ECDL

Artificial Rose · #1 8th July 2010, 13:24

ok probably should not be in the sauk room and mods can move it if they want.

i know a girl who does her ecdl for free at a centre(european computer drivers license) she is unemployed atm.
you can check here if you qualify.

http://www.learndirect.co.uk/help/funding-checker/

who has done this, or something similar? i did not want to ask this girl typical sa questions, but it seems a good deal, might as well do something usefull and it would look good on the CV.

hgraham · #2 8th July 2010, 13:26

I did the ECDL. I did it a local college, for the resident fee. It wasn't much, but then that was about 9 years ago. what questions do you have?

Artificial Rose · #3 8th July 2010, 13:42

Well q's like: * how many other people are there in the room
*do you have a lot of privacy
*is it all open plan or you sort of have your own cubicle
*what type of people come there
*do the others tend to use the canteen as well
(thanks)

Artificial Rose · #4 8th July 2010, 14:40

Quote:

I presume it will be different at each centre, but at where I go it's open plan, but no one ever looks at each other or speaks

phew that is a relief to hear!

I just found this website, free courses and totally online, exams i think to be done at a centre.
There is an ECDL course, but it is called differently, and "ECDL" looks better on a cv then "Level 2 ITQ Certificate in IT User Skills (QCF).
(a brand new nationally recognised qualification, which is accredited by the awarding body OCR.

http://www.vision2learn.com/

dave81uk · #5 8th July 2010, 16:01

I do hate to burst the bubble here, but an ECDL will get you no where, The IT industry is so competitive that a degree is a minimum just to get you in the door and a 2.1 might even be needed now, I went half way through a degree in IT with the Open University it also was free, it has more weight behind it than and ECDL and i've never got anywhere with it so gave up, total waste of time

GottaGetBetter · #6 8th July 2010, 16:21

Now now Dave81uk!

I did my ECDL for Suffolk County Council in 2000 (!) and it's the only reason I've ever got any office job!

All I have other than that is 2 A-levels (C grade) and my GCSEs.

Got me some good jobs that did, shame my SA and panic attacks/S-H screwed them all up for me and now I'm unemployed again.

But I'd have barely worked if it wasn't for my ECDL

EDCL FTW!

Well worth your time Autumn - good luck

dave81uk · #7 8th July 2010, 16:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by GottaGetBetter

Now now Dave81uk!

I did my ECDL for Suffolk County Council in 2000 (!) and it's the only reason I've ever got any office job!

All I have other than that is 2 A-levels (C grade) and my GCSEs.

Got me some good jobs that did, shame my SA and panic attacks/S-H screwed them all up for me and now I'm unemployed again.

But I'd have barely worked if it wasn't for my ECDL

EDCL FTW!

Well worth your time Autumn - good luck

Hey thats great, I've never heard of it getting anyone anywhere.

GottaGetBetter · #8 8th July 2010, 16:42

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave81uk

Hey thats great, I've never heard of it getting anyone anywhere.

Well, 'anywhere' is subjective

You won't become the next CEO of Microsoft, but if you want to be a receptionist or typist or clerk or whatever - pays well! - it's all you really need along with a C in Maths GCSE

Oh and a decent WPM (which, as internet forum addicts, we should all have by now anyway

).

It basically shows them you can use all the software they use for admin like Excel, Word, Access etc.

If you take it Autumn, it will open up a lot of office work for you.

I guess Dave you're thinking IT and I'm thinking Admin, so no worries, and cheers btw

I'm glad I took it.

dave81uk · #9 8th July 2010, 16:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by GottaGetBetter

Well, 'anywhere' is subjective

You won't become the next CEO of Microsoft, but if you want to be a receptionist or typist or clerk or whatever - pays well! - it's all you really need along with a C in Maths GCSE

Oh and a decent WPM (which, as internet forum addicts, we should all have by now anyway

).

It basically shows them you can use all the software they use for admin like Excel, Word, Access etc.

If you take it Autumn, it will open up a lot of office work for you.

I guess Dave you're thinking IT and I'm thinking Admin, so no worries, and cheers btw

I'm glad I took it.

Shame men can't do that type of work. Well we could but it wouldn't look good.

GottaGetBetter · #10 8th July 2010, 16:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by Autumn

Well q's like: * how many other people are there in the room
*do you have a lot of privacy
*is it all open plan or you sort of have your own cubicle
*what type of people come there
*do the others tend to use the canteen as well
(thanks)

Sorry to double post, bad habit of mine, I really need to read the whole thread before posting damnit

The exam I took was about an hour for each software program, each as a seperate examination, on a PC.

