Only one in ten people in this country are claiming to be happy in their job. Of course, most will take no action. The reality of your getting here if nothing else suggests that change is beckoning.

When looking at training, it's crucial that you first make a list of your requirements from the position you're looking to get into. Ensure that you would be more satisfied before you put a lot of energy into taking a new turn. It's good sense to regard the end goal first, to make the right judgements:

* Is having company at work important to you? Do you like to deal with the public? Or are you better with things that you can complete alone?

* What do you require from the industry your job is in? (If it's stability you're after, you might think twice about banks or the building industry right now.)

* Once you've trained, how many years work do anticipate working, and can your chosen industry provide you with that possibility?

* Do you have the assurance that your chosen retraining will offer you employment opportunities, and make it possible to be employed up to retirement age?

The biggest industry in Great Britain that can satisfy a trainee's demands is the IT sector. There's a need for more knowledgeable workers in this market, just check out any jobs website and you'll see for yourself. But don't think it's full of techie geeks staring at theirscreens all the time - there are many more roles than that. The majority of staff in IT are just like you and me, with well paid and stimulating jobs.

The way a programme is physically sent to you can often be overlooked. How many parts is the training broken down into? And in what sequence and what control do you have at what pace it arrives? Drop-shipping your training elements piece by piece, taking into account your exam passes is the usual method of releasing your program. While sounding logical, you should take these factors into account: Students often discover that their training company's 'standard' path of training isn't as suitable as another. Sometimes, a slightly different order suits them better. Perhaps you don't make it at the pace they expect?

For maximum flexibility and safety, it's normal for most trainees to insist that all study materials are posted to them in one go, with nothing held back. It's then your own choice how fast or slow and in what order you'd like to take your exams.

We need to make this very clear: Always get full 24x7 professional support from mentors and instructors. Later, you'll kick yourself if you don't. Many only provide email support (too slow), and so-called telephone support is normally just routed to a call-centre who will chat nicely with you for 5 minutes to ask what the issue is and then simply send an email to an instructor - who will then call back sometime over the next 24hrs, when it's convenient to them. This is no use if you're stuck and can't continue and have a one hour time-slot in which to study.

Be on the lookout for providers that use several support centres from around the world. These should be integrated to offer a simple interface and access round-the-clock, when it's convenient for you, with no fuss. You can't afford to accept less than you need and deserve. Direct-access round-the-clock support is really your only option for computer-based study. Perhaps you don't intend to study during the evenings; but for the majority of us however, we're at work during the provided support period.

A study programme really needs to work up to a nationally accepted accreditation at the finale - and not a worthless 'in-house' piece of paper. Unless the accreditation comes from a major player like Microsoft, Cisco, Adobe or CompTIA, then you'll probably find it will be commercially useless - because no-one will recognise it.

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