Hi

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Hi I'm Chris from North Yorkshire. I'm embarking on a career change and taking an MCSA. So there will be loads of questions I'm sure. Especially as I don't come from a computing background lol I was a truck driver before I got made redundant!

 

Oh man! Ad-blocking software has been detected! :'(

This website is run by the community, for the community... and it needs advertisements in order to keep running. Blocking our ads means your killing our stats!
Please disable your ad-block, or become a premium member to hide all advertisements and this notice.

Well... I've got good news and bad news. The bad news is that the MCSA isn't designed for people starting out in IT... it's designed for people who have at least six months of server admin experience... not just six months in IT, but six months doing server administration - which is not generally something you start out doing.

The A+, Network+, and MCDST certifications are much more appropriate for someone starting out in IT. I'd recommend that you do those now, and save the MCSA for when you eventually get some server admin experience under your belt.

The good news is... you've found this forum, where you can get some of the best IT certification and advice around. Welcome to CertForums!

 

Hi Michael, cheers for that. I found that out when I started the course, (last September) but I have since passed 3 of the 4 modules 270, 291 and 293. I just set up a server/client at home and read a lot. One more to go! Then I'm gonna do an MCITP I think.

 

Hi Welcome

Since your on a course and have done the exams just carry on but when applying for jobs you may have to take the MCSA off your cv as employers will expect someone with the MCSA to have experience as BM said. Having high level certs without the required experience can go against you.

A+,N+ and MCDST and the MCTS/MCTIP are okay to do.

 

Hi Chris,

I work for a training provider and completely agree that what seems the more logical route is starting from scratch with A+, N+ etc or MCDST to get a foot in the door and take it from there, and most on the forum will agree.

On the other side though, as i've stated on this forum before. I monitor quite closely the employment figures for former students and can categorically state that those career changers with the MCSA have more interviews and gain employment faster than any other qualification we offer.

Those who take the longest to find employment are those who have the A+ followed by the A+, N+ combination then MCSE.

The order goes like this:

MCSA.
MCDST.
CCNA.
MCITP Enterprise Desktop Support.
MCSE.
A+, N+
A+

I know it doesn't make sense and goes against everything that is ever preached on forums and against my own advice that I offer to career changers, but the figures speak for themselves.

What i'm trying to say without getting into a 10 page war about flight risks, overqualified etc.. is that it appears a lot more employers are willing to take a risk on people than is generally believed, it's not all about a bit of paper, the way you conduct yourself, your appearance and willingness to learn will get you a long way.