why would you need an apprenticeship? just read the book and take the 2 exams.
i understand where this answer comes from, but I also understand the other posters question, it's not easy to feel tested and taking tests is so hard on peoples nerves sometimes that they might never take it.
the apple reviews on the service source website is very complete but my technicians have found after they pass that they were too ready for the test, and that they shouldnt have studied too much, but thats the purpose of the apple ACMT preparation and tests, i have had techs that failed one time because they didnt study hard enough and then just study so much that they found the tests to be easy
the apprentice program is a futuristic way of saying, we need good techs out there, guys that are user oriented and that really know both their software and their hardware, apple is becoming a larger hardware company than back 10 years ago, now we have ipods, phones, bluetooth things, airports, thank god we dropped the messy printers! and all this means is that there are a lot of software questions from users and that sometimes they just need some software basic knowledge to solve their troubles...
as an apple sales pro / apple reseller owner / off-warranty technitian / head service manager / and on-site team coordinator / apprentice, I can tell you that i havent taken the tests because i think i lack some theorical knowledge and procedure order of things.... and that is where the apprentice program comes in... it tells me if whomever chooses to be a technician has the necessary skills to pass the tests... thus saving me / and the technitians money and time...
so if you work / want to work at an apple store or service provider as a technitian ask the head of the shop to give you a screening test from the apprentice program... it will tell you if and i quote :
The tech screen test is designed to help you determine a candidates technical knowledge and skills set prior to making an employment offer. History has shown that the best performing technicians are those who enter the job with solid technical knowledge and ability. Please use the files found on the Mentor Homepage to administer the Apprentice Technical Screening to any potential internal or external Apprentice candidates. There is an answer key available for download there as well.
So, you take this test, its 24 questions and you have to answer at leat 19 to be a candidate for the technitian TRAINING which consists of 3 phases
1. leopard / service pages / ipod / underlying technologies / customer service preparation
2. customer service skills
3. technical knowledge / actual fixing (Repair Room)
... and after you complete the training you may then take the apprentice final exam which has only a 25 dollar cost (compared to the 150 bucks you have to spend every time you take the ACMT tests which are 2 at least...) so if you fail you know you were going to lose 150 bucks....
Apprentice Final Exam
The final exam is an online web based exam. The candidate should have an Apple
TechID by this time. If they do not, please ensure that they get one prior to attempting
this exam.
The Apple Apprentice Training exam consists of 86 multiple choice questions. The
Apprentice candidate has 90 minutes to complete the final exam. Passing score is 80%
and the exam cost is $25.
The main topics covered in the exam are:
Customer Service Skills
OS X Leopard
ESD
General Troubleshooting Theory
Underlying Technology
Service References
Parts Handling
Exams are deliver via Prometric and are Proctored
Note: Successful passing of Apple Apprentice Training exam does not guarantee immediate
Apple Certified Technician status to the Apprentice candidate. The Apprentice Program is set
up for the Service Provider to determine if the Apprentice candidate has the basic skills
needed to study for the Apple Certified Macintosh Technician certification. It is solely at the
discretion of the Service Provider using this program to determine if the Apprentice candidate
meets their internal service standards.
from what I'm told to pass the acmt you need to be sharp and know some terminal commands... thats what i fear most hehe
Finally apple has done something that has been in the dark for ages... have some sort of training method that resellers can use to make their own service center... its really hard (trust me) to become an apple service provider if you dont have an apple technician, this to me is the missing link that i would have loved to have been told before i lost 6 months asking around on how to become a service provider, you must HIRE an apple technician, there wasnt an easy way to make your own apple technicians from the actual technicians that you have already.... there were courses at apple or like out in a certain country (for us its in colombia) given by be it apple itself or by the regional distributor... Apple's Apprentice program is a link between apple training and service providers all over the world to get more people into kard core apple knowledge! yes its cool to be a tech savvy and all but its awesome to be an apple genius and to know how to fix the machines if you work / want to work at an apple center / reseller
The Apple Apprentice Program is actually meant to be only an apple store/ reseller/ service provider internal program... meant for employees and probable new employees who already know a lot about computers (geeks mostly... ) and how to fix them (cool geeks) and for us retail store owners who know their way around computers and know the mac computers by heart...
This program is a really good thing, they should encourage it and make it public so that if youre out there and think you could become an apple store technician just go to the store, ask to be tested to see if you can get a job in the tech dept, chances are good that if you pass the screening test you will have a higher chance of getting hired than that one guy who had a worse grade than you
To pass this screening test make sure youre good with macs and if you want to ace it just get the peachpit press book called Apple Training Series: Mac OS X Support Essentials, 2nd Edition
you should be good
sorry for rambling but I wanted to make a point: Apple is moving into the right direction. The apple genius is not enough, apple needs geniuses who know their hardware too, this is a way of getting more good apple people in the boat.
