A Comprehensive Guide to Starting a Career in the ELearning Field

A Comprehensive Guide to Starting a Career in the ELearning Field Photo Credit â€" Pexels.comA technology advert is a double-edged sword: on one side, it considerably simplifies our lives, on the other one â€" cuts short the number of available jobs, and thereby sets off a so-called “technological unemployment”.While some people give up because of this, others, in their turn, retrain and go all the way with their heads held high. If you are more of a second type, I prepared a guide to the eLearning job market for you, where the number of jobs with the rise of technology has only increased.ELearning Since the distance education is more affordable, readily available and is more flexible in terms of schedule, more and more people around the world prefer it to the traditional, classroom-based education, which, in its turn, sets off the need in the eLearning industry professionals.The eLearning job market is quite wide and to find a job that is interesting and at the same time corresponds with the expertise you possess might require some time and ef fort, particularly when there is no experience or skills required for the desired job position.But who told that’s going to be easy?1. Market ResearchevalThe first step is to do the market research.There are several ways to enter the eLearning industry field:1. By becoming an online educator or instructor. If you have a blog or teaching experience you can monetize the knowledge by applying for a job of an online instructor or by opening your own online training school.2. By reselling the educational software like Learning Management Systems* *A Learning Management System 3. By consulting people on eLearning software. There are over 700 Learning Management Systems vendors and around 50 eLearning Authoring Tool providers. It is not surprising that instead of looking for the right software themselves people prefer to hire eLearning consultants to give them technical advice.4. By administering an LMS. Learning Management Systems can be free and commercial, hosted in the Cloud and inst alled on the client’s website. If an LMS is free or there is a need for an LMS to be installed on the client’s website To read books, blogs, online journals, industry reports and statistics;There are a few I like most of all:brandon-hall.comtalentedlearning.comtheelearningcoach.comelearninglearning.comelearning247.orgelearningindustry.comblog.capterra.comtheedadvocate.orggettingsmart.comthejournal.comteachercast.netedtechtimes.comtheeducatorsroom.comchronicle.comtheelearningcoach.comevalJoin groups on Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ where people share valuable insights or answer each others’ questions:LinkedIn ELearning and EdTech Groups:Learning, Education and Training Professionals Group eLearning Industry E-Learning 2.0 ISTE â€" international Society for Technology in Education The eLearning Guide TechinEDU Elearning edge â€" For Global Learning Strategies Training and Development for eLearning eLearning Companies Instructional Design Forum Learning and Development Learning Dev elopment Institute LMS and e-learning Education Technology Group â€" The 21 Century ClassroomRapid e-Learning eLearning Professionals Network Education Technology Specialists Google Plus ELearning and EdTech Communities:Education Revolution Educational Technology Education Teaching Resources EdTech Technology innovation in Education Teachers Helping Teachers Higher Education Technology eLearning Development Massive Open Online Courses instructional Design E-Learning Professionals’ G Tech in Edu. Future Classroom Scenarios;E-Learning technologies;EU Educators;eLearning Specialists;eLearning Industry;eLearning Club;Instructional Designer;Educational Challenges in Digital Era;OpenEducation;E-Learning Resources;e-Learning in Developing and Developed Countries;Connect with industry professionals on LinkedIn and Twitter;Apply for an internship;Participate in forum discussions;Attend online webinars;Request free trials of educational software;Attend eLearning conferences where you can not only gain knowledge but also meet industry professionals and HR specialists Social media websites;Freelance websites Employment-related search engines