Help Desk and IT Support Training for MSP Techs

IT support training for your MSP's T1 to T3, NOC and project techs, from tickets to CompTIA and Microsoft certification paths. Every Empath Learn seat includes it, with Empath, Microsoft Learn and Curated Collection courses.

Get the Full Course List

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500+

CompTIA Titles, A+ to PenTest+

40+

Hands-On Labs in the Collection

30+

Empath CompTIA Courses with Professor Messer

Empath Desk and Ticket Courses

Start Here: A New Help Desk Tech's First Three Courses

A new tech's first tickets often involve handoffs and account access, so teach that desk routine before a certification track.

Introduction to Tickets and Triage Empath, 44 min Learn how work reaches the desk.
Ticket Notes & Handoffs Empath, 37 min Leave the next technician a usable record.
MFA & SSPR at the Desk Empath, 59 min Handle a common access request.

Next, tailor the T1 pathway template with your SOPs, then add CompTIA A+ skills.

What Training Does a Help Desk Technician Need?

Empath gives MSPs role-based courses and a T1 pathway template for onboarding. IT technician training starts with tickets, then the technology your clients use.

Your techs need:

Ticket triage, escalation and handoffs
Customer communication, with AI roleplays for practice
Networking, CCNA and monitoring for NOC techs
CompTIA A+, Network+ and Security+ skills, then Microsoft 365, Intune and Azure administration (MD-102, AZ-104)
Practice in browser labs before touching a client's system; some labs use your own environment, and Challenge Labs cannot be paused

Assign with due dates; track in Learning Progress.

For a tech with matching Empath and ConnectWise email addresses, the ConnectWise PSA integration can create a weekly ticket for each assigned course and add tracked learning time to the previous week's ticket. An admin must set it up; unassigned courses and historical learning time do not sync.

IT Support Courses by Skill

A sample from the full list, which has more than 4,900 information technology courses. All are included in every Empath Learn seat.

Skill	Courses	Example
Tickets and the service desk	11 by Empath	Introduction to Tickets and Triage
Customer service and communication	400+	Customer Service 101
CompTIA A+	100+	CompTIA A+ Training 220-1201: Hardware
CompTIA Network+	40+	CompTIA Network+ N10-009: Networking Concepts
CompTIA Security+	50+	CompTIA Security+: General Security Concepts
Cisco CCNA	60+	Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Lab
Microsoft 365 and Intune	300+	Microsoft Intune fundamentals
Azure	1,200+	AZ-104: Azure Administrator
Windows and PowerShell	300+	Windows Server & AD: The Friendly On-Ramp
Hands-on labs	40+	Azure Cloud Sandbox Lab

A course can count in more than one row.

Empath Courses for Your Help Desk

Service desk training written for MSPs: 11 courses on tickets and the desk, plus more than 30 CompTIA courses with Professor Messer on A+, Network+ and Security+.

Introduction to Tickets and Triage, Empath. How to assess, prioritize and document a ticket, and how triage ties to your SLAs. 44 minutes.
Ticket Escalations 101, Empath. When and why to escalate a ticket, and how to hand it on clearly. 86 minutes.
Ticket Notes & Handoffs, Empath. What goes in a ticket note, and the four ways a ticket can end. 37 minutes.
MFA & SSPR at the Desk, Empath. The password and MFA tickets that fill a Tier 1 queue. 59 minutes.
AI Essentials for Your Service Desk, Empath. Using AI to improve ticket triage and automate routine tasks. 33 minutes.
Soft Skills for Techs, Empath. How to talk to clients and coworkers without jargon and handle tough situations. 74 minutes.
Troubleshooting Communication: The Art of Asking Questions, Empath. Questions that separate symptoms from the real issue. 70 minutes.
CompTIA A+ Training 220-1201: Hardware, Empath. Building, repairing and troubleshooting PC hardware. 260 minutes.
CompTIA Network+ N10-009: Networking Concepts, Empath. IP addressing, subnetting and VLANs. 277 minutes.
CompTIA Security+: General Security Concepts, Empath. Security controls, cryptography and zero trust. 152 minutes.
Foundations of Network Monitoring, Empath. Monitoring systems and baselines, for NOC techs. 40 minutes.
MD-102: Endpoint Administrator (2025), Empath. Building a Microsoft 365 and Intune lab and preparing devices for management. 47 minutes.
AZ-104: Azure Administrator, Empath. Subscriptions, identities, virtual networks and virtual machines. 620 minutes.
Windows Server & AD: The Friendly On-Ramp, Empath. Domain controllers, Active Directory accounts and Group Policy. 74 minutes.

Microsoft Learn for Microsoft 365, Intune and Azure

Microsoft Learn paths and modules support daily tickets; its MD-102 and AZ-104 certification overviews pair with Empath courses. Microsoft awards certifications. Progress syncs daily; qualifying staff certifications linked in Partner Center can contribute to Solutions Partner status. See Microsoft Learn in Empath.

