Mesa Community College (MCC) announced it is partnering with Jamf (NASDAQ: JAMF), the standard in managing and securing Apple at work, to bring Jamf training to MCC students and aspiring IT professionals. This critical new certification introduced through the Maricopa Information Technology Institute (MITI) will be added to MCC’s Enterprise IT Professional for Apple Technology course series.
The IT job market is experiencing tremendous growth bringing high demand for skilled support and technical staff within the enterprise. According to the US Department of Labor, jobs in computer and information systems are projected to grow faster than the average for all occupations from 2020 to 2030, as companies expand their use of technology.
Apple products are also increasingly popular in business, resulting in rising demand for IT professionals that have the specific skills required to manage iPhone, iPad and Mac environments. In fact, Jamf reported that its community of professionals who manage Apple products at work has grown by more than 150 percent since 2017 to more than 100,000 members.
Even with this growth and the IT industry’s resilience in a down economy, organizations are still struggling to fill positions with qualified workers.
“Currently the Apple Developer Enterprise Program management job market has more jobs than certified applicants,” said Alvin Bridges, MCC associate vice-president for College Technology Services. “In just a few semesters we can change a first-generation college student into a functional Jamf administrator which can effectively change the trajectory of their lives using industry-standard tools and best practices.”
MCC alumnus Madison Rogers met Bridges during his final semester of earning an associate's degree in applied science in graphic design at MCC. His search for a part-time job resulted in a position as a lab technician in MCC’s Art Department working on the Macintosh computers used by students. Bridges provided one-on-one instruction to Rogers, netting a firm grasp on Jamf functions and opening career opportunities in the IT field. Rogers now has a successful career as a system administrator working on a systems engineering team at a local financial institution.
“When I was at MCC, AppleCare wasn’t even a thing yet. Having formal training available at MCC is an incredible opportunity for so many,” explained Rogers. “My experience working with Alvin at MCC was incredible surrounded by real use cases, learning beside colleagues on the same journey. I’ve even hired one of my fellow ‘students’ to be part of my team. I knew it would be great because we learned together how to solve applications with Jamf.”
Jamf’s industry-leading Apple device management and security platform will be taught at MCC beginning this fall; Jamf Training Foundation (BPC265). Consisting of eight weeks of instructor-led classes, training includes account provisioning, identity management, password sync, zero-touch deployment, app lifecycle management and antivirus protection, among other solutions.
“Jamf certification is a highly sought-after skill by employers,” said Diane Meza, director of MITI. “It is the most widely used Mobile Device Management (MDM) system in Apple enterprise technology. This new Jamf training is critical to the Apple Technology curriculum as it’s the portion of the program that makes students employable.”
Learn more about the AppleCare Technician programs at mesacc.edu/applecare or visit mesacc.edu/enroll to start the registration process.
