Did you know that 77 percent of jobs will require technology skills in the next five years as predicted by experts?  (Source: IDC)  That's one of the reasons Microsoft is working to help students get low-cost training and certifications that are crucial for today's job market and the next generation of young innovators. If you're interested in a career in IT, check out the Student Career Portal to learn about IT professional jobs, training resources and certifications that will help you gain the skills you need for the career you want. There are many paths you can take and many certifications available. So it's important to find the right IT career path for you and de-mystify your options - check out Explore Careers where you'll find IT job roles and learning plans. To spark the interest of those starting out as a young professional, some interesting data has just been revealed in a recent survey with Microsoft industry partners indicating that hiring will be the most frequent for Net Developers and Web Developers for both graduates and interns  over the next 12 months! Matching skills supply and demand is made easier by these forecasts.

Another Microsoft programme, Students to Business is in 13 countries across Europe. Microsoft is helping students connect to industry using an online job matching tool, 2000 connections have been made in the last 3 months to companies in Europe. To date, more than 300,000 students globally have been connected with new career skills, leading to 15,000 students with jobs and internships.

It is critical that the right platform to access career resources and professional learning opportunities is accessible, be that at home or abroad, this is exactly what the programme Students to Business aims to achieve. With an unacceptably high unemployment rate of 20 % that youth face in Europe, work experience initiatives and employability pathways like S2B are key to meeting the employment and inclusion targets set down in the flagship Europe 2020 strategy. The opportunity for similar professional learning platforms must be extended in support of key youth employment initiatives such as ’Youth on the move’’ spearheaded by the European Commission.



The master plan is to help differentiate you from others vying for the same IT jobs.  As you know, jobs are pretty competitive right now ... getting the technical validation of a certification could be your competitive advantage!  Here's another cool thing - an e-book: Own Your Future: Update Your Skills with Resources and Career Ideas from Microsoft

• Learn what technology skills employers are looking for today
• Identify your learning style and your work style,
• Assess the skills you have, and identify new skills you need
• Chart a learning map for your own career development
• Explore Microsoft resources to learn the skills you need in key areas
• Practice a set of demonstrable abilities-making a pitch or delivering a presentation-that you can use in your interviews
• Create a career marketing plan to manage your job search

That's a start. There's more training and skills development to come to give you a head start, so let's stay in touch! 
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