Is getting my A+ certification a good choice for an entry level job?

Definitely DO NOT overspend on the A+. Its one of the very few courses CompTIA offers that can actually be learned from just the books. Sure, the parts where you go through the OSs would require a computer but, if you have ever bought an operating system and installed it yourself without a problem you could probably get the A+ from the books. Now the Net+ is a much different story. That you have to do some labs and develop a familiarity with common IT concepts and terms. The A+ is darn near computer history since you covers all the way back to Windows 98 and work forward. The idea is that you gain an understanding of how technology develops so you can respect the efficiency of it now enough to understand the more advanced concepts. You will learn things you just don't need today because of technology like using straight DOS to partition your system. If you are starting from scratch with computers you should definitely pursue the A+ as your initial certification. Now with just an A+ don't expect much money. Be happy that you simply get an opportunity to gain field related experience. It doesn't matter how good your grades are in school and/or how many certifications you have. If you have zero real world experience you simply will be sucking wind and might actually land a job and all out fail at it resulting in a quick termination. Your best bet would be to aim for a gig as a scripted deployment technician. That means someone gets paid a lot for writing a deployment script and you get paid notsomuch (try $25 - 28k/yr) to apply that script to systems. It might seem like a bad deal but, you get to see how it really works and also get to interact with those in the field. And during downtime some companies don't mind if you crack some textbooks and study for yet another cert. Don't think of the A+ as the end. Its just the beginning. You will eventually figure out that to be an "IT Guy" you have to understand everything about a network. Be prepared to buy a LOT of books and when you finally learn all there is to know about a certain area you will find that you have to learn the latest version that came out yesterday that completely changes everything. The more you learn the more this becomes a knee-jerk reaction.

It's extremely hard to get a job in the field, especially when those with experience are happy to take your job!!!! I went through a similar program that lasted 16 months. I wouldn't say it's worth it, but it's better than nothing. Much of what I learned, I could have on my own. At my community college, they had a 1-3 month kind of program for A+. I would go for that and get your A+ as soon as possible because like somebody said, if u don't get it soon, u will have to recertify every few years rather than it being lifetime for someone like me. Also, if u expect to learn from school, any school, don't bet on it. School is good for paper. Most of what you know and learn is on your own.

16 GRAND!? That's a rip off if I ever heard one. I'm currently a student at a local community college and and full associates degree(not just one certification) is only going to cost me around 8 grand and I'm picking up 4 certificates with it. If you want to be A+ certified there are plenty of online resources to help you. I am currently studying for it as I want to get it before the end of the year and they change the policies. I have found tons of very useful material online just by google'ing A+ study guides and practice tests. BTW if you are going to get the certification do it by the end of the year. If you get it this year you are certified for life. After this year anyone that gets it has to re-certify every three years.

There are plenty of potential hurdles for youngsters in work, many of them legal, parents need to be careful about that. There is plenty of help from the website in the box below on this topic, they also have help for all peeps who are looking for work, or who need to change careers.