Best way to get c# .NET training / certification

[LizzeyDripping]

Hi all

I am really hoping you can give me some good pointers regarding a career change I would like to make!

I want to be a web developer and from reading up I can see that I need to know more about c# .NET etc - the ultimate goal is to get MCSD accredited.

I have a very good working knowledge of stuff like HTML and have built several basic sites but wanted to know more. I did a few freebie c# tutorials online - and all makes sense, very straight forward but I am self taught and have reached the stage where I don't know what I don't know if you get me! So far as I can tell, what I need to get my confidence up is a training course along the lines of the one offered by Skillstrain - in fact this is what I was going to sign up to until I started reading all the horror stories online! The course I'm on about is this one, just so you can see what i want to learn - http://csharp.skillstrain.co.uk/csha...-syllabus.html.

My other half chatted to a developer at his work who said his advice would be to do a basic training course then go for a junior development role so I can get some hands on experience whilst working for the Microsoft certification, and this seems like a great idea - but I can't find any "basic training" as such that seems to cover all the points on the Skillstrain course! Are there any online training courses or books that people here think cover all the basics without the need to pay out such a vast sum to Skillstrain for what (it appears) may not be what it syas on the tin?! I have seen a bit about CompTIA training - would one of these courses be what I am after? Do these cover programming?!

Even if I could get some feedback from people who may have done the Skillstrain course that would be useful as I don't want to just go with their say so!

Basically, I'm utterly baffled as to where to start and I'd really appreciate some pointers!

Thanks!