IT professionals come in!!!

[Boomer v3.8]

Real employers will see through certs.
They are nothing without experience.

College Diploma + Experience and working your way up is great.
But don't expect to get an MCSE+CCNA and expect an employer to take you seriously if you have no work experience to back them up.

Overpriced tech schools and bootcamps are no way to break into the industry, although they may fool some employers.

 

[txyaloo]

good get me a good paying IT job in Austin so I can get the hell outta da desert LOL

Ha! Good luck with that! From what I've seen, the job environment for IT sucks around here. I wouldn't even consider going back to Dell since they just cut 1,000 more jobs plus taking on $1.5 billion in debt financing.

Thankfully I have cush gig, but I don't do much IT stuff. Mostly I get paid to watch my Slingbox and surf SVTP with the occasional server/network troubleshooting stuff.

Thanks again for all your helpful comments. Anyone wanting to share how they actually like or dislike working in IT??? I have always liked technology/computers, but never considered it as a career until recently.

IT is great if your management is good. Unfortunately, in IT this is hard to find. Just like most anywhere else, management is watching out for themselves and not you. Most of the time, management is not technical. I've noticed this tends to create a riff between their technical direct reports. Most organizations don't have a technical supervisor/lead like they should in their org structure.

Outside of manual labor, help desk/call center jobs are some of the worst jobs in the world. There is no slack time, and you barely have time to go to the bathroom. I'd rather sling burgers than work one of these jobs. On site techs/desktop support are much better entry level positions. You get hands on with the equipment and get to actually interact with people. Plus your every minute isn't monitored like it is with a help desk.

Get some certs and try to get some type of part time IT job. See if you can get into a community college work study program. The IT work study jobs are hard to get, but it's a good way to learn, and the pay is normally good. Certs - don't waste your time on anything CompTIA (A+, Network+, etc). MCSE/MCSA are a good start, but the world is flooded with them. Cisco certs are a better way to go these days if you enjoy working with hardware. Also, RHCE's (Red Hat linux cert) are always in demand.

 

[FAsnakes]

I have employees that work for me with degrees from ITT tech.. They add little value to the business and had to be retrained. They also started off as temps...
If you're starting out, get yourself an entry level job in Helpdesk or a similar role while you work on a college degree..
Get away from the helpdesk as soon as possible and get into a niche.. LAN / WAN Administrator, Telco Admin (CCNA), Security and Infrastructure Administrator, DBA.. These jobs are typically not outsourced.. Helpdesk can easily go offshore and you'll loose your job..

gl

 

[OzzDOA]

Certs don't mean squat unless they are the real high-end ones, MCSEs and CCNAs are a dime a dozen. I had my NT4 MCSE and never did any of the updates since it was a waste of time and money. The only thing certs do is tell someone you know how to regurgitate answers from a book. I know tons of IT techs that have certs out the ying-yang that don't know their ass from a whole in the ground when it comes to real world issues.

IT is a tough field, the money isn't there like it was in the late 90's. Expect to work a lot of 3-6 month contract jobs before you even get a chance to get a full-time salaried position. Most large companies do not have in-house IT departments anymore, just managers that oversee out-sourced companies that actually do the work. And as such the typical IT tech gets treated like crap. Prepare to be frustrated by demanding clients and managers that don't communicate anything to you until you do something incorrectly. If you want to be in the IT business for the long run you need a thick skin and the ability to turn your common sense off.

In my experience the best thing to do is to get a 4 year degree in a business field with a concentration in IT and throw in your standard cookie cutter certs, that way you have a clear line for advancement to a mangement level and aren't stuck being a pee-on.