About 5-10 people in the room tops.

There was a mock-up of each Microsoft program on the screen and the questions popped up on the screen too. You answer the questions like that, by demonstrating you can use the software.

Other than that you just had to revise from textbooks in your own time.

The room was open plan but exam conditions - IE silence. Sweet, beautiful silence

People were mainly polite, middle-aged office/clerical workers. predominantly female - nobody too scary.

No real socialising other than having to walk in and sit next to somebody and say "Hi" then ignore them as I usually do

This was as part of my full time job - mandatory training - so I'm not sure how it'll work for you, must be fairly similar.

That's all the SA-related details I can think of right now. I was fine with it.

AxelFendersson · #11 8th July 2010, 17:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave81uk

Shame men can't do that type of work. Well we could but it wouldn't look good.

Why does it matter how it looks? It can't look any worse than unemployment, surely?

dave81uk · #12 8th July 2010, 17:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by AxelFendersson

Why does it matter how it looks? It can't look any worse than unemployment, surely?

SA makes life difficult as it is without doing what is really a womans job.

AxelFendersson · #13 8th July 2010, 17:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave81uk

SA makes life difficult as it is without doing what is really a woman's job.

This is the 21st Century. There's no such thing as 'woman's work'. There's just work.

And as I said, it surely isn't any worse than being unemployed.

GottaGetBetter · #14 8th July 2010, 17:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave81uk

Shame men can't do that type of work. Well we could but it wouldn't look good.

LOLWUT who are you calling a woman pal!? What's wrong with working with women!

Look I'm training this summer to be a gardener, is that manly enough for you? Grrrrr... Me big macho man who not work puny woman job...

etc.

W!llow · #15 8th July 2010, 19:33

I did ECDL about 4/5 years ago. As far as I can remember I didn't find it too anxiety inducing. The lunch breaks we could eat in or go out it was quite relaxed. The group were a nice bunch and I ended up often having lunch with a couple of girls over at the pub. I think where the focus is computer work it isn't so taxing socially. I think at first I would just go out during the lunch break and come back when it started again so I didn't have to worry about the social aspect but by the end I was mixing with other people.

dave81uk · #16 8th July 2010, 19:38

Quote:

Originally Posted by GottaGetBetter

LOLWUT who are you calling a woman pal!? What's wrong with working with women!

Look I'm training this summer to be a gardener, is that manly enough for you? Grrrrr... Me big macho man who not work puny woman job...

etc.

Well now lets face it, eyebrows would be raised if say you broke down on the side of a motorway, in pulls the AA and out jumps a woman to change your tyre or whatever, same would apply to a male secretary/receptionist, but anyway this has gone way of topic, sorry for hijacking

wlien · #17 8th July 2010, 19:47

I've seen the contents of the ECDL, in my view, if you managed to sign up to this forum and post a message your level of IT knowledge is far more advanced that the ECDL course. It is good to show you have computer skills and as the course is free, if you have the time I'd say do it.

GottaGetBetter · #18 8th July 2010, 19:54

Lol fair enough Dave, I know what you mean, no offence taken.

Yeah, I did get some banter for being the only bloke there. People assume you're either gay, or you're too much of a nerd to work anywhere else (I'm the 2nd example btw).

Still, I'm proud of my ECDL and my 80wpm copy-typing and my muscular, manly heterosexual days spent chatting about Dancing on Ice with the girlies in the typing pool

Btw also sorry for going off topic - good luck Autumn I hope this works out for you. It's not prohibitively difficult SA wise and could help your CV a lot

W!llow · #19 8th July 2010, 22:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by wlien

I've seen the contents of the ECDL, in my view, if you managed to sign up to this forum and post a message your level of IT knowledge is far more advanced that the ECDL course. It is good to show you have computer skills and as the course is free, if you have the time I'd say do it.

I don't agree. Signing up to this forum you only need to know how to type and you don't even need to know how to spell (I put this because you learn to proof read in ECDL too as far as I remember - not that I always do it

). Yes much of it I knew already and was quite basic but I did learn quite a lot too. You learn how to use databases, you learn presentation skills (DTP), spreadsheets etc I don't think that is necessarily something people who can type a post on a forum can automatically do.

