not so much if you covered all 4 of the original exams, rather than only the two that were required. The new technology subjects will clearly need some extra learning.

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