Hello all. I am new to this website. I have a question for you guys. I went to school for computer networking but never finished. Got pretty far into it but never got certified for anything. I stopped going because it was a diploma school and not a degree course in computer networking. right now I relocated and signed up for school for computer networking that is a university so I can get a degree in it. my question is should I study the books that i have for hardware and software to get the certifications to get a better paying job while i am in school and have experience once I got out of school. Also can you refer to me places that may possibly hire me and no I have no prior work experience in computer field. I know this post is a little rambly so if you have any questions let me know but thanks in advance for your help. Much appreciated!!!
Entry level tech jobs
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MidnightShadow
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Absolutely. I regret doing the college courses and not having my certifications. The certifications ultimately seem to matter much more, at least in my neck of the woods, than the degree itself.
I would tell you to keep an eye out on your local government sites, such as the counties and cities. Some of them have entry level positions that will help you build a ton of experience. Another good source would be a temp agency, if you have the flexibility of not having to work all of the time.
In addition, even though it's not the most glamorous job, Geek Squad will hire without experience. It's retail, so I wouldn't stay there too terribly long, but it will give you a bit of experience. Just be careful. Some places don't look at Geek Squad as a positive place. My opinion is that it's because they don't understand what Geek Squad truly does and what the technicians actually have to know.
cb600fshornet
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Geek squad would give you ultimately what you need, job experience. But as mentioned above, some people look negatively on it when they don't understand what it is.
Your best bet is to keep applying to entry level roles that become available. If you don't get a positive response within a couple of months, and you don't need a stable income yet, volunteer for a period with a more prestigious company. Not many companies will turn down a volunteer, and you'll get invaluable experience as well as a respectable company on your CV.
Your best bet is to keep applying to entry level roles that become available. If you don't get a positive response within a couple of months, and you don't need a stable income yet, volunteer for a period with a more prestigious company. Not many companies will turn down a volunteer, and you'll get invaluable experience as well as a respectable company on your CV.
Lexluethar
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Definitely get certifications and finish those up while in school. A lot of people make the mistake of expecting a job with a diploma alone - in today's economy that isn't the case. You need something other than a diploma today to get a job (experience or certifications).
We don't know where you are located, but as others have said look at your local PC repair shops, Geek squad or local government.
We don't know where you are located, but as others have said look at your local PC repair shops, Geek squad or local government.
Hey all and thanks for the advice. really helpful. When I was going to the school they let the graduates come back and talk to us, but all the people that came back said they still couldnt get a computer job without the degree. So I stopped going cause I figured why waste my time with just getting a diploma. Plus I got a good job in security so I was doing that. But now I want to really get back into computers. So i like i said I signed up for a degree course at a local college.
And yes I figured geek Squad would be my best bet but I am always looking around online for entry level jobs. I am still reading through the books to get my certifications, so hopefully all will go well. thanks again all for the advice!!
And yes I figured geek Squad would be my best bet but I am always looking around online for entry level jobs. I am still reading through the books to get my certifications, so hopefully all will go well. thanks again all for the advice!!
cb600fshornet
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The degree is the piece of paper that will often get you through the door for an interview, the certifications sweeten the deal and go some way to prove you're actually competent. A good candidate will have a combination of a degree, certification and experience. You can do it without the degree if you're well certified and have experience in my opinion, the degree just proves you have the base intelligence and commitment to stick at a course and complete it!
For me, proven work experience / certs landed me a IT job first time 1st /2nd line! I came from a Admin Gov background which benefited me also as most IT guys don't have people skills, so it was a extra bonus in my interview. I got all my work experience from volunteering at companies/ charities (Mentioning I troubleshooted on Boris Johnsons PC got them interested lol) which was another plus as I was willing to do anything to get what I needed.
In my interview I had to demonstrate how DNS works completely in logical detail / troubleshooting - so you may need to be able to prove you know what your talking about.
In my interview I had to demonstrate how DNS works completely in logical detail / troubleshooting - so you may need to be able to prove you know what your talking about.
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MidnightShadow
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So, like you just saw, one person thinks a good candidate has it all, and another will tell you certs and experience did it for him. At the end of the day, the IDEAL candidate will have the degree, certs, and 2-4 years of experience. However, that's just not going to happen for most entry level. A few tips that I can give you are this:
- Apply for the jobs, even if you don't meet the experience/certs/degree that they are requesting. Many employers are trying to filter out ahead of time and, of course, want the best of the best. The worst that can happen is they don't call you in for an interview.
- The local government jobs (counties and cities) usually have a lot of entry level positions. Keep an eye on those to come open. A lot of folks will leave those jobs because the raises aren't usually as big as they want. These jobs will also usually look for higher requirements than they really need. As an example, the job I currently have listed many more requirements that I have, but at the end of the day, they were going to teach the person from the ground up anyhow. Essentially, they just wanted somebody with a base background in IT. $40k/year later, I'm entry level with room to move up.
- If you're okay with contract jobs, there are tons of those all over the place. The right company will get you a security clearance, if required, and those are invaluable, especially with government work.
- If you get a job at Geek Squad, don't hang out too long. The position you will want is called Advanced Repair Agent (in the store, the rest work everything else and don't really touch computers). If you're going to stay there a while, move to a more tech oriented position such as a field technician (called a Double Agent, Covert). You'll get a ton of consumer side experience, but not much enterprise.
If you need, get in touch with me privately. I may be able to help you land a job there. I have been with the company for 8 years (I'm just part-time now, but I have a huge network of people there).
- Apply for the jobs, even if you don't meet the experience/certs/degree that they are requesting. Many employers are trying to filter out ahead of time and, of course, want the best of the best. The worst that can happen is they don't call you in for an interview.
- The local government jobs (counties and cities) usually have a lot of entry level positions. Keep an eye on those to come open. A lot of folks will leave those jobs because the raises aren't usually as big as they want. These jobs will also usually look for higher requirements than they really need. As an example, the job I currently have listed many more requirements that I have, but at the end of the day, they were going to teach the person from the ground up anyhow. Essentially, they just wanted somebody with a base background in IT. $40k/year later, I'm entry level with room to move up.
- If you're okay with contract jobs, there are tons of those all over the place. The right company will get you a security clearance, if required, and those are invaluable, especially with government work.
- If you get a job at Geek Squad, don't hang out too long. The position you will want is called Advanced Repair Agent (in the store, the rest work everything else and don't really touch computers). If you're going to stay there a while, move to a more tech oriented position such as a field technician (called a Double Agent, Covert). You'll get a ton of consumer side experience, but not much enterprise.
If you need, get in touch with me privately. I may be able to help you land a job there. I have been with the company for 8 years (I'm just part-time now, but I have a huge network of people there).
cb600fshornet
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In my opinion the UK is better set up for entry level techies (no offence to any country here). There are a huge number of companies like IBM, Accenture, Capgemini, Fujitsu, Atos etc offering paid apprenticeships (proper wage, not the daft "£2.73 per hour" crap apprenticeships pay), and a full time job at the end. Some of these are sponsored degree programmes, so you study and work for 5 years and get a degree, salary higher than a fresh graduate, and a full time job. This essentially sets you up career-wise. (I work for one of the above mentioned companies, guess who )
The only similar option I can think of in the US is an internship?
)The only similar option I can think of in the US is an internship?
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