CompTIA Certification Retirement Announcement!

The CompTIA Mobile App Security+ ADR & iOS (ADR-001 & iOS-001) certification exams will be retiring on June 26, 2015. CompTIA will not replace these exams. Therefore, anyone studying for these exams is encouraged to complete their studies and seek certification prior to the retirement date. Exam vouchers already purchased for these exams will be valid through June 26, 2015. Exam vouchers not used by the retirement date will expire and become void. Anyone who has received the certification will remain CompTIA Mobile App Security+ ADR & iOS certified, as the exam is retiring but the certification will stay valid.

Suggestions for Taking a High-Stakes IT Exam #Certification #Exam #Preparation

Part I: Exam Prep By Janet Pinkerton

1) Know your exam. Carefully read the exam description details to build your exam prep strategy. What are exam objectives or subjects covered? What question formats will be used: multiple-choice, simulated scenarios, essays or fill in the blank? How many questions will be in each exam section? How much time is given to complete the exam? How will the exam be graded?

2) Ask yourself: What kind of learner am I? How much do I know? Answering these questions can help you decide what tools to use to prepare for the exam. Test prep options include assessment software, instructor-led training, eLearning, books for classroom use and self-study, and computer-based materials.

3) Dedicate Time to Prepare. Give yourself a matter of weeks, not days, for preparation. Create and commit to a realistic schedule of study time blocks that are less likely to be disrupted by work or life events. Aim for balance with time management. If you neglect your personal or work life, you may add unwanted stress that will make it more difficult to study effectively.

4) Study in short blocks of time. Experts say the maximum human attention span is about 45 minutes and the average is about 20 to 30 minutes. Be good to yourself and take long breaks between study times.

5) Use multiple study/preparation resources, especially if you are a beginner. No single exam preparation resource is the best at covering every exam subject. Each has its strengths and weaknesses—both in approach and subject coverage. Using multiple preparation resources will help ensure that you cover all the subjects contained in a high-stakes exam.

6) Use high-quality preparation resources. For CompTIA certification exams, study with books and study guides reviewed by industry experts and approved by CompTIA through the CompTIA Approved Quality Content (CAQC) program. These materials are considered the best resource for self-study for an exam. Use the Search form here to find CAQC Study Materials. Be careful when purchasing study guides from second-hand sellers (on eBay or Craigslist, for example); make sure the materials directly apply to the exam you plan to take.

7) Drill, Baby, Drill! Drill with sample questions and exams to identify problem areas where more study is needed and reinforce the information you already understand. Sample questions for CompTIA exams can be obtained here. You can also purchase and practice questions online with authorized providers of certification practice tests. Beware of websites offering “exact copies” of real exam questions; experts say these typically provide no educational value and are often incorrect.

8) Time yourself. Timed exam practice help you get used to taking exams under time pressure.

9) Get Hands-on! Give yourself plenty of hands-on IT experience to reinforce study prep and also to prepare for long-term career success. Hands-on experience can range from working on projects in a home or school lab to shadowing experienced computer or network IT “gurus.”

10) Be Proactive and Think Positive. Exam anxiety is common, but careful preparation through study, drills and hands-on experience can dissolve the fears involved with high-stakes testing. If you are anxious about the exam environment itself, get information from your testing center about what to expect, what’s allowed, what’s prohibited in the testing room. Some testing centers even offer a “test drive” —a chance to experience the test center and go through all the testing procedures before the actual exam.

Source: CompTIA Blog

Lammle’s CompTIA Network+ Study Guide is coming soon

The 2011 edition of the Network+ exam, N10-005, is its first major revision since 2009. To coincide with the new version, Todd Lammle has written a new edition of his CompTIA Network+ Study Guide. As well as covering 100% of the exam’s objectives, the networking guru offers invaluable insights and tips drawn from his own real-world experience to help students succeed the first time.

Strata Study Guide to be released

The CompTIA Strata certification is an introduction to the skills required to become a successful systems support professional, progressing onto more advanced certifications and career success. To coincide with the new exam, Sybex, an Authorized CompTIA Gold Partner, will release the CompTIA Strata Study Guide this coming January, delivering 100% of the Strata exam objectives in clear and concise language to help students succeed the first time.

