In today's high speed society, support workers who are able to fix computers and networks, and offer ongoing advice to users, are vital in all areas of industry. Whereupon we're all becoming massively more beholden to technology, we also inevitably become increasingly dependent on the commercially qualified network engineers, who maintain those systems.

Review the facts below in detail if you believe that old marketing ploy of examination guarantees seems like a good idea:

Patently it isn't free - you are paying for it - it's just been wrapped up in the price of the package. The fact is that when students fund each examination, one by one, the chances are they're going to pass every time - as they'll be conscious of the cost and will therefore apply themselves appropriately.

Shouldn't you be looking to not pay up-front, but at the appropriate time, not to pay the fees marked up by a training college, and to do it locally - instead of miles away at the college's beck and call? Big margins are netted by a number of companies that incorporate exam fees into the cost of the course. A number of students don't take them for various reasons and so they pocket the rest. Astoundingly enough, there are companies around that rely on that fact - as that's how they make a lot of their profit. You should fully understand that re-takes with training companies who offer an 'Exam Guarantee' are monitored with tight restrictions. They will insist that you take pre-tests first until you've demonstrated an excellent ability to pass.

Exam fees averaged 112 pounds or thereabouts last year via Prometric or VUE centres around the United Kingdom. So why pay hundreds or thousands of pounds extra to have 'Exam Guarantees', when common sense dictates that the responsible approach is study, commitment and preparing with good quality mock and practice exams.

Validated exam preparation and simulation materials are vital - and really must be supplied by your training company. Ensure that the exams you practice aren't just asking you the right questions from the right areas, but ask them in the way that the actual final exam will ask them. It really messes up trainees if they're met with completely different formats and phraseologies. Always request some practice exams that will allow you to verify your understanding along the way. Practice exams prepare you properly - then you won't be quite so nervous at the actual exam.

So, why should we consider qualifications from the commercial sector as opposed to the usual academic qualifications obtained from tech' colleges and universities? The IT sector now acknowledges that to learn the appropriate commercial skills, certified accreditation from such organisations as Adobe, Microsoft, CISCO and CompTIA is closer to the mark commercially - for considerably less. Higher education courses, for instance, can often get caught up in a great deal of loosely associated study - and a syllabus that's too generalised. This prevents a student from getting enough specific knowledge about the core essentials.

Just like the advert used to say: 'It does what it says on the label'. The company just needs to know where they have gaps, and then match up the appropriate exam numbers as a requirement. They'll know then that all applicants can do what they need.