 

[wvmystichrome]

I don't really think the IT field is going any where right now but OUTSOURCED. Back in 1998 while preparing for Y2K I had already started testing for Y2K problems. Well the company I work for decided Y2K was a scam. So long story short we were forced to outsource by state agencies. It now seems that is the growing trend. Plus hiring on a case by case basis for IT additions, repair or troubleshooting. I have been in the IT field for 25 years since last month. A good friend of mine has been in it for over 35 years. Companies are now finding it easier to go out and pay someone a couple of hundred dollars or so one time to fix something than to have someone on the payroll full time and only needed part time. Plus big companies now think anyone can fix a computer, wire a network, troubleshoot a network problem, and diagnose and fix anything computer/network related. How do I know. Thats what one of the biggest companies in the country my friend above worked for told him. They wanted to cut him to about $7.50 an hour ($25.00 to $50.00 a repair) to drive and repair computers they had contracted service for. He worked for a company that repaired Dell, HP, Gateway and many other computers and peripherals. They said it was cheaper to hire someone off the street to repair computers than to keep experienced people, on contract, to do it. Just be careful because you may spend a lot of money you will not be able to recoup.

 

[Juruense]

In my opinion the IT field sucks avoid it like the plague. If you do get into it make sure you are not dealing with end users and be prepared for a crop of college graduates challenging you every year and telling your boss that they know better EVERY YEAR. As you get older they will eventually "take you out" Enjoy...

 

[Silver03]

I have employees that work for me with degrees from ITT tech.. They add little value to the business and had to be retrained. They also started off as temps...
If you're starting out, get yourself an entry level job in Helpdesk or a similar role while you work on a college degree..
Get away from the helpdesk as soon as possible and get into a niche.. LAN / WAN Administrator, Telco Admin (CCNA), Security and Infrastructure Administrator, DBA.. These jobs are typically not outsourced.. Helpdesk can easily go offshore and you'll loose your job..

gl

Good advice. I wanted to add that we have never hired anyone to the network team at any of my jobs unless they had at least this kind of experience. No one is ever hired off the street in my opinion.

 

[thenexlevel]

I paid way too much to go to purdue (being out of state) to get my BA in Telecom/Networking with no certifcations...and so far i'm doing ok. If I was going to do it again, I would go to some local university/college and get a BA and get as many certifications as I can instead. Jobs nowadays in IT require certifcations, if you can get a Cisco CCNP or MCSE you should be good for a 50-70k job with a BA. Some jobs don't really require a BA either as long as you got the certifications and expierence.

But to be honest the IT industry is too saturated and salary range for the same jobs 10 years ago is still around the same as it is now.

 

[MekkadonZ28]

Need some input from IT nerds:rolling:

I am seriously considering starting classes for an Associates of Science Degree in Computer Network Systems. It is a 2 yr program at ITT Tech. I would like to hear from anyone in this proffession and how you like it, pros/cons and what not. I am 21 years old and have some college experience. I have been working full time for over 2 years now and think Im ready to go back to school. I am also a licensed realtor, but we all know how thats going right now. Thanks

All you need is a 2 year degree. But, get it in Computer Information Systems.:coolman:

 

[KduncSS]

Good info guys. I need to do some more looking around definitely. But Im almost sure I wont be going to ITT anymore. I will look at Kennesaw State U to see whats going on over there.

 

[krazypony]

I have been doing IT work for a while now, i must say close to 10yrs or a bit longer. And the pay isnt the greatest, study the job market and you will notice there aren't a lot of jobs out there unless they are higher end jobs.

But I was looking at going back to college actually myself and its was going to be close to 60k for an associate 2yr degree, I was like WTF! And withdrawn from Strayer Univ.

So my plan is to try and get some security certs, and so on since I have a strong background in security and network+ certs as well and take the test myself. I have the hands on but that doesnt seem to matter when it comes down to the interviews anymore, they want to see it on blk and whte. anymore!

And then again I have worked around the peeps in the industry that have certs and they have to ask me how to access someones pc from the run command since they have no idea how too!