Microsoft 365 Certified: Endpoint Administrator Associate, Microsoft. Managing devices and apps in Microsoft 365 with Intune. Pairs with Empath's MD-102 course.
Microsoft Intune fundamentals, Microsoft. A learning path on endpoint basics in Intune. 221 minutes.
Troubleshoot device and policy issues using Microsoft Intune, Microsoft. Fixing device enrollment and policy problems. 56 minutes.
Troubleshoot Microsoft Teams, Microsoft. A learning path for Teams problems at the desk. 314 minutes.
Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate, Microsoft. Managing and monitoring Azure networks, storage, compute and identity. Pairs with Empath's AZ-104 course.

Curated Collection Courses, Labs and AI Roleplays

More than 40 hands-on labs from Skillsoft on topics including CompTIA, CCNA, AWS and Azure, in browser environments (some labs use your own environment, and Challenge Labs cannot be paused), plus hundreds of AI roleplays with instant, personal feedback (what went well and what to change).

IT Help Desk Starter Pack, Packt. ITSM processes, ServiceNow, hardware and software for help desk agents. 138 minutes.
Customer Service 101, BizLibrary Productions. How to connect with customers and handle upset ones, with an AI roleplay to practice on. 45 minutes.
Conflict De-Escalation, The Jeff Havens Company. Calming a conversation before it spirals. 19 minutes.
CompTIA Network+ (N10-009) Crash Course (Part 1 of 5), Packt. Network types, topologies and the OSI model. 305 minutes.
Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) Lab, Skillsoft. Hands-on network technician training on CCNA topics. 21 hours.
Configure a Wireless Access Point Lab [Guided], Skillsoft. Connect to a wireless access point and configure it. 30 minutes.
Azure Cloud Sandbox Lab, Skillsoft. An Azure sandbox for learning by doing. 120 minutes.

Illustration of a video course and course progress in Empath

New-Hire Basics Everyone at Your MSP Takes

Before the desk work starts, new hires can take these four courses in Empath.

New MSP Employee 101: The Essentials for Everyone, Empath. How the MSP business model works, and the terms MSP staff use. 87 minutes.
Time Tracking: What Every MSP Employee Needs to Know, Empath. Why accurate time entries matter for profit and client satisfaction. 31 minutes.
Introduction to Security Awareness, Empath. Why people are the weak link in security, and how MSPs run security awareness training. 58 minutes.
AI Fluency, Empath. How to work with AI in everyday tasks, with videos from Anthropic. 69 minutes.

For more onboarding courses, see new-hire training for MSPs.

Questions About Help Desk and IT Support Training

Short answers for MSP owners and the techs they train.

Which course is best for IT support?

Empath Learn starts a new MSP help-desk tech with Introduction to Tickets and Triage, then Ticket Escalations 101, both built for MSPs by Empath. Next, add Empath's CompTIA A+ courses with Professor Messer for hardware and operating systems. Once the basics are in place, a Microsoft certification path such as MD-102 Endpoint Administrator can fit the tech's tickets.

How can I learn IT support?

Learn IT support by pairing courses with hands-on practice. In Empath, a tech can start with Empath's courses on tickets and triage, study CompTIA A+ and Network+ topics, then practice in browser labs from the Curated Collection. Some labs use your own environment, and Challenge Labs cannot be paused. Their MSP can assign the courses as one pathway with a due date and track progress on the Learning Progress dashboard.

What is the best certification for IT support?

The best certification for IT support depends on the tickets a tech works: CompTIA A+ for desk and hardware work, Network+ or CCNA for networks. For Microsoft 365 and Intune endpoints, look at MD-102; for Azure, AZ-104. Every Empath Learn seat has courses on all of these, plus hands-on labs on A+, Network+, CCNA and Azure topics. Empath does not award the certifications themselves.

Is help desk training included in Empath Learn?

Yes, help desk and IT support training is included in every Empath Learn seat, on every plan. It covers all three catalogs: Empath's own courses, Microsoft Learn and the Curated Collection with its labs and AI roleplays. Live streams and the tools to build your own courses come too. For plan costs, see empathmsp.com/pricing.

How do I assign the T1 pathway to a new tech?

Once you have tailored the template, a Manager or Content Admin in Empath assigns the T1 pathway to a person or team with a due date. Assigning a pathway assigns every course in it. The learner gets reminders 7, 3 and 1 day before the due date, then an overdue email about once a week for up to 90 days.

Which MSP training courses help standardize service delivery processes?

Empath Learn pairs Introduction to Tickets and Triage, Ticket Escalations 101 and Ticket Notes & Handoffs with a customizable T1 pathway. A service manager can add the MSP's own routing and documentation SOPs, then assign the pathway to each new tech. That gives the team one repeatable desk routine and a way to see completion; the manager still checks ticket quality.

Want to See It for Your Help Desk?

Book a demo and we will show you the help desk courses, the labs and the T1 pathway in Empath Learn. Bring your onboarding checklist for a new T1 tech and ask how it would look as a pathway.