How old are you? Is the IT industry ageist?

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OK, I'm 27 (28 next week ). Been dabling in PC repair a few years, nothing serious, have no qualifications.

Now doing A+ with a view to getting an IT position and moving up the ladder to MCSE over a number of years.

My concern is that maybe I have it too late? Let's say I take 5 years to gain certs. up to MCSE standard along with a few years experience in the indusrty. By then I would be 33. Would an employer think less of me at 33 than a chap/chappette in his/her early twenties with equal qualifications and experience?

At what age did you guys climbing the IT ladder, at what age did you reach your goal and did you ever come across younger people being employed over you?

 

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http://www.certforums.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=6497

 

Funny you should mention that. New law is being passed to clamp down on ageism. A lot of its still up in the air, but theres a couple of points with it:

1. It will be illegal to discriminate against someone by age for promotion, employment, redundancy or training. This means that they are no longer allowed to advertise for a certain length of experience (eg 'must have 5 years experience') unless they can justify that timescale. They are also not allowed to use 'last in:first out' policies anymore as this generally discriminates against younger people.
2. The company can still make you retire at 65, but they must notify you in writing at least 6 months before stating their intention to retire you (it has to be in writing too), and allow you an opportunity, if you wish, to make a case for staying on. they have to listen to your case and consider it, but they can still choose to retire you, and dont need to give you a reason.
3. erm... im sure i had a third point but i cant remember off hand what it is.

Can you tell a did an internal ageism awareness course the other day??? a lot of this is still in discussion, but as far as im aware, the above points are pretty certain to be going through.

 

i read a really good article this morning, but i'll be damned if i can remember where it is...

too bad i haven't got a history.

 

We've just had our job titles changed because of the new laws. It used to go Junior Operator, Operator, Senior Operator. They were nothing to do with age, just experience. Now we're Operator Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3. Don't see the point myself.

 

Its all down to perception, the majority of people will see Junior level as someone that has just left school and Senior Operator as someone that is 40+.

A bit of overkill though that is, seems like a little bit of paranoia to me.

 

Yep, the legal team are trying to justify their wages I reckon.

 

Gr8 for us wrinklies though hehehehehe

Steve

 

I didn't get into IT until I was 30.
It's all about your 'life skills'.
I've got people working for me that know more about IT than I do, but that's not the point...

 

Just remember that time passes very quickly. Those of you that are in your twenties will be in your thirties before you know it. As you get older time seems to pass even faster. It only seems like yesterday that I was in my twenties and I still feel the same inside. You will all reach your fifties too hopefully and like me will face at least another 15 years of working with older and younger colleagues.

People should be judged on their capabilities and productivity ie usefulness to the employer not on their age or colour of their skin etc.

 

Well said, but alas we do not live in a perfect world.

 

After reading Bryson's book "A Short History of Almost Everything" last summer I am as old as every other thing in the Universe. This current configuration of sub-atomic particals has had 44 trips round the sun.

As yet I have not reached my goal and hope I never will. There is a whole planet full of learning out there and lots of new things!

 

Hehe, that is just classic Sandy!

 

A+ at 17 first IT job too at 17, MCP at 20 MCDST and nearly MCSA and im 21... worked full time in a support role then quit to come to uni this year... am i too old?

 

You are getting a tad long in the beak

 

LOL ... here's the extremely abbreviated version:

16-19 -- District projectionist for a movie theater chain

19-33 -- Lead technician/shop foreman for a large multi-franchise car dealership

33-34 -- NOC admin for a webhosting company

35-36 -- Automotive Instructor for GM

37+ -- waiting on my Security Clearance for an IT job in the DC Metro area (major government subcontractor for all you cross-ponders )

Am I too old?

 

Has you hair moved from your head into your ears and nose yet? If so, yes

 

Ironically, yes, and that includes my waist size equalling my age

Too bad, I've scratched and clawed enough in my career change, when I finally settle in, I'm here to stay. The webhosting job was a temporary thing, so to speak, so I only had one foot in IT