In the computer industry, nobody is over-qualified, and most people are under-qualified. In past years, you might have been able to get a job based on experience alone, but as the computer workplace matures, worthwhile qualifications are becoming more important. They are not only significant when seeking employment - - they are especially relevant when you are considered for promotion. Too many employees have reached the ceiling of their career, because they are not sufficiently qualified to progress to a higher level.
Like many countries, South Africa has identified a critical shortage of technical computer skills at the Diploma level, amd incentives are in place to rectify this.
Tomorrow's jobs belong to the people who qualify today.
Click here for more information on the City & Guilds qualifications we offer.
Broadly speaking, computer qualifications fit into two categories - industry certifications, and educational qualifications.
Industry certifications are designed by computer companies to determine that you are competent on their products. Large software companies, like Microsoft, Oracle and Sun all offer certifications like this.
Educational qualifications signify that you have mastered a certain level of understanding.
Industry certifications are tied to a product - you need to update constantly as new products are released. Educational qualifications last a lifetime. If a person has a Matric and a Sun certification, their highest education level is the Matric - the certification from Sun may help them in their job, but only if it is current. A person with a Matric and a City & Guild Diploma has a higher level of education as one with a Matric only. And the qualification lasts a lifetime.
Although Digix courses prepare candidates for certifications by Sun for Solaris, Oracle, CompTIA and LPI, we encourage students who wish to qualify to take a longer-term view and aim at an educational qualification from City & Guilds.
As mentioned earlier, industry certifications have their place, and we do prepare students for many industry exams. However, educational qualifications raise the level of skills in the country and we believe that to be of national importance. The South African Qualifications Association, SAQA, evaluate and endorse qualifications that they believe will improve the national level of Skills, and many of the qualifications offered by City & Guilds meet the national requirements.
Digix Computers have worked in an advisory capacity with local standards setting bodies and are well positioned to offer worthwhile education that meets both local and international educational standards.
Different qualifications have different levels. The ones that we have chosen are rated by the government as being at Level 5. That means they are at university level. We stress that a Diploma is not equivalent to a degree, because the course is not long enough. But, it is equivalent to a module in a degree, and many universities give credits and exemptions to people who hold this Diploma.
Because of our educational experience, and high level of understanding of teaching computers in the African context, Digix have worked as advisors to the government. We are certified to develop and assess new standards for the computer industry in South Africa. But why develop new standards, when there are international standards already in place?
We also find that students work harder when aiming at an international qualification, and there is a sense of well-deserved confidence when they achieve it. We share the ense of achievement that every one of our graduates feel.
We have a high regard for a university qualification, and to this end, our C and C++ courses align themselves to university requirements and are frequently attended by UNISA students studying C++. But most of our students are already employed, so most university opportunities are not practical for them. The flexible, in-employment option of studying with us to reach a City & Guilds qualification is an attractive alternative.
Your chances of passing are good - we have had a 100% pass rate in the last five years and we plan on keeping that reputation up.
We achieve this success rate by advising you not to be unreasonably ambitious. Once we agree on a plan forward, we will be working WITH you, at YOUR speed and building you up to the right level of both confidence and ability before sending you into the exams. We do this at an individual level, not a class level.
City & Guilds are the biggest educational establishment in the world, and offer thousands of qualifications. We at Digix only offer two qualifications - one aimed at programmers, and one aimed at support personnel.
Click here for more information on the City & Guilds qualifications we offer.
The Diploma in Systems Support is for the System Administrator, Network Administrator or Support Technician working in the Unix/Linux/Solaris or AIX environment. We do not offer a Windows elective for this qualification as yet.
The Diploma in Programming is obviously aimed at programmers, and we have two tracks - the C# track and the COBOL track. In the C# track, you study "modern" programming languages - C, C++ and C#. The COBOL track is a traditional line of study and only looks at COBOL and its use in the business world.
At this point, most prospective students are expecting a curriculum and time-scale for the study program, but we don't do that. We design a progam for your individual needs, to suit the time that you have available - and by doing this, we achieve our enviable pass rate.
Before you enter the City & Guild Program, you need to attend one of our courses.
If you wish to follow the COBOL Diploma course, you will need to attend our
COBOL for the Professional Programmer
...
For all other qualifications, we recommend that you start with our
Unix/Linux User Skills
course.
This is an excellent course and offers a solid background in all aspects of computer study, so yes, we recommend it to all prospective candidates. From our perspective, the course covers many core aspects of computer competence and allows us to evaluate your skill level with accuracy.
After we assess your performance on this course, we design a program to suit your needs. Slower students need to attend more of our courses and may have to do project work in between. Students with experience may qualify for "Recognition of Prior Learning" and fast-track.
Either way, we design a program for you, quote a fixed price for the rest of the qualification, and assign you a mentor, who will be responsible for your portfolio of evidence. The qualification price varies according to your needs, but R40'000 excl VAT. is typical. That covers everything - the cost of the initial course, the cost of all exams, the cost of any rewrites you may need and the cost of any individual tuition you may require.
This qualification is approved by SAQA, and is registered as a Learnership, and qualifies for any rebates you may be allowed against your Skills Development Levies.
There are may people successfully employed in the computer industry who are not qualified. This happened because of the rapid growth of computer acceptance in everyday life, and the lack of suitable qualifications at the time. However, this is changing steadily - formal qualifications are becoming more important when applying for a job, or for promotion. Unqualified people are prevented from applying for top positions in the corporate world.
Furthermore, qualified people get paid better, are more valued by their employers and give the company credibility, and are less likely to be retrenched.
Youngsters starting out their careers are well aware of the importance of qualifications. But, a Diploma from City & Guilds is an attractive proposition to two other groups of people:
People who have the skills, but not the qualification to back it, and
People who are qualified, but not in the field that they are working in at the moment.
A Diploma from City & Guild suits both of these people well, as it is merely an endorsement of things you know already. City and Guilds exams cover the things that people in the working environment use every day - unlike industry certifications, which want you to know the obscure aspects of the package, which are rarely used. The exams strongly favour the experienced candidate.
No - the classwork is an integral part of the qualification. If you need something self-study, we suggest one of the excellent programs on offer by UNISA.
Although most of our students are in full-time employment, some are not. We are registered with the ISETT SETA to run a number of full-time
Learnerships. These are run in conjunction with the employers of the students.
We also offer
full-time programs of study. Typical candidates are matriculants, who wish to qualify for the computer industry.
Our City & Guilds Program is not only attractive in price compared to City & Guilds programs overseas, the individual attention is an additional benefit. We have had students from UK, Europe, New Zealand, USA and Africa study with us, and we realise that our "attend one course first" approach does not suit distant students. If you are a remote student, send us your resume and we will try and quote you a fixed price for the study program.
We have had foreign students combine their studies with a holiday/safari. Email us with your preferences and we can tell you what other students enjoyed.