If you want to break into the technology field, proactive training and experience – validated by industry-recognized IT certifications – is a great way to begin. These certifications are the best for beginning IT pros looking to land an entry-level position.

The COVID-19 pandemic has cost millions of Americans their jobs and made it difficult for 2020 college graduates to find work. Additionally, the advent of a larger remote workforce means the state of jobs today looks pretty different than it did just one year ago. Perhaps you’re looking to change careers. Now may be the perfect time. If information technology is a field that interests you, here’s what you need to get your resume noticed and your foot in the proverbial door.

Train Before You Get the Job

Yes, IT skills are in-demand right now. If you’re researching a career in IT you’ve probably read about the IT skills gap. Essentially this means that there are more technology jobs available than qualified professionals to fill them. The good news is, there are plenty of resources out there to skill up to get one of these in-demand positions. One of the best ways to validate your knowledge in the technology industry is via IT certification.

Certifications aren’t just about adding a gold star to your resume. The skills and knowledge gained through proper certification training and exam prep is exactly what IT departments need. The skills gap is slowly hurting organizations and the best solution is upskilled employees. Preparing for, and earning, an IT certification(s) is one of the best ways to gain the critical skills employers need.

The Best Certs for IT Beginners

Before we get into the best IT certifications for beginners, let us first define “best.” It is, after all, a subjective term. Does best mean it will make you more money? Lead to more interviews? Or does best mean that employers are specifically looking for these credentials?

We have decided the “best” certifications for IT beginners are those that will help you get an entry-level job. To that end, we’ve matched desirable entry-level tech roles with the skills needed to land that job, then paired the most marketable certifications with those skills.

Here are the best IT certifications for beginners, segmented by 3 of the hottest technical domains:

Establishing a personal brand is now a crucial part of a successful job search. Since we think it’s such an important tool for job seekers to understand, and because the experts we spoke to had such good advice, we decided to divide our personal branding post into two parts. Read this then check out Personal Branding Part 2: Marketing Yourself.

Did you know that on average, recruiters spend six seconds scanning a resume? When looking at candidates' CVs or online profiles, they mostly check for certain keywords that signal whether you may be a good fit for the position. This can be especially true for technical job roles where hiring managers scan for required technologies and IT certifications. This means you only have these few seconds to make the first cut.

Devskiller, an online platform that facilitates software developer job interviews and screening exams, compiled data from more than 112,000 tests taken by candidates worldwide to create the Devskiller Global Technical Hiring and Skills Report, offering a unique snapshot of the IT and development workforce. This article will present key findings from the report that will help you maximize your chances of passing the resume scan and getting hired.

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"Skills gap" is a phrase that anyone working in the digital skills arena will have heard a lot over the past couple of years. The information technology job market is booming right now, with open positions massively exceeding the number of qualified candidates available to fill them.

Job seekers have more choice, and more leverage, than ever before. But just because it’s a candidates’ market doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t be pulling out all the stops to put yourself head and shoulders above your competition.

The growing talent shortage offers a tremendous opportunity to tech workers willing to throw themselves into that skills gap and fill it. Transforming yourself into the ideal candidate will not only put you ahead of others in the market, but it gives you leverage to land a higher salary and better benefits.

One of the best ways to bolster your skills and make your value abundantly clear is by earning certifications. In fact, it’s becoming increasingly necessary to give you the edge—a recent survey found that 54% of Microsoft tech professionals hold an official Microsoft certification, making it a smart move for those wishing to compete in the market.

Which certification is best for you depends on your career plans and what you’re looking to specialize in, but there’s no doubt that simply having an accreditation on your resume will boost your marketability. It could substantially improve your earning potential too; research by Microsoft found that 23% of Microsoft Certified technologists received a 20% salary increase after earning their certification.

Why do hiring managers value these certifications when considering candidates?

Talented cloud application developers are in high demand, but to build secure applications that protect their employer (and job), they need these vital expertise in cloud and server security.

The cloud brings enterprise-grade infrastructure within reach of every application developer. High-quality databases, frameworks, and tooling are freely available, making it easier than ever before to build powerful, custom applications. But building an app and securing it are not the same thing. Developers must also have a solid understanding of the security issues their app is likely to face.

Here are 5 skill sets developers need to build secure, cloud-based applications:

Master Technician, Darril Gibson, breaks down the essential soft skills for peak performance and upward mobility in IT help desk job roles.

Help desk technicians (and all IT professionals) need a full range of hard and soft skills to excel in their career. Hard skills are specific, measurable abilities, such as configuring Windows or troubleshooting a Cisco network, while soft skills refer to a person’s capacity to effectively interact with others. As demand for IT talent continues to rise and the workforce becomes more competitive, those who compliment their knowledge and training with superior soft skills will be in the best position for long-term success.

Here are five of the most advantageous soft skills for IT help desk technicians:

Executives with expertise in fast-growing technologies are in high-demand, but it takes more than technical skills to lead a team and bring products to market. In this post, 30+ year executive recruiter, Dean Madison, explains the traits and abilities that companies look for when hiring an IT executive.

The tech economy is booming, unemployment is low, and technology experts with leadership skills are in strong demand. As new technologies like 5G, Internet of Things, and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) enter the market, technology companies are eager to find executives who can lead teams effectively as they shape the markets, products, and services of the future.

But raw technical ability isn’t enough. Leading a company or team to success in an industry dependent on technology requires technical expertise, but it also requires soft skills and strategic ability.

It is the role of recruiters and executive search professionals to surface candidates who tick all of these boxes. As an executive recruiter specializing in the cable and broadband industry for over thirty years, I have taken the lead on executive searches for businesses from startups to Fortune 500 companies.

In this article, I’m going to discuss some of the qualities I look for above and beyond technical expertise when advising clients on high-level executive hires.

In Part 1 of this post - Personal Branding Part 1: How to Define Yours - we told you why it’s important to have a personal brand, and how you can define your own. This week, we are going to talk about marketing your brand. There are a lot of ways to promote your personal brand, all of which fall into two categories: Online and Off.