Hi! Help & Advice needed?

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Hello Everyone,

Newbie here! Quick introduction, my names Andy and I'm a 29/m/UK who has recently returned from a career break and 12 month backpacking adventure around Australia and New Zealand! After having such an amazing time and the greatest experiences and adventures of my life..........its now unfortunately back to reality in Blighty!

Having decided that now is a good a time as any to get into the IT industry, I'm looking at a possible trainee Help Desk / 1st Line Support role. I have no formal IT qualifications, apart from a MOUS 2003 certificate and a love of computers, video gaming and gadgets. But I do have over ten years in sales and customer service and a desire to succeed, experience and learn new skills to further develop myself and new career choice.

I thought this forum looks like a great place to ask for some advice:

Q: What skills/certifications would a potential employer be looking for in a Helpdesk role?

Q: I thought about starting with a MCDST course first. Would you recommend a home learning pack or a weeks in depth training at a specialist center?

Q: What companies would you recommend or avoid for the training?

Q: Starting salary I can expect?

Q: Any other advice you can offer?

I would really appreciate any help or guidance.......

Many Thanks
Andy

 

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Hi Welcome

The usual way is A+, N+ and MCDST for entry level certifications.

I wouldn't recommend any training companies as they can be expensive and all they do is give you some books and tell you read them, and they charge you a lot of money for it.

You could self study then you do not have to pay lots of money to someone.

The two books for the A+ you need to get are compTIA A+ all in one exam guide 6th edition by Mike Meyers and PC Technician street smarts by James Pyles.

The Meyers book covers everything on the A+ and the technician street smarts book gives you exercises to practice so an old pc would help unless you do not mind using your pc.

 

The skills you've got: customer service-oriented skills, and a love of computers certainly helps. Employers with helpdesk jobs will often look for people with the A+ certification. The Network+ and MCDST certifications can also be helpful.

I'd recommend the A+ first. But regardless of which certification you go after, you should consider self-study options. You don't need a "learning pack"... just pick up the A+ All-in-One Exam Guide Sixth Edition by Meyers and you're good to go. Also highly recommended is PC Technician Street Smarts by Pyles to give you some hands-on labs you can (and should) perform.

Self-study's always going to be cheaper. Eventually, you'll have to learn to study IT-related topics on your own, because employers aren't going to spend money on training programs for you. Might as well learn how to study on your own from the very start!

Depends on the area. Even within an area, salaries aren't standard. Compare salaries between comparable jobs in your area to get an idea.

 

Hi & welcome to CF

Like the guys have already said , the A+ is the place to start and I'd also recommend going the self-study route - I did.

NB

 

Thanks for your speedy response with sound advice and recommendations guys.

I think I will try the self-study route and have just ordered both the A+ All-in-One Exam Guide Sixth Edition and PC Technician Street Smarts books via amazon.

Will let you know how I get on!

Thanks again.

 

The above comments seem to cover your questions.
Welcome...

 

I agree with sunn most of the questions have been covered above, but have you seen this thread by craigie?
Gives you an idea of what IT help desk is like!

Welcome to CF

 

Thanks UCHEEKYMONKEY for the link to the craigie thread. Makes for interesting reading!