CompTIA Security+ certification addresses operational risk

The latest version of CompTIA Security+ covers the skill sets needed to proactively address security risk control and mitigation. As part of the ISO/ANSI accreditation for CompTIA Security+, CompTIA updates the exam every three years.

CompTIA launched dedicated certification website!

CompTIA has been delivering IT certification exams for more than 15 years and is committed to continually improving the service it provides to the industry. To help you find which certification best fits your business and career needs, CompTIA has launched a dedicated website with certification information and news tailored to individual IT professionals, corporations, government and educators.

CompTIA Certification for data/telephony networking

The CompTIA CTP+ exam proves competency in convergent technologies, including data networking, telephony networking and convergence networking. It replaces CompTIA Convergence+ as CompTIA’s convergent technologies exam.

CompTIA CTP+ is an international, vendor-neutral exam that validates the core knowledge and skills IT professionals need to sell and service convergent technologies. It covers basic requirements analysis, implementation and management of basic data components and voice and multimedia applications, as well as basic problem analysis and resolution for convergent technologies.

Although not a prerequisite for CompTIA CTP+ certification, it is recommended that candidates are CompTIA Network+ certified or have equivalent knowledge, as well as 18 to 24 months of work experience in areas that include data networking, telephony and other convergence-related technologies.

Healthcare IT Certifications: Do You Need One?

As the healthcare industry makes the transition from paper-based systems to electronic health records, plenty of VARs, technology vendors and others have recognized a big opportunity to assist with the change. But do you need a specialized healthcare IT certification to help you stand out from the growing crowd?

Healthcare IT Certifications: Do You Need One?

The healthcare industry’s transition from paper-based records and legacy computer systems to modern electronic health records (EHR) is creating new opportunities for vendors and channel partners alike. Recognizing the emerging trend, some organizations are even developing certifications around healthcare IT skills and providing training and exams for EHR and other healthcare technology. However, the certifications available are still flying fairly low on the radar and there’s a question mark hanging over the need for such certifications.

And it depends on who you ask. For instance, CompTIA is developing just such a certification, and representatives at that organization believe it will help individuals and solution providers stand out from the crowd that is trying to usher physicians into a new technological era.

However David Foote co-founder, chief research officer and CEO of Foote Partners, which tracks more than 200 IT certifications and credentials, doesn’t see the need for such a certification. Foote Partners isn’t yet tracking any IT certifications specifically related to healthcare, he told Channel Insider.

“It’s very interesting to me that somebody would want to do that. I’m not aware of many certifications that are attached to industries rather than technologies or particular solutions,” Foote said.

Foote noted that he is aware of and follows organizations such as Epic Systems that specialize in EHR and healthcare IT deployments, but even vendor-specific certifications haven’t appeared there yet. Most IT certifications in the healthcare industry are the traditional ones from the likes of Microsoft, Cisco Systems and other IT vendors that sell heavily into the healthcare space, but those certifications are the same ones being attained by IT professionals throughout the IT workforce.

Although Foote noted there is a demand for IT professionals with EHR skills and experience, he’s not seeing a demand for certifications in the area. In fact, Foote Partners’ research indicates a decreasing interest in certifications overall, with average salaries based on certifications continuing on a downward trend.

“You don’t need to be certified to demonstrate your knowledge in any one area. You don’t have to be certified. In fact, the world has moved away from certifications to some degree over the last three to four years,” Foote said.

With economic recovery dollars available from the government, though, some organizations are seeing an opportunity for IT professionals with health IT skills to stand out from the crowd. One of those organizations is CompTIA (www.comptia.org), which is currently developing the CompTIA Healthcare IT for Electronic Health Records program and certification.

CompTIA Introduces Healthcare IT Certification

In January, CompTIA announced it was looking for EHR subject matter experts to help develop a health IT certification, but the concept for the certification actually started to take shape in 2009 following the Economic Recovery Act’s introduction. According to Gretchen Koch, senior director of workforce development programs at CompTIA, there was an expectation that the health IT technician field would experience growth of between 50,000 and 200,000 new jobs. The new EHR systems would have to be planned, deployed and then maintained, so the jobs also would not be going away.

CompTIA is a strong supporter of education and certifications (its own and vendor-specific ones), and so it’s not surprising the association began working towards creating a healthcare IT credential. The certification will go through its next review between March 14 and 18, and CompTIA expects to launch the certification program later this year.

“It’s very important for the successful transition. It’s very important for the doctors, who if they don’t make the transition, will be penalized in terms of the amount of money they get back from the government for Medicare and Medicaid. It’s very important for the health information exchanges that the country is looking to set up in order to make healthcare more effective, but also to just cut the costs of healthcare,” Koch said.

The transition of medical records from paper to digital format requires specialized knowledge and skills, and a certification can prove to employers or clients that a technician has the appropriate skills, she said.

“There have been certificates in health IT from the healthcare side for a long time. Organizations like AHIMA and HIMSS have been putting out health IT credentials from the healthcare side for quite some time. As far as I know, CompTIA’s going to be one of the first to do it from the IT side of health,” Koch said.

According to Koch, the proper integration of EHR data and systems is all about providing meaningful use for doctors and other medical personnel. When healthcare professionals are looking for an integrator who can develop the systems in an appropriate way, certifications will enable them to identify integrators who have been trained and know how to do it.

Source: Channel Insider

CompTIA – “New Year, New Certs”

by Jennifer.Babich on February 1, 2011

With the New Year, we’re embarking on several new certification exams. Development is currently underway on two security exams (a new version of CompTIA Security+ and CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner), CompTIA Storage+ powered by SNIA, and credentials around healthcare IT.

We all know how huge security is for the industry. CompTIA Security+ is the fastest growing exam in our history and continues to see growing demand from both the public and private sectors. (There are almost 160,000 CompTIA Security+ certified professionals worldwide!) The last revision was in 2008, thus it’s time for an update of the exam content. Objectives are now available for this exam scheduled for a May 2011 release.

Development also is underway on CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP), our first entry into the world of advanced certifications. CASP is still a technical exam with a hands-on focus, but is intended to follow CompTIA Security+ or equivalent experience. The majority of the demand for CASP is coming from the government market, but there is a fit in the private sector as well. There are quite a few advance security certifications in the market, but these focus more on theory and management issues rather than implementation. Job roles suited to the new certification include titles such as security architect, information assurance manager, information systems security officer and security analyst. Look for this exam Q4 2011.

CompTIA Storage+ powered by SNIA (see press release) is the latest in the line of exams developed in partnership with other associations such as CompTIA Linux+ powered by LPI and CompTIA CTP+. This exam is designed to offer a foundation of knowledge for any storage professional seeking to validate expertise in the storage networking and information management areas. With the exponential growth in network storage and the regulatory drivers that require more data storage to be retained for longer periods of time, the industry needs qualified personnel to manage this data. Target candidates will have at least six months experience. A beta release of this new exam is scheduled for Q2 in 2011 with global availability in the second half of 2011.

We just completed the exam development workshop for the CompTIA Healthcare IT for EHR credential. The security and regulatory requirements for IT technicians working in the HIT/EMR setting are very different than in other IT environments, and technicians need to understand those issues. This exam will validate these skills. Watch for more information on this new credential very soon!

Source: CompTIA Blog: http://blog.comptia.org/2011/02/01/new-year-new-certs/

Networking Bundle Offer

CompTIA, Cisco and Pearson VUE have partnered to give IT professionals everything they need to prepare for a career in networking at a $140 savings!

Between now and April 30, 2011, aspiring networking professionals will have an opportunity to take a CompTIA Network+ exam and a Cisco CCNA exam at a 25% discount! In addition, we are including a 30% discount on CompTIA Network+ and Cisco CCNA study materials to better prepare for these exams.

Purchase your Networking Bundle today! For questions related to the networking bundle product, please email at mindhub@pearson.com.

Networking Career Roadmap

The below roadmap highlights the career opportunities and typical job roles associated with achieving CompTIA and Cisco certifications.

Bundle Contents:

You will receive the following products for a special price of $399!

1. CompTIA Network+ Exam Voucher (2009 Edition – N10-004)
2. Cisco CCNA Exam Voucher (640-802)
3. CompTIA Network+ Cert Flash Cards Online
4. Cisco CCNA Cert Flash Cards Online

This offer is valid for US residents only. Exams must be taken by April 30, 2011, and scheduled at a Pearson VUE test center located within the United States.

Source and Buy