A Confused 32 Year Old

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Hello Good People,

I'm a 32yr old and im at a cross roads in my life where i think i need to go into IT, ive always been interested computers etc. since i first got my own pc at the age of 15. I completed a Comptia A+ course a couple of years ago and the tutor on the course briefly touched on a few other subjects like networking and server 2003 and this opened up my interest further and got me thinking if i could do it on a full time basis and get paid for something that interests me instead of doing the same crap day in day out for just a wage. anyway... i have access to 3 different course materials including books and video's which i can do from home, and i just want all of your honest opinions on what to do first and maybe a rough estimate of how long on average i will get through them, i should be able to start in 2 weeks time. the first one is CCNA ICND1+2 the second is MCITP 70-640/642&646 server admin and the third Oracles OCA 1Z0-051&052 i've recently been flicking through the Sams Teach Yourself SQL in 10 Minutes book and find this pretty interesting , now i was thinking, and ill probably answer my own question here is that these are three completely different technologies and one wouldnt go with the other?? this is were my confusion is. could i go through these and maybe get some kind of employment at the end of them or i have no chance with these 3 courses or .. do any of you have any recommendations of what path to take.

Thanks for reading,

Jason

 

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Typically there are three roles :-

Systems Administrator - MCSA/MCITP
Network Engineer - CCNA
Database Administrator - OCA/OCP

None of these are entry level roles, entry level roles are Help Desk, Desktop Support, Field Engineer, Data Entry Clerk, etc.

In reality there can be overlap in roles so some experienced people may have all these qualifications, however for someone with no experience I would not advise embarking on multiple certifications, try and focus on one area and then get a job in that area.

The CCNA and MCITP could well be out of reach without any real world experience, and they are likely to take you around a year to complete, none of which will directly help you get a job now.

The OCA is probably more attainable but some people find programming hard, and PL/SQL is a type of programming language.
(It could still take a few months to master, beware 'in 10 minutes' type titles!)

You have to bear in mind the we are in recession, and countless people had Spectrum's, C64's, Amstrad's or PC's in their youth, and many of those people will have also spent years at college or in industry.

Really you should be focusing on entry level roles, pick a few entry level roles that interest you and see what the employer expects, then try to address how you can make yourself look like an attractive hire.

 

Thanks Dmarsh.

Thanks for the reply . you make them three roles sound really scary and off putting, which makes me think i want to definitely go and learn them, ive posted the same question in another forum and been told they are doable, none of the help desk/data entry roles really interest me, there must be people out there that have started from scratch in the above roles and managed to make something of them, or am i getting this wrong

thanks again

 

Hi j_is_my_name,

Welcome to CF

There are people that have managed to get into IT in a non-entry level position, but as we are in a recession, there will be 100's of experienced System Administrator's, Database Admins & Network Engineers seeking employment.

So if you go down this route, and go to interviews, you will be competing against people with perhaps several years 'on-the-job-experience'.

NB

 

Well, I have to be honest and say that in my experience (I have been in the IT Industry for a number of years now) I haven't really seen that many people skip the entry level positions and generally that's for a reason.

Entry level positions give you the required knowledge to let you progress through your career, they give you the troubleshooting skills required, the experience to know what to do next if you're stuck and the confidence to know that you're doing the right thing.

One word of warning, those certifications on their own are areas of work that someone would specialise in, it's very unusual to have someone doing all three and it's also unheard of with someone with no real world experience and those certifications from getting work. You really would be doing your career more harm than good if you went ahead and got those certifications without prior experience (and yes, I have seen it before).

I would try and get some commercial experience under your belt and decide what area you want to work in (DBA, Networks or Microsoft Technologies) and then decide on the certification routes to take.

