With the world of IT constantly advancing, web development is a great role to get in to and pretty much guarantees a job placement at the end of your training. You do not need to have a degree to be a web developer, in fact, some of the best programmers are self-taught. It often comes down to experience and skills more than qualifications. You will however probably need to start off in a junior role until you have learned enough to progress up.

The first thing to do is learn the languages that you are going to be programming in this may include HTML, CSS, JavaScript and JQuery. Although you do not need to know how to do everything, having a good knowledge of these will help you.

Next, create a great portfolio website. Your portfolio is the first thing potential employers will look at when considering you, so it needs to be a real reflection of your skills and yourself.

Try and do as many projects as you can even if just for friends and family and add them to your portfolio to show your previous works and experience. The projects don’t have to be huge ones. You can offer, for example, to re-do a navigation for a local company or create an e-newsletter in HTML for a charity.

Often you may think that it’s the employee that needs to sell themselves in the recruitment process, but employers should also take some time to showcase what they are about and what their company stands for.

As an employee, it is important to work for a company that you believe in and that shares some of the same values as you do. A job should be about more than just the hours you put in, it should be a working relationship that can be built upon over the months / years.

You need to consider if not only you fit in with the culture of the company but also that it fits in with you. If you do not like the ethos of the business and the way it is run, you probably will not enjoy the job either.

Consider the people you are going to be working with – regardless of whether it’s an apprenticeship or a full-time job, you’re going to be spending a lot of time with your new co-workers so it’s important to make sure that they’re people you’d like to work with and that you could get along with.

If you are currently looking for a job vacancy, then you will probably have noticed that many employers ask for a min maths qualification such as a GCSE level C or above. Many colleges and sixth forms also request this as a minimum entry requirement and there is a good reason why.

Maths is used in everyday life more than you may even realise. Simply working out the time you need to set off to arrive to your destination on time or adding up the cost of items in your trolley to check you have enough money to buy them all involve a certain degree of maths and calculation.

At school you will often be taught a wide range of Maths skills, some of which you may not use again, but many of which you will use day in day out.

If you have always struggled with maths, then you may want to try and improve your skills to further yourself and improve your job prospects. If you failed your Maths GCSE then you can return to a college at any time to restudy for it and you may find it easier when you are older than you did as a young person.

If you have applied for a job and be selected for an interview, then this is your chance to shine. You may only get one interview so it is vital that you should the interviewer what you are capable of and why they should hire you. With jobs still in high competition some employers will look for even the smallest reason to discount you from a long list of candidates, something which you don’t want to happen.

The first few minutes of an interview are crucial and can often be make or break. The first impressions you make are important and will last long after the interview has finished. The first point to consider is what you will wear. Everyone should dress appropriately for an interview. Even if you are applying for a job in which you will be wearing a uniform or that you will be able to dress down you should still attend an interview in smart clothing. You may not need to wear a full suit (unless this is the normal attire for the job) but you should at least wear a shirt / trousers or smart dress or skirt. Make sure that you offer a hand shake when you walk in to the room and smile. A smile can ease the tension in a room and make the whole interview process more relaxing.

Training for a new job can be done at any time during your life but as you get older and have more commitments you may find that you simply cannot afford to have the time off work or that you have children to look after etc, making it more difficult. Many people who are already working full time feel that they cannot train for another job without leaving their current position. For many people, this is simply not possible as they still need to have a decent income to meet their current financial commitments.

If this is the case, then all is not lost. You can still look to study in the evenings or find a job that will allow you to train whilst earning such as an apprenticeship. Although you may be on a quite a low wage, during this time you may be able to have help off the government in terms of tax credits etc to top up your income. If you feel that you need to gain more experience before applying for a new job, then you could try doing some volunteer work in that industry first.

The government have recently introduced a law to say that all students must stay on in education following GCSE’s unless they have a job lined up to go in to or an apprenticeship or spend 20 hours or more a week working or volunteering, while in part-time education or training. This is until they reach the age of 18.

This law was introduced to cut down on the number of young people who become unemployed at the age of 16. Some people decide tot to stay on after you GCSE’s and do A-levels or decide that a college setting is more suited to them and chose to enrol in one of those. For some people, they have simply had enough of school and the education system and would rather work. The government website has a place where you can search for current apprenticeships being offered in your area. You can usually type in your postcode and search within a radius of your address. You can then click through to apply for the position or find out more information.

Finding work is not easy, and returning to education after leaving can be hard especially if you are relying on an income, so it is worth spending some time really thinking about what it is you want to do before making any decisions.

Finding a job can be extremely hard work and can be even harder if you have a disability. If you have a disability then you may be entitled to help from the government and may not need to work but for some people, their disability does not entitle them to not work or it may do, but they still chose to work.

The job centre should be able to help you find jobs that are suitable to your needs. Although employers are not allowed to discriminate against someone because they have a disability, if they simply cannot do the job or it would be unsafe for them to do so, then the employer can refuse to offer them the position. If you are disabled then you will probably have already had an assessment carried out but the ESA. This will tell you whether you need to work and if you do what stipulations you can make when applying for jobs. For example, some people may be able to work but not in a job that involves standing up for more than 30 minutes at a time. If you are struggling then speak to a careers office or employment office who should be able to point you in the right direction and may be able to give you advice on CV writing an interview techniques.

Almost all of us get a little bit nervous when starting a new job and meeting new people. You may worry about the job that you are expected to do and be concerned if you make mistakes, or you may worry about the people you are going to be working with and whether you will get on with them and they will get on with you. If you are starting work for the first time, returning to work after a long break or simply moving jobs, it can be very daunting but there are some things you can do to calm those first day nerves and tips and advice on how to ensure you have a great first day.

The day before you start your new job make sure that you have everything prepared. Make sure that you have your uniform or clothing laid out ironed and ready to put on and that you have everything packed that you may need to take with you such as a laptop or note pads etc. It may be worth making sure that you take a packed lunch for the first day so if you don’t feel like going out or are not sure of where you can eat, you have something with you.

First day is all about impressions so you need to make sure that you come across as professional and willing to learn. Always make sure that you are on time, especially on the first day. Even if you arrive early, this is much better than being late.

So you have sent your CV off or completed an application form to apply for a job. You may then hear back from the company as to whether or not you have been invited to attend an interview. If you have then you need to spend some time preparing for your interview before the big day to give you the best chance of securing the position. Many people feel very nervous of interviews and if you are not someone that finds it easy to talk to people you don’t know then you may worry about how you will get across the information you need to.

Often people think that you cannot practise for an interview, but you can. Firstly have a read through your CV or application form and highlight any areas that you want to discuss. It may be experience or qualifications that you feel are particularly relevant to the position you are applying for. Also be sure to look through for any anomalies that you think they may ask you about such as breaks in employment or being in one job for a short period of time.

Next do your research on the company that you have applied to for the position. Find out a bit about their history, their ethos and even the members of staff that are currently working there. Much of this information can usually be found on their website.

Some people have a good idea of what they want to do in later life from a young age. Often this will change over time but for some, they have their heart set on one particular job.

Regardless of if you think you know what you want to do career wise or not, it is vital to get a varied education and broaden your horizons.

For example, someone may know that they want to get in to acting and therefore concentrate on drama and possibly English but nothing else. If you later change your mind then you may have limited yourself by not gaining qualifications in other areas.

If you do a degree at university, you may have the chance to add an additional year on to the end of your degree to gain a teaching qualification. This will again give you options to fall back on should you want a change in career path. You may find that you actually enjoy teaching more than you think and want to continue to do that as a job rather than what you actually did your main degree in.