MