Announcing: The Microsoft Certified Career Conference

The Born to Learn team is working on an exciting series of online events; we are proud to announce The Microsoft Certified Career Conference.

Why this event? Well, staying competitive in the job market is top of mind for most people these days. Skills and knowledge can give you the competitive edge – whether you are just starting your career in IT or looking at your next career step. The Microsoft Certified Career Conference is a series of virtual events where you can meet potential employers, hone your technical knowledge, acquire job-seeking skills, network with fellow professionals, and glean career advice from real-life experts in the field.

What will you learn? Well, we will be offering a number of tracks that will help you build the technical skills as well as the soft skills that can make you stand out in the crowd. In addition you can visit the Career Fair and meet potential future employers. Whether you want to see who is hiring around the world, what types of positions are currently open in the market, or just want the opportunity to chat directly with company recruiters about their ideal candidates – The Career Fair offers a wide variety of opportunities. A full company list for your review will be available for download closer to the event date.

The conference’s main tracks:

• First Course: Technical sessions based on Microsoft Official courses where you will get a ‘taste’ of the course. We will offer sessions for IT Professionals, Developers, and Office power users and they will be delivered by MCTs and courseware authors. Audience: anyone considering taking Microsoft Training, each session will focus on one specific course.
• Super Cert Me: Thinking about taking an exam? How about some help in preparing for the exam? Audience: these high tempo exam preparation sessions assume a proficient level of knowledge on the course’s topic.
• Best practices: landing a job is an art – these sessions will help you identify the job that is right for you, write great letters, prepare for job interviews etc. etc.
• People and Technology: Whether you are in an IT career or whether you manage a team, new technologies impact the way we all work. What impact can ‘Cloud Computing’ have on your career or on your team? Will Unified Communications change the way we work? Audience: Hiring Managers, MCPs
• Opportunity Knocks: New technology = new business opportunity. Learn more about the technology, find out how where the business opportunities are and how to get started.
• The 60 Minute Rock Star: whether you are in accounting, marketing or an administrative assistant, we will show you tricks that will boost your productivity and amaze your colleagues
• A Day in the Life: What is it actually like to be an IT manager, an Enterprise Administrator, or an application developer? People in these roles will share what life is like for them, the challenges they face, the opportunities they see, the skills they learned on the job etc.
• MCT & Educator track: Microsoft Certified Trainers and academic educators are invited to learn about new courses and the tools of the trade. Audience: MCTs and Educators.

We’re still working on these tracks and of course we would love to hear your suggestions and input. At the same time, we look forward to the Career Fair, where you can meet potential future employers and discuss potential job roles. Be a part of it and register now.

MCPs and MCTs: keep an eye out for the MCP and MCT Newsletters for an attractive MCP discount!

Look out for more updates here on Born to Learn and of course: Find us on Facebook.

If your organization is interested in exhibiting at the Career Fair, or if you’re interested in speaking at this or future events, please contact our event team.

Source: http://borntolearn.mslearn.net/btl/b/weblog/archive/2010/09/17/announcing-the-microsoft-certified-career-conference.aspx

IT Career Guide: Advice for IT Professionals (Q & A)

The low-down on IT careers, from what it’s like to work in IT, to the hottest types of IT jobs and the skills and certifications you’ll need to land them. From hiring and salary data to expert advice, CIO.com’s complete IT career guide helps you succeed.

CIO —

• Is an IT career a good idea right now?
• A lot of U.S. IT jobs are being lost due to offshoring and the recession. What are the odds I’ll be able to get an IT job in this market, let alone keep one?
• What’s a career in IT like?
• What kinds of IT jobs might I pursue, and how are IT roles changing?
• What skills are needed to be successful in an IT career?
• What IT certifications might improve my odds of landing a job or enhancing my career?
• Is the money good in an IT career? What are IT salaries like?
• I’m fed up with my corporate IT career. What other career paths might I consider, where my skills and background might be transferable?

Which tech skills are in demand on Wall Street?

Programming, operating system knowledge, database skills and especially risk management are in demand as financial companies expand their hiring. "Technology is extremely important on Wall Street, where they have vast quantities of data that needs real-time analysis," says Constance Melrose of eFinancialCareers. "We have a lot of clients who are looking for technologists who can handle the speed, quantity and precision of that information."

Read full article here Network World

Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations

There is an interesting new article in Certification Magazine that reports that database administrator is one of the fastest-growing occupations. It also provides a good ‘day in the life of a DBA’ narrative. If you are either considering a career as a DBA or are seeking to move your career forward as a DBA, you should definitely take a look at this article.

If you’re familiar with our Global Salary Survey (conducted in 2009) you might remember that on average – certified DBAs earn more than $8,000 more per year than non-certified DBAs. Also from our Global Salary Survey, we found that database administrators who have a lot of experience are earning just under $100,000 per year. So even in a tough economy it’s a great time to be a database administrator, and if you are not Oracle-certified – it’s a great time to consider certification as a way to (1) build your credibility, (2) increase your marketability and (3) improve your career.

Read the article here: “Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations” (Certification Magazine)

QUICK LINKS:

• Oracle Certification: 2009 Global Salary Survey
• Certification Magazine: “Database Administration One of the Fastest Growing Occupations“ 

Resume Help with Microsoft Office

As a college student, or someone new to the workforce, you may not be aware that Microsoft Office Online has some great tools to help you get started in creating your resume and cover letter. Read through our job search strategies and even run a job search query directly from our site. 

For more information, visit http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/help/FX103504051033.aspx

5 hot IT certification picks for 2010

IT hiring managers hungry for certified professionals
Certification demand is spiking as enterprises are looking to hire skilled professionals in specific niche technologies such as VMware, Microsoft, Cisco and ITIL. Yet companies also seek IT gurus with green-tech skills, and CompTIA just introduced its Strata Green IT program focused on power management as well as virtualization techniques. 5 hot IT certification picks for 2010.

 

Salary info, Cost calculators and more at GoCertify.com

Trying to figure out the fully burdened cost of certification? Want to compare certifications among multiple vendors? Want to know the median salary for people holding a specific certification?

Check out GoCertify.com—you’ll find several cool and useful tools, including:

Certification Cost Calculator

 

Salary Info

Quizzes and Games (my favorite is the OSI game)

New to IT /Which path would you take for a career in Microsoft Technology?

Which path would you take for a career in Microsoft Technology?

Find the right direction to enhance your IT Professional career with the ICT Curriculum Roadmap.
See the full-sized roadmap

• Download Microsoft XPS file (152 KB)
• Download PDF file (225 KB)

Free ebook: Own Your Future: Update Your Skills with Resources and Career Ideas from Microsoft

Microsoft Press is thrilled to offer another free ebook: Own Your Future: Update Your Skills with Resources and Career Ideas from Microsoft, by Katherine Murray. The ebook contains eight chapters and an appendix describing how you can assess and build your technology-based job skills.

To give you a sense of the ebook’s content, here is its Foreword, by Microsoft Learning’s Lutz Ziob:

Foreword

In the midst of a struggling economy, our fast-changing, knowledge-based economy has created unprecedented challenges for employers and workers alike. Employers increasingly need workers with a broad range of information
technology (IT) skills. These skills will become even more important as we continue to retool major sectors of our economy, such as healthcare, transportation and energy. By 2014, more than three-quarters of all jobs in the United States will require some level of computing or technology skills, and the vast majority of newly created jobs will require post-secondary education or training.

To meet this demand, students need a solid foundation in science, technology, engineering, math, and design, as well as in related disciplines such as computer science. And this means that workforce training systems need to be improved and expanded to meet the needs of all workers—the underemployed, the unemployed, and students who need better access to the requisite skills. Everyone entering or already in the workforce should have access to the resources they need to become lifelong learners who can adapt
to an ever-changing workplace.

Technology is only one piece of the puzzle, but it has a pivotal role to play in these efforts. It can offer students, workers, and employers the training tools they need, and it can help to quickly and efficiently expand access to educational resources. IT also helps people develop other essential 21st-century
skills such as collaboration and teamwork, finding and interpreting information, and using data to aid in decision making.

In this book, students will find a wealth of Microsoft resources they can use to identify the technology skills they need, and gather knowledge and experience to help them take charge of their careers. Here at Microsoft, we care about students’ career success and hope these resources will open doors to learning that will lead them to better opportunities and a deeper understanding of the way technology continues to change and improve the ways people work—both here in the U.S. and around the world.

Lutz Ziob
Microsoft Learning General Manager

You can download the ebook in XPS format here and in PDF format here.

A Superior Education for Tomorrow’s IT Pro – Certification Magazine

The face of the IT professional is changing as needs increase and more people enter the workforce. IT professionals of tomorrow will be congenial, well-informed, highly intelligent men and women who display a lifelong commitment to developing their skills to keep up with the rapidly growing IT industry. Many of them start preparing to enter the IT profession in middle school or high school and continue training throughout their career. They are practical intellectuals, systems support wizards and network experts — and the Academy of Computer Education (ACE) exists to provide the kind of education they need by constantly upgrading its curriculum and striving to upgrade the skill set of its graduates.

via A Superior Education for Tomorrow’s IT Pro – Certification Magazine.