Hoping to start a career in IT, looking for cert advice.

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Hi all, I'm currently serving in the British armed forces in a non-IT role, but due to health issues, I'm medically downgraded for the next 14 months, and it's looking like I won't be able to pursue this career any further anyway.

I've been thinking of getting into the IT sector, as I do have the equivalent of an undergraduate degree in network administration (from 2006 - a little out of date I'll admit...). The advantage of my situation is that I have plenty of time to study, and I also have the ability to make use of some educational funding through the armed forces, to the tune of up to £3000. So luckily for me, time and money are not an issue. If anything, I might as well make the most of these funds and get as many certifications as I can out of them.

What would be helpful, however, is some advice as to how to best make the use of my time and funds. I was thinking that given my qualifications, aiming to work in network administration would be a good start, with the aim of specializing on cyber security later. I expect I'd have to start at the bottom and work my way up. I should note that I currently have no experience with Linux/Unix and my coding abilities are limited to basic CSS/JS (so not exactly much to speak of either), though I do aim to rectify that.

I've started working towards CompTIA Network+, as I thought it would be a good means to refresh my foundational knowledge, and I'm confident I'll be able to pass using publicly available resources and self-study.

Given all this:
- Is it realistic to expect to land a junior network admin position?
- Is it worth looking into cyber security related certifications yet, or is that pointless at this stage?
- Which certifications should I be aiming to get under my belt before applying for a job?
- Should I focus some of my efforts on Linux/coding skills? I assume so, but if I can make better use of my time and funds then I'd like to know.

I'd really appreciate any advice or insights you guys might be able to provide (preferably UK related), and that's not limited to my questions either. If you think there's a better way for me to make use of my time, I'm all ears! thanks in advance for your help

 

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Loads of WebDev jobs if you fancy brushing up on JS/CSS. Can then move into doing bits of NodeJS, Cloud, Kubernetes. It is a totally different career though.

 

Thanks for the advice Jim, I've just passed Network+!

I ended up using Dion training's practice tests on Udemy and I found them very helpful. On to Security+ next. CCNA would certainly be useful, but possibly a little ambitious right now as you say. VMware is definitely something I'll need to get to grips with, or at least some form of virtualisation. It wouldn't be a bad idea for me to set up a virtual lab at some point...

Any thoughts on what path to follow in terms of employment if I intend to break into cyber security? What kind of entry level position would be preferable?

Thanks
Dave

 

Thanks for the insights, it's interesting regardless of your employment. I haven't really properly researched entry level jobs yet, all I've gleaned up to now is that tech support is usually a good starting point, but poorly paid and not particularly enjoyable either...

I'm leaning towards VMware, sounds like it's the more versatile option. I would imagine it's also more widespread in enterprise environments? I do have a reasonably good laptop, but might just throw a few more gigs of ram at it if I'm going to build a lab...

 

I know I'm late to the party but I'm a former soldier (I did 10 years), the thing to remember with a lot of IT Certifications is that it's there to show experience and ability, as a new person in to the IT field you're sometimes better off doing one or two entry level certs and then gain some real world experience.

Get a CompTIA exam (N+, A+) and take it from there.