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Are you unemployed or low-income? Have you been laid off or been notified there will be a lay-off? If so, you might qualify for a 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 are eligible!
With the number of computer networks doubling every five years, the job demand for IT employees continues to soar 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 greater 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 number of qualified workers is very small. The cyber-crime epidemic is expected to triple the number of job openings over the next five years. Employers desperately 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 hottest job opportunities is in project management. In the Tampa/St. Petersburg job market the need 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 administrative assistants perform many administrative jobs and clerical tasks. Duties include providing assistance to managers and employees, assisting in every day business needs and being responsible for the company’s general administrative duties. The more qualified administrative assistants can make a surprisingly good salary if they have the necessary requirements. Certifications like Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) can really help to move up in this profession.
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 no cost training grants to aid people get trained, certified and placed in high demand careers such as information technology, cyber-security, business analysis, project management and more. The idea is that there are professions 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 issue by providing no cost funding for career training in high demand fields to those who are eligible for this grant. This training is intended to make your resume marketable so you can get a job and return to the workforce. This is a grant, not a loan. If you are eligible, everything is included, 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 choose 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 an occupation that is in high demand. For each authorized occupation, there will be authorized training plans to choose from.
The three most prevalent classes are: Dislocated Worker, Adult Low Income and Youth (18 -25). If you have been 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 could be eligible as a Dislocated worker. If you are on Food Stamps or government assistance, or have low income based on what you have earned the last six months and family size, then you could be eligible under Adult Low Income. For youths age 18-24, you might be eligible if you are not enrolled in school. You must also be found to be “suitable.” This is not an automatic approval. The process is convoluted so it is best to talk with us beforehand to see if you are eligible.
You want a plan that can be completed in a short period of time that will raise your marketability enough to help get you a job. We look at the best ways to take advantage of your work history to add a certification that will make you attractive to recruiters and easier to place. Some occupations 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. No reimbursement 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 an extremely bureaucratic government agency. The steps are confusing. Many schools are averse to work with WIOA if they can avoid doing so. I strongly advise you work with an expert.
Yes! The whole purpose of this program is to help you get back in the workforce. We have partnered with a staffing company that has devoted a person to work at our location exclusively with our clients. She helps with your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, interview techniques and most importantly, getting your information in front of hiring managers. We work with over 3,000 employers in Central Florida who use us for their training requirements. A lot of them recruit from us so we get many job leads that are not available to the general public. Over half the jobs we have helped place people in are not even advertised.