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Are you unemployed or low-income? Have you been laid off or received a notice of lay-off? If so, you might be eligible for a grant that can really help you get trained, certified and placed in your new career. There is no out-of-pocket for you. Let’s see if you are eligible!
With the number of computer networks doubling every 5 years, the job demand for IT workers continues to shoot up for this high paid career. If you qualify you can use the grant to get the certifications the employers we work with are looking for|: CompTIA, Microsoft, Cisco, Oracle, VMware and more
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment of Security Analysts is projected to grow by 37 percent between 2012 and 2022, which is much greater than average. Cyberseek.org’s supply and demand heat map shows over 700,000 job openings across the United States. Some markets are even better than others. The Tampa/Clearwater/St. Petersburg job market pays well, because it has over 10,000 job opening and the supply of qualified workers is very low. The cyber-crime epidemic is expected to triple the number of open positions over the next 5 years. Employers desperately need workers who are certified in Security+, CISSP, Certified Security Analyst (CySA), Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH) and Cisco CCNA Security
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 credential for this field. Forbes magazine consistently ranks this certification in the top 5 each year. Other certifications in this field include ITIL, PMI-Agile, and Scrum Master
Responsible executive secretaries perform several administrative jobs and clerical tasks. Duties include providing help to managers and employees, assisting in daily business needs and being responsible for the company’s general administrative duties. The more qualified executive secretaries can make a surprisingly good income if they have the necessary abilities. Certifications like Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) and QuickBooks 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. It provides no cost training grants to aid workers get trained, certified and placed in big demand careers such as IT, cyber-security, business intelligence, project management and more. The idea is that there are careers in which there are not enough qualified workers and there are declining careers in which there are too many people. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) addresses this issue by providing no cost funding for career training in big demand fields to those who qualify for this grant. This training is intended to make your skills marketable so you can get a job and get back into the workforce. This is a grant, not a loan. If you are eligible, everything is paid for, even the exam. The amounts vary by county but can be as high as $10,000 depending where you live.
This is a jobs program so you must choose something where there is a high likelihood of gainingemployment. 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 common 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 notice of layoff or are a military spouse you could get approved 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 number of people in your family, then you could get approved under Adult Low Income. For youths age 18-24, you might get approved if you are not going to school. You must also be found to be “suitable.” This is not an automatic approval. The process is perplexing so it is best to speak with us beforehand to see if you are eligible.
You need to select a plan that can be finished 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 use your experience to add a certification that will make you attractive to recruiters and easier to get hired. 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 cost to you if you qualify. 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 remarkably bureaucratic government agency. The steps are overly complicated. A lot of schools are reluctant to work with WIOA if they can avoid it. I strongly advise you consult with an expert.
Yes! The whole purpose of this grant 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 facility exclusively with our clients. She assists with your resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile, interview skills and most importantly, getting your information in front of hiring managers. We work with over three thousand employers in Central Florida who use us for their training needs. A lot 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.
Career Coach
I have over 20+ experience in education. I, too, was laid off from my position several years ago and struggled to get employed again because of ageism. Finally, I got hired again, but this time on the corporate side. Then I learned about the WIOA grant and understood what a boon this could be for people who lost their jobs or people with a low income. Many others do not like working with it becase of all the bureaucracy. The regulations vary from one county to the next and are frequently changing. However, I have always been good at dealing with bureaucratic paperwork. My experience working in colleges gives me an in depth grasp of the many career choices and what it takes to get placed. I now specialize in assisting veterans, unemployed (and under-employed) workers who may be eligible for a government grant that will pay for them to get trained, certified and help them get placed in their career and achieve their goals. Let’s see what you are eligible for!