Tampa Bay Hi-Tech Training Program

As of December 13th @ 5:00pm, the application process is CLOSED. Please check back May 30, 2013 to apply for Fall enrollment into any of the courses listed here.

The Tampa Bay Hi-Tech Training (HITT) program, funded with a $3.8m grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), provides paid tuition, books and fees for certification training in the Information Technology (IT) and Telecommunications fields. If you are unemployed and are interested in moving up the career ladder in these fields, this program is an excellent opportunity to help cover the cost of your training to earn the necessary certifications employers require before hiring. The goal of the program is to serve over 2,300 individuals through 2016

As a career pathway program, the Tampa Bay HITT initiative will build a solid foundation for qualified IT and telecommunications workers to employ across the region. The USDOL Bureau of Labor Statistics reports the computer service industry occupations in the U.S. are expected to increase 16% percent by the year 2021. The fastest growing occupations will be computer support specialists (14%), systems analysts (20%), computer engineers (32%) and database administrators (20%). Comparatively, IT occupations across Florida and the Tampa Bay Region will grow at a much higher pace over the next 10 years (22% and 20%, respectively). The median hourly wage for the industry in this region was $29.55 in 2011.

Eligibility
All individuals must meet and be able to document the following preliminary eligibility criteria:

1. You are currently unemployed (at time of enrollment).
2. You are a Hillsborough or Pinellas County resident.
3. You are 18 years or older.
4. You meet U.S. Citizen requirements or hold current Authorization to Work in the U.S.
5. If you are a male whose date of birth falls after December 31st, 1959, then you meet Selective Service registration requirements.
6. You have a high school diploma or a GED.

Training Costs
The cost for training is covered by the USDOL H-1B Technical Skills Training grant and is based on the eligibility of the participant.

Certificates & Training Providers
Paid training will be offered for the following certificates based on the corresponding training provider.

St. Petersburg College

• CISCO Certified Network Associate (CCNA)

• Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator (Microsoft CIT)

• JAVA Programming

Hillsborough Community College

Non-Credit:

• Microsoft Technology Associate Certification: Networking Fundamentals

• CompTIA A+ Certification Training

• CompTIA Security+ Certification Training

• CISCO Certified Network Associate (CCNA)

Credit:

• Information Technology Support Specialist

• CISCO Certified Network Associate (CCNA)

For questions regarding the SPC certification programs listed above, please contact Mary Schock at (727) 341-4203 or Schock.Mary@spcollege.edu.

For questions regarding the HCC non-credit certification programs listed above, please contact Rhonda Hunter at (813) 259-6509 or Rhunter10@hccfl.edu.

For questions regarding the HCC credit programs listed above, please contact Dr. Barry Hubbard  at (813) 253-7481 or bhubbard@hccfl.edu.

For questions about the HITT program in general, including questions related to eligibility, please e-mail: tbhitech@worknetpinellas.org.