ITIL Training
In order to become certified in ITIL, you must be enrolled in a training program that is accredited. There are four levels in which you can excel with ITIL, and each level has its’ own requirement for progressing to the next level. The levels are foundation, intermediate, expert, and master, and they all require taking courses and being assessed on what you have learned in the duration of the training session.
Classes
There are ITIL training sessions available to take in a classroom, or if there are none offered in your area, you can take the training session online. With either choice, it is up to you to stick with the class and absorb everything in order to prepare for the exit exam. As mentioned previously, there are four levels of training.
Foundation
This is the basic level of understanding for someone who is trying to learn about ITIL. It is for those people whose workplaces are requiring their employees to adapt to the ITIL system and have knowledge of the terminology. The classes involved in this level are different depending upon which route you’ve taken to access the course, but the topics will include: service management processes, service support processes, and service delivery processes.
Intermediate
Once the foundation courses have been taken and the student decides to increase their knowledge, the next level is intermediate. This is split into either lifestyle or capability courses, which is completely up to the student to decide which path to follow. The lifestyle courses include: service strategy, service design, service transition, service operation, and continual service improvement. The capability courses are: operational support and analysis; service offerings and agreement; release, control and validation; and planning, protection, and optimization.
Expert
The intermediate courses require the student to pass all exams in all of the courses in order to move to the next level. In the expert level, students must take a course called Managing Across the Lifestyle.
Master
The master level is the top and most prestigious level out of the four. Essentially, once all three previous levels are passed, then the master status is awarded and the student will be able to teach the ITIL processes.
Exams
All of the levels require taking an exam at the end of each course in order to advance to the next level. Exams will vary depending on each course and which venue you decide to take the courses through. Credits are also needed to advance onto each level. The foundation course has 2 credits, the intermediate has either 15 or 16 depending on which track is taken, the managing across the lifestyle course supplies 5, and the expert level requires at least 22 credits from the previous courses and levels.
Test Prep
There are many study guides and practice questions available online to prepare for the exams. They do cost money, however they will properly prepare you for the types of questions that will be on the exams. You’ll also be given a course manual that you can study to prepare for the exam as well.
Time
The foundations course is 3 days, the intermediate courses for the lifestyle track is 3 days, the intermediate courses for the capability track is 5 days, and managing across the lifestyle is 5 days. The rest of the courses vary by where they will be taken.
Cost
Receiving certification for ITIL is not an inexpensive task. It can reach well into the thousands depending on how far you would like to take your certification. For just the foundation course and the exam, it can be up to $2,000, depending on if you take it online or in a classroom setting. The price depends on each institution as well as the level. The course price usually includes the cost of taking the exam in addition to the manual and the course itself. It may seem like a very steep price, but the benefits can outweigh the costs depending upon how the certification is used. In some cases, workplaces may pay for the foundations course if it is a requirement for all employees.
Tags: ITIL, ITIL training