Artificial Rose · #20 8th July 2010, 22:37

Quote:

Btw also sorry for going off topic - good luck Autumn I hope this works out for you. It's not prohibitively difficult SA wise and could help your CV a lot

thanks soooo much GottoGetBetter! You have really encouraged me with ur replies in this post, i am ready!!

Thanks tooo Willow,

lol nooo Dave all i want to start with is an admin/office job

W!llow · #21 8th July 2010, 22:41

thanks autumn, good luck with it. I think anything like this is positive, go for it!

hgraham · #22 8th July 2010, 22:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by young_al_capone

Im doing ECDL at the moment.

apart from the exams you can do it all from home

as long as you can get on the Internet.

I presume it will be different at each centre, but at where I go it's open plan, but no one ever looks at each other or speaks

yeah, pretty much the same here. everyone kept themselves to themselves. there weren't that many people around when i did my work, i usually went in on the weekends if memory serves. I saw all kinds of people there, that is when I did notice the other people at all. It was quiet. it was not a big deal, really.

hgraham · #23 8th July 2010, 22:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by Autumn

thanks soooo much GottoGetBetter! You have really encouraged me with ur replies in this post, i am ready!!

Thanks tooo Willow,

lol nooo Dave all i want to start with is an admin/office job

doing the ECDL did help me when i applied. I went through an agency and had my first job within weeks. Of course, that was nearly 9 years ago, but still....

Now I make £24,000 a year, have my own place and pay my own bills. so go for it, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

GottaGetBetter · #24 8th July 2010, 23:42

Wow thanks Autumn, wasn't expecting you to be so happy but I'm glad you are

Cheers

@hgraham

Now I make £24,000 a year

Holy mother of crap! That is so quality - btw I'm not taking the P I am genuinely impressed, you must have worked really hard (unlike me, maybe that's the difference lol)

That is awesome.

This proves two things - 1.) ECDL FTW 2.) SA does not have to be a barrier to earning a good living.

dave81uk · #25 9th July 2010, 05:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by hgraham

doing the ECDL did help me when i applied. I went through an agency and had my first job within weeks. Of course, that was nearly 9 years ago, but still....

Now I make £24,000 a year, have my own place and pay my own bills. so go for it, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

WOW. Excellent,

ECDL does sound very basic and I can't help but wonder didn't you guys learn this stuff at school? I know I did, databases, spreadsheets, presentation etc and also got an RSA II qualification at the end of it all.

hgraham · #26 9th July 2010, 08:35

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave81uk

WOW. Excellent,

ECDL does sound very basic and I can't help but wonder didn't you guys learn this stuff at school? I know I did, databases, spreadsheets, presentation etc and also got an RSA II qualification at the end of it all.

I'm......45. they didn't have this stuff at school back in 1870.

hgraham · #27 9th July 2010, 08:36

Quote:

Originally Posted by GottaGetBetter

Wow thanks Autumn, wasn't expecting you to be so happy but I'm glad you are

Cheers

@hgraham

Now I make £24,000 a year

Holy mother of crap! That is so quality - btw I'm not taking the P I am genuinely impressed, you must have worked really hard (unlike me, maybe that's the difference lol)

That is awesome.

This proves two things - 1.) ECDL FTW 2.) SA does not have to be a barrier to earning a good living.

you are 100% correct on both counts. and believe me, there is nothing special about me. if I can do it, anyone can.

W!llow · #28 9th July 2010, 09:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by hgraham

I'm......45. they didn't have this stuff at school back in 1870.

Quote:

ECDL does sound very basic and I can't help but wonder didn't you guys learn this stuff at school? I know I did, databases, spreadsheets, presentation etc and also got an RSA II qualification at the end of it all.

@Dave81uk
I did typewriting at school (in the old days). I think in my last year our school may have been just on the cusp of the computer age

. If I had taken Business Studies I think I may have covered some of the ECDL stuff but I didn't choose it as an option. I must admit some of it was tedious because I knew it but when we got to putting queries into databases that sort of thing I learnt quite a bit. (Though I think I would need to refresh before going into a job using it).

hgraham · #29 16th July 2010, 15:01

i was thinking back to when I started this job I have. I started at £11,000 - that was 9 years ago. I was an office assistant.

I was violently ill every morning for the first week and a half. I threw up, then I'd clean myself up and go into work with a smile on my face.

now I am the office manager/PA/admin supervisor (supervising a staff of one other person). I'm bored with it and now will be moving on to bigger and better things.

It was worth it.