Are you unemployed or low-income? Have you been laid off or been notified there will be a lay-off? If so, you might be eligible for a government grant that can really help you get trained, certified and placed in your new career. There is no cost to you. Let’s see if you qualify!
With the amount of computer networks doubling every 5 years, the job demand for Information Technology employees continues to shoot up for this high paid career. If you qualify you can use the WIOA grant to get the certifications the employers we work with are seekingasking for|: CompTIA, Microsoft, Cisco, Azure and more
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 32 percent from 2022 to 2032, which is much stronger than average. Cyberseek.org’s supply and demand heat map shows over 5500,000 job openings across the United States. Some markets are hotter than others. The Tampa/Clearwater/St. Petersburg job market pays well, because it has over 7,000 job opening and the supply of qualified workers is very small. The cyber-crime epidemic is expected to triple the number of job openings over the next 5 years. Employers badly need employees who are certified in Security+, CISSP, Certified Security Analyst (CySA), and/or Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH).
If you have management experience, one of the best job opportunities is in project management. In the Tampa/St. Petersburg job market the demand is especially strong for project managers and pays quite well. The Project Management Professional (PMP) is the most sought after certification for this field. Forbes magazine consistently ranks this certification in the top 5 each year. Other certifications in this field include ITIL, Agile Master, and Scrum Master
Responsible executive secretaries perform several administrative jobs and clerical tasks. Duties include providing help to managers and employees, helping in every day office needs and being responsible for the company’s general administrative requirements. The more qualified executive secretaries can make a surprisingly good salary if they have the necessary abilities. Certifications like Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) can really help to move up in this career.
Instead of having us talk about ourselves, why don’t we see what our clients have to say.
It is called the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). it is a jobs program. WIOA provides free training grants to assist people get trained, certified and placed in high demand careers such as IT, cyber-security, business intelligence, project management and more. The idea is that there are fields in which there are not enough qualified people and there are declining careers in which there are too many people. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) tries to fix this problem by providing free funding for job training in high demand fields to those who are eligible for this grant. This training is designed to make your resume marketable so you can get hired and get back into the workforce. This is a grant, not a loan. If you qualify, everything is covered, even the exam. The amounts vary by county but can be as high as $10,000 in some areas.
This is a jobs program so you must pick a program where there is a high expectation of employment. Each county has a regionally targeted occupations list (RTOL) to choose from. They want to make sure you select a career that is in high demand. For each approved career, there will be approved training plans to choose from.
The three most prevalent classes are: Dislocated Worker, Adult Low Income and Youth (18 -25). If you were laid off (or your position was eliminated or you were let go because of a reduction in force) from your last job, terminated, received a layoff notice or are a military spouse you might get approved as a Dislocated worker. If you are on Food Stamps or government assistance, or have low income based on last 6 month’s earnings and family size, then you could get approved under Adult Low Income. For youths age 18-24, you might get approved if you are not enrolled in school. You must also be determined to be “suitable.” This is not an entitlement. The process is convoluted so it is best to discuss this with us first to see if you qualify.
You want a plan that can be finished in a short period of time that will increase your marketability enough to help get you a job. We look at the best ways to use your experience to add a certification that will make you attractive to hiring managers and easier to get hired. Some career choices are ideal for this: cyber-security, information technology, project management, business analyst, human resources, executive secretaries and administrative assistants etc.
There is no charge to you if you are eligible. Nothing to pay or any out of pocket expenses. This is a grant, not a loan. Even the exam(s) are paid for. So what is the catch? We will be working with a very bureaucratic government agency. The process is as clear as mud. A number of schools are reluctant to work with WIOA if they can avoid doing so. I strongly advise you consult with an expert.
Yes! The whole purpose of this program is to help you get back in the workforce. We have teamed up with a staffing firm that has dedicated a person to work at our facility exclusively with our clients. She assists with your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, interview preparation and most importantly, getting your resume in front of hiring managers. We work with over 3,000 employers in Central Florida who use us for their training needs. Many of them recruit from us so we get many job leads that are not accessible to the general public. Over half the jobs we have helped place people in are not even advertised.
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