 

Thanks Notes_Blokes.

i see your point and im glad i posted into the forum, i thought it would be this hard when i was thinking of jumping careers, my thinking was that if i studied these three roles im my own time with no time limit except maybe 3-6 months per exam i could maybe find a job with my knowledge learned.

perhaps its not for me. anyone else? before i go drown my sorrows lol

 

You could go down the recommended route, and start with the entry level certs, such as A+, N+ etc. and apply for entry level roles.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

NB

 

Wassup J.

Couldn't help thinking after reading your post that you and I are in similar positions. I'm in my early 30s at a dead end job trying to get into IT too. However as Dmarsh already ellued too its an incredibly difficult industry to get into at the moment especially at the top end (I'm guessing if they want experience at even low level helpdesk jobs they'll be wanting more at CCNA level).

If your going the cert route definitely try for one of the entry-level microsoft certificate courses such as the Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist (MCTS - Vista) certification or Microsoft Certified IT Professional (MCITP - windows 7) certification. Also start job hunting NOW, a piece of advice that I should have taken rather than waiting for those certs to come through

P.S don't get me wrong i don't think it can be any harm actually learning SQL or windows server 2003-2008 if you've got enough free time to study these then go right ahead however i would hold out on actually getting those certs just yet and this stage of your career. Anyway hope this helps a little

 

Thanks everyone,

i think i will have to go down the entry level path, haha it shows how much of a newbie naive person i am how about this then? network+, CCNA, MCTS 70-680 (windows 7 config)

what path is best for someone with no experience

 

Hello j_is_my_name. From reading you above comment, I think you would put yourself in a good position as a low experienced IT worker by learning the route progressions such as CompTIA A+ and or Network+; this would give you a general understanding in computer hardware and interconnecting computer hardware/ network devices. From here, I would suggest advancing your networking (in recruitment terms it would be min. job requirements) to go for the CCENT/ CCNA. From here your a pretty good IT candidate for IT help desk level roles (i.e £25,000 and under level IT roles). I would aim for job roles that include titles such as helpdesk, service desk, it support consultant, network support analyst which list the salary between £12,000 - £18000 (this is considered the higher end of new IT starters and you'll probably find you'll need 1 years comparable experience for the 18k+ salaries or a degree in the subject).

I find people have better results applying for the above roles which detail no experience or a degree, and also aim for roles which pay between £14,000 - £17,500. IT is tough to get in to, but with good structure and persistence it will pay off, especially with the above certifications. I wouldn't stop learning any other tech, such as per se database products, server technologies...just refrain from listing them on your C.V as being an experienced or expert in that area. Anybody can obtain experience in live production environments with networks since we all look after our ADSL lines and wireless networks, however many people at first when breaking into IT don't have a web server which hosts a critical service such as payment to more than 10 users. What I am emphasizing here is relevant and practical skills.

As for your last question before I forget to address that, I believe the best path is the one which you seldom believe is right for you. I will let you suggest that answer

(p.s Network+ > CCNA > MCTS)

 

my offering is to say the best first step is A+, where you go from there is your choice... BUT, something that is worth looking at is the compTIA Career Path which you can find on the compTIA website and shows what they recommend someone take, including non-compTIA certifications

 

I did. I got a job as the main networks guy at a small integrator based solely on my CCNA, which they thought was magic.
Luckily I had just enough experience to know that CCNA is full of holes and won't get you far without a more experienced engineer to oversee your work (which I did not have).

I got thrown into all kinds of crazy work that I was nowhere near competent to carry out. Cisco's support guys saved my bacon more often that I can say, and even then I only just got away with it.

Really not recommended. I'm very glad I left. I don't even touch Cisco kit in my new job.

 

Welcome to the CF May God Bless you in all aspects of your life...

 

Thanks for the reply kevndcks, very informative

just to update you all, im starting my Network+ on this coming monday, my aim is to read my book and watch the tutorials over and over until January, then ill sit the exam, after this i'll probably go onto CCNA. i think i definitely want to start in networking as this subject has stood out for me since i started my A+ course, so im going to hammer the osi model until im dreaming about it. this site is also brilliant for network+ materials too.

Thanks again everyone