Has anyone done any of the AppleCare Technician Training?

[lamina]

I am kind of bored this summer and I am considering purchasing the training materials.

Anyone have any experience with this?

 

[pknz]

No, I haven't but I am planning to however they are quite expensive I believe. About $(NZD)2000-3000 for a couple of days. I might do it next year.

 

[xfiftyfour]

No, I haven't but I am planning to however they are quite expensive I believe. About $(NZD)2000-3000 for a couple of days. I might do it next year.

The training MATERIALS are only $300.. cheaper if you have an education discount. Perhaps you're thinking of the test itself?

 

[baxterbrittle]

It depends which level of training you want to do. There are a number of basic courses which are quite affordable and the tesrts are around $75 AUS but some of the server/admin courses are pretty pricey from memory.

 

[pknz]

The training MATERIALS are only $300.. cheaper if you have an education discount. Perhaps you're thinking of the test itself?

Ah, yes you are right.

 

[Makosuke]

The training MATERIALS are only $300.. cheaper if you have an education discount. Perhaps you're thinking of the test itself?

I assume you're talking about this:

http://www.apple.com/support/products/techtrain.html

...and I'm curious, because I can't find it in the Edu store anywhere. Where did you come up with a cheaper edu discount for it?

I'd been thinking about doing the exact same thing. I had been planning on taking one or more certification exams to make myself look more professional as a tech, and since I'm laid up in bed for a while right now it seemed like a good time to at least go through the training materials. I'd sure like to get them cheaper if I can, though...

 

[yellow]

Get the books for Support & Server Essentials that will lead you to Apple Certified Technical Coordinator. The courses aren't worth the $.

 

[Gokhan]

k

yeah im ay uni now doing a ba in interative media but i wana become a certified apple tech repairing comps and laptops what courses do i need to take and how much will it cost i think they said it would cost £4000 at the apple store here in london if i can get a discount on this can someone please let me know

thanks

 

[Makosuke]

yeah im ay uni now doing a ba in interative media but i wana become a certified apple tech repairing comps and laptops what courses do i need to take and how much will it cost i think they said it would cost £4000 at the apple store here in london if i can get a discount on this can someone please let me know

That's for the full hands-on course, which I'm sure is nice for some people, but like yellow pointed out, isn't a requirement for the certification tests. There are self-study books that are drastically cheaper and will get you the necessary knowledge (if no hands-on experience), as well as the Technician Training package mentioned above, which is also self-study and $300 in the US.

If the handful of sample questions on Apple's site are any indication of the difficulty of the tests, a good solid technical understanding of the MacOS and hardware are enough to pass the non-server exams, so I doubt the classes are necessary for most people unless they're entirely unfamiliar with digging into the guts of a Mac and need someone showing them how and holding their hand while they practice.

Although I'm still not sure whether the Technician Training is worth the $300 or not. It sounds moderately interesting, and like it might give you some half-decent info to digest, but maybe it's not worth the cash.

 

[yellow]

IMO the certs for Apple Certified Desktop Technician, and Apple Certified Portable Technician are not worth it unless you're looking at a straight hardware support role. If you're going to do the OS X side, then it's pretty much implied that you can handle the hardware side, and if there ARE hardware problems, you won't be taking care of them yourself anyway (since you likely won't be able to order the parts from Apple if you don't work for a certified repair center).. you'll be taking it into someone else at a certified repair center.

So.. My advice, concentrate on Technical Coordinator and then System Administrator. In taking the Support Essentials portion of the test for TC, you will get certified as Apple Certified Help Desk Specialist if you pass.

So, save your cash for the harder stuff.. IMO the courses for the SA cert. Just get the books for Support Essentials and Server Essentials. Get yourself a retail copy of OS X (Client) and OS X Server, install and play and study. You'll be set.

 

[Mord]

yeah, bought the mats, skimmed them for like 10 mins and thought **** it and just took the exams, which ere bloody expencive, like 70 quid each.

passed them first time, i should renew but i really cant be arsed to.

 

[yellow]

$150 a pop for the tests in the US.

 

[Gokhan]

k

hector where can i take the tests have u got any contact details for the company that organises this ???

also who do i buy the study support stuff off ?? apple ??

sorry i am a dumb one sometimes also if i was to pass the hardware and laptop repair tests would i be able to work for apple ???

would realy appreciate it if someone could clearly explain how i could acheive my goal which is to work for apple repairing computers and laptops or even as a a genuis ???

thanks guys

 

[Mord]

you can take them at any prometric testing center. you have to be enrolled with the whole package thing, tbh it's better to just get a job at an applecenter first and they will pay for the training.

 

[Makosuke]

IMO the certs for Apple Certified Desktop Technician, and Apple Certified Portable Technician are not worth it unless you're looking at a straight hardware support role. If you're going to do the OS X side, then it's pretty much implied that you can handle the hardware side, and if there ARE hardware problems, you won't be taking care of them yourself anyway (since you likely won't be able to order the parts from Apple if you don't work for a certified repair center).. you'll be taking it into someone else at a certified repair center.

Hmm... not so sure about that personally. Sure, unless you work for a certified repair center you can't order parts for current machines, but if you're freelance and/or hunting for work, being able to point to those two certs is probably worth the $450 (total) for the three necessary tests. Heck, just being able to put "Apple certified technician" on an ad is probably worth that much, even if the person reading it has no idea what that means--just looks good. It's probably pointless to get both the desktop and portable certs for freelance work so long as you know what you're doing, but for an extra $150 and some time wasted on a test it's not that big of a deal.

Obviously the basic server admin stuff is more valuable in a number of ways, but if I'm not planning on getting a job at somewhere that cares about that skill, it doesn't do me any good. Not that I won't probably get at least one "server" cert as well (heck, I've spent enough time self-training myself to use OSX Server I might as well get some benefit out of it), but depending on what you want to be doing it's not necessarily the only thing you want.

And for Gokhan--go to http://www.apple.com/training/ and read up on whichever certification you're interested in. It tells you what the "recommended" preparation for each is, what tests are required, and a few minutes on the testing company's site and you can find out what the nearest testing center to you is and how much the tests cost in your country.

 

[yellow]

Well, all I can say is if I was hiring, depending on what I was hiring for, if I saw ACTC versus ACPT or ACDT, I'd be more inclined to take the ACTC for all around useability and MUCH less inclined to take someone with solely an ACPT/DT for a job that had anything to do with anything other than hardware replacement.

 

[yellow]

Maybe I'm just justifying why I never bothered with the first 2..