 

[DriftwoodSVT]

I've been a System Admin for abut 8 years now. I've got a college degree in MIS and one small Microsoft Cert. The IT field is heavily saturated and good jobs are not easy to come by. If you do persue it, expect to sit at a low paying help desk job for a few years to get experience.

I was in the private sector for 6 years, but went to work for the State and will never look back. No fear of downsizing, lay offs or outsourcing.

Certs do help, but most places won't touch you without a degree anymore. Even State IT jobs require a degree.

 

[50 Proof]

Need some input from IT nerds:rolling:

I am seriously considering starting classes for an Associates of Science Degree in Computer Network Systems. It is a 2 yr program at ITT Tech. I would like to hear from anyone in this proffession and how you like it, pros/cons and what not. I am 21 years old and have some college experience. I have been working full time for over 2 years now and think Im ready to go back to school. I am also a licensed realtor, but we all know how thats going right now. Thanks

I personally wouldn't recommend ITT Tech. I went to DeVry, education was good but not GREAT. ITT Tech will be worse if anything.

Definitely look into areas that are more difficult to be outsourced, systems admin, network technicians, business systems analyst, project management, database administration, quality assurance. I would stay far away from any type of computer programming jobs. Computer programming jobs are all getting outsources to offshore Indian development corporations.

The problem with these jobs is that companies want people with experience so make sure you intern while you are in school. Otherwise, companies just aren't interested in hiring JR level people. It took me forever to find a job after I graduated and when I finally found a job, it was a tech support job that involved doing BSA and QA work for pennies on the dollar. Good experience bad pay simply because I was a jr.

 

[moddestmike]

You will def be working helpdesk to gain experience and I would recommend HD over tech support because if its a very dynamic company you will get alot of experience like I did. Active Directory, Citrix Server farms and AS/400. I started off at 37,000/year and within 2 years I was at 50,000. I'm working on my second engineering degree (EE/Physics Minor) but I wouldn't switch my job. It's highly technical (atleast where I work) but REALLY laid back (After lunch, we usually get about an hour and a half of sleep in.) Current certifications I hold are CCNA, CCDA, Juniper(JNCIA), CWNA and CISCO CallManager specialization, in which my job paid for ALL of my certs. I usually have jobs beating on my door for mid to upper level network tech/engineer jobs but I can't leave until I finish school. Almost done with my CCNP then its on to CCDP and then the new CCDE cert. I would suggest looking into some certs (CISCO/Juniper) because I love networking (I can subnet in my sleep) and networking cannot be outsourced. I will eventally leave the helpdesk but @ $50,000/year not until I finish school. Good Luck.

 

[SINISTER LS1]

Experience is the most important thing of all.

 

[ViciousJay]

I've been a System Admin for abut 8 years now. I've got a college degree in MIS and one small Microsoft Cert. The IT field is heavily saturated and good jobs are not easy to come by. If you do persue it, expect to sit at a low paying help desk job for a few years to get experience.

I was in the private sector for 6 years, but went to work for the State and will never look back. No fear of downsizing, lay offs or outsourcing.

Certs do help, but most places won't touch you without a degree anymore. Even State IT jobs require a degree.

hate to tell you but experience over certif is happening more everyday

 

[DriftwoodSVT]

hate to tell you but experience over certif is happening more everyday

Did I say something of the contrary? Not sure why you are quoting me, as I didn't say that..

 

[Njc0las]

OP, go get hired at a company as a helpdesk contractor. Kiss some ass and move up in the company. It might take a while but if you're not stupid or weird or something, you should be able to do it. That way you can learn the company for a while before you try to move up.


Oh yea and my opinion is that ITT sucks. Total rip-off for what you get.

 

[Boomer v3.8]

hate to tell you but experience over certif is happening more everyday

Yeah, people are losing faith in certs due to PAPER MCSE's and such.
CompTIA's are the fastfood of certs.

No wonder MS renamed and revamped their whole certification path.

 

[krazypony]

hell if thats the case why is it every monster IT job add you see, ask for certs