Following on from my previous post, here's my IT career path since finishing university:
My IT career journey
By the time I started university, I still didn't know exactly what IT job I wanted or what I would be best suited for after I graduated. So I studied Computer / Business Information Systems. It shares many of the same topics / modules studied in Computer Science, but instead focuses on functionality and implementation rather than mathematics, theory and development. It looks at the practical applications of technology within organisations from a business standpoint, used to support the running of an organisation, covering all aspects of computing broadly - good for me since I was rather clueless about my career path and what to specialise in (if anything).
Job 1
After graduating in 2010, I found it very tough at first landing my first job in IT, especially because of the global recession at the time and the fact that I had no prior substantial work experience in IT. After 6 months, I finally found work at a local university as a Service Desk Advisor within a small team providing 1st line support for staff paying about £17,000 (GBP) per year. This was very entry level - basic remote support not requiring much technical knowledge or skill.
Job 2
6 months later I found a new job working as an IT Service Desk Support Analyst within a very small IT department at a motor-sport racing circuit / track, which was more technical. Paying a bit more than my 1st job, the role involved technical desk-side support. This was the first time I really got hands-on with IT within a company.
Job 3
Only 4 months later I moved on to work for a large mass media newspaper company, within a large team on the Service Desk as a Service Desk Analyst. Earning about £6,000 (GBP) more than my 2nd job, this was purely 1st line remote support, but to a high technical level. The hours were tough working on a 24/7 rolling shift pattern, and this was my first time working within a fast-paced, high-volume, large corporate environment.
Job 4
1 year after that I found a new job as an IT Systems Administrator for a small Public Relations company, still earning about the same salary as my 3rd job. There I provided the day to day administration for the company's IT infrastructure, servers and systems, and 2nd-3rd line technical IT support to staff as well as supervising 1st-2nd line IT support staff. This is where I gained hands on experience on back end IT infrastructure in the server room for the first time, further built experience supporting client hardware, and gained supervisory experience.
Job 5 - current
About 1 year later, I was approached to work for a global business-oriented social networking website for working professionals. Now earning more than twice the salary of my 1st job, and over 60% more than my last job, I work as a Systems Support Analyst for the company's London, UK office within a small IT team of two. Together as IT generalists, we both oversee everything IT for the whole office, providing support to staff and looking after the local IT infrastructure and systems.
Summary
Keeping in mind that I live and work in the UK where the job market is different to the US, I can certainly say that in today's world, I would have struggled to land even my first job if I didn't have my degree in IT. Further I would not have gained a good foundation of theoretical and practical knowledge useful to my understanding of IT.
Most employers were, and are looking for, candidates with work experience, and sometimes it's a catch-22 situation trying to land your first IT job without already having any IT work experience. Having a relevant qualification of some sort can be very beneficial, especially when recruiters are pitting you against many other candidates.
Many IT job vacancies (at least in the UK job market) specify an IT related degree or professional qualification(s) as highly desirable, or even mandatory, so having a qualification is certainly beneficial, but not necessarily a necessity.
What my degree did not provide me with, and prepare me for, was real world practical experience in the business environment.
Actually, what would really help you land your first IT job is both relevant qualification(s) + relevant work experience, even low paid or unpaid work experience (internship) if necessary. Some courses at some universities include a summer or 1 year out in the field working within a company as part of the degree, enabling you to gain work experience in the real world.
My university classmates who studied a 4 year UK degree called IT Management for Business (ITMB) involving a 1 year placement working in industry landed jobs almost immediately after graduating. 100% of ITMB students in the UK who graduated in 2011 found employment within 6 months, or went on to further study.
My IT career journey
By the time I started university, I still didn't know exactly what IT job I wanted or what I would be best suited for after I graduated. So I studied Computer / Business Information Systems. It shares many of the same topics / modules studied in Computer Science, but instead focuses on functionality and implementation rather than mathematics, theory and development. It looks at the practical applications of technology within organisations from a business standpoint, used to support the running of an organisation, covering all aspects of computing broadly - good for me since I was rather clueless about my career path and what to specialise in (if anything).
Job 1
After graduating in 2010, I found it very tough at first landing my first job in IT, especially because of the global recession at the time and the fact that I had no prior substantial work experience in IT. After 6 months, I finally found work at a local university as a Service Desk Advisor within a small team providing 1st line support for staff paying about £17,000 (GBP) per year. This was very entry level - basic remote support not requiring much technical knowledge or skill.
Job 2
6 months later I found a new job working as an IT Service Desk Support Analyst within a very small IT department at a motor-sport racing circuit / track, which was more technical. Paying a bit more than my 1st job, the role involved technical desk-side support. This was the first time I really got hands-on with IT within a company.
Job 3
Only 4 months later I moved on to work for a large mass media newspaper company, within a large team on the Service Desk as a Service Desk Analyst. Earning about £6,000 (GBP) more than my 2nd job, this was purely 1st line remote support, but to a high technical level. The hours were tough working on a 24/7 rolling shift pattern, and this was my first time working within a fast-paced, high-volume, large corporate environment.
Job 4
1 year after that I found a new job as an IT Systems Administrator for a small Public Relations company, still earning about the same salary as my 3rd job. There I provided the day to day administration for the company's IT infrastructure, servers and systems, and 2nd-3rd line technical IT support to staff as well as supervising 1st-2nd line IT support staff. This is where I gained hands on experience on back end IT infrastructure in the server room for the first time, further built experience supporting client hardware, and gained supervisory experience.
Job 5 - current
About 1 year later, I was approached to work for a global business-oriented social networking website for working professionals. Now earning more than twice the salary of my 1st job, and over 60% more than my last job, I work as a Systems Support Analyst for the company's London, UK office within a small IT team of two. Together as IT generalists, we both oversee everything IT for the whole office, providing support to staff and looking after the local IT infrastructure and systems.
Summary
Keeping in mind that I live and work in the UK where the job market is different to the US, I can certainly say that in today's world, I would have struggled to land even my first job if I didn't have my degree in IT. Further I would not have gained a good foundation of theoretical and practical knowledge useful to my understanding of IT.
Most employers were, and are looking for, candidates with work experience, and sometimes it's a catch-22 situation trying to land your first IT job without already having any IT work experience. Having a relevant qualification of some sort can be very beneficial, especially when recruiters are pitting you against many other candidates.
Many IT job vacancies (at least in the UK job market) specify an IT related degree or professional qualification(s) as highly desirable, or even mandatory, so having a qualification is certainly beneficial, but not necessarily a necessity.
What my degree did not provide me with, and prepare me for, was real world practical experience in the business environment.
Actually, what would really help you land your first IT job is both relevant qualification(s) + relevant work experience, even low paid or unpaid work experience (internship) if necessary. Some courses at some universities include a summer or 1 year out in the field working within a company as part of the degree, enabling you to gain work experience in the real world.
My university classmates who studied a 4 year UK degree called IT Management for Business (ITMB) involving a 1 year placement working in industry landed jobs almost immediately after graduating. 100% of ITMB students in the UK who graduated in 2011 found employment within 6 months, or went on to further study.
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) so I got myself into community college. I worked all my way through community college (part time kinda jobs) but I was very focused on getting all the necessary credits to move to a 4-year school. I have to be honest I didn't know how it would all work out in the end with a real job in a real market. I worked hard to keep my GPA high and was easily accepted into University of Washington's Computer Science program as I realized during my community college that I wanted to do something related to computers. 
