HELP! Nearly sucked into TP trap! but now what can I do?

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Hi,

First of all I would like to say thanks to the members of Certforums for their posts Re TP's and the MCSE certification. I myself was approached by Computrain and their "guaranteed job placement" and was told no previous experience in IT was necessary. I nearly parted with the best part of 3K to get me into the IT sector which i thought would be a good investment if they could hold their end of the bargain, and if it wasnt for the members of this forum and their insight then I would have probably committed myself to it!

I have no previous experience or qualifications in IT, but do have a genuine interest in this profession. I would really appreciate some advice on what is the best way to get my "foot in the door" in this sector, as i am currently on the understanding that I need experience, and that a qualification on its own will not enable me to become employed and begin the career i believe is well suited for me. I just feel like im stuck in a "catch 22"

I know i have the desire, motivation and keen interest to self study if required, but what coarses would anyone recommend for for a beginner in IT? and how would I be able to get the experience employers demand without already being employed in the industry?

Any advice would be very much appreciated because at the moment Im not sure where I need to begin???

Thanks

 

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Welcome to the forums Archie, and congratulations on not falling for the marketing hype. Now a couple of questions 1) what d you want to do in the industry? and 2) how well do you study without supervision?

 

Thanks Dave, Funnily enough I have had Computrain back on the phone to me today trying to reassure me that their company are a cut above the rest and they operate the coarse around the client "trying to make me feel special" but to be honest could see straight through their sales pitch now I have the facts!

If possible, I would like to begin my by starting a role in desktop support to to give me a broader knowledge of troubleshooting and advance from there as my experience grew. As for self study, providing the literature was digestable I know I have the drive and desire to see this out. I had been employed in the banking sector for the past seven years but have recently been made redundant by Northern Rock so I have the time to comitt myself fully to this, and begin learning about something I actually have an interest in.

Any comments are advice would be greatly appreciated

 

entry level certs are A+,N+ and MCDST for the A+ you need compTIA A+ all in one exam guide 6th edition by Mike Meyers and PC Technician street smarts by James Pyles.

 

Thanks, will I be employable after thease qualifications, or will I still be stuck in the catch 22 of needing experience but not being able to get any?

 

See here, for how I did it.

Best of luck with it.

Simon

 

You will stand a damn good chance, but there are no gurantees (except from training provider sales people)

 

I couldnt help noticing the home page of this forum, which indicates that the jobs in the IT industry have plummetted by up to as much 30%, am I right in connecting this to our current economic climate, and that through time this will recover as the recession begins to cease.

Once again thanks for all your advice, I feel lucky to have found and become a member of this forum and in the near future will show my gratitude by becoming a premium member.

 

Why not apply for entry level helpdesk roles to get your foot in the door?

I did and have managed to get up to the position of IT Manager for a small company within 7yrs.

I did helpdesk work for one year, then moved on to a first line support role for a further year.
After that moved on to second line support\sever support for a couple of years. Then went contracting do anything and every thing for a further couple of years before the role I am in now. I have been here for 1year.

It's hard work and can take a while to get that elusive first job but stick with it.

 

I don't think IT jobs have plummeted by 30%, IT vacancies maybe, but that's because a lot of people are taking a "better the devil you know" attitude to their jobs at the moment and staying put. Also, a lot of vacancies will be filled from within (rather than having to lay someone off) so advertised jobs may well have fallen by that amount.

I'm hoping the job market picks up soon, I've not found a single job to apply for yet but I do live in a city that was hit hard by the recession, especially in finance/IT. i'm just going to keep looking, get my other certs, and be in a good position to get any entry level jobs going when they become available again.

 

And what that mysterious city would be if you don't mind me asking?

 

I think the thing most people don't realise with private training providers is that you will end up self studying 99% of the time anyway. It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking if I pay X amount, I'll end up with this qualification after this period of time. Sure that is possible, but there is still a lot of hard work involved no matter what route to certification is taken. As for the job guaratee's ... they are often not worth the paper they are written on.

 

Edinburgh. RBOS, HBOS and several others have all underwent serious "restructuring", which I'm assuming has led to a glut of experienced peeps chasing less jobs.