High School Regrets
Posted by TestOut Staff on
There are three things I wish I would have known in high School. First, that you need to turn in every assignment to get good grades (oops). Second, that it’s OK to ask out the head cheerleader that you’ve been crushing on for years (give me courage). Third, that IT certification is very important to future employment.
IT certifications are now becoming a requirement for many students in high school. This should be an indication to all that an IT certification isn’t just a nice thing to have anymore. Especially for those who are headed into the expanding (and worker-hungry) tech workplace, certification is fast becoming a necessity.
Why is certification becoming so important in the workplace? Microsoft’s Born to Learn Blog posted about this very question last month. In response, they came up with three reasons as to why certification is becoming a high school requirement, and why that should be important to you.
- You need tech skills no matter what. — Whether you are seeking an IT job or not, computer literacy is now essential to nearly every occupation. If you want job security, then you need the essential life skills that come with tech proficiency. On top of that, tech professionals are greatly in demand. There are an estimated 500,000 to 1 million IT jobs that go unfilled every year.
- Employers want employees to have credentials. — If you apply for a job without a certification, it is likely that you will lose out to someone who does have a certification. There is more that is expected of new hires today. This is why high schools are encouraging their students to learn these skills young. They become much more employable.
- You gain the confidence to be successful. — Once students see what it’s like to succeed at passing a certification exam and becoming certified, it makes them hungry for more success. Getting in the pattern of success early can help one in his or her belief that he or she can do anything.
Whether you are pursuing an IT career or not, the skills learned through certification have become extremely important in daily living, as well as in a wide variety of occupations. If you are worried about the process of certification, TestOut training is a great place to start. Begin studying for an entry-level Microsoft, Cisco or CompTIA certification today.
About the Author — Jake Slater is the social media manager for GoCertify and a graduate of Brigham Young University. If the head cheerleader could see him now, she'd be the one asking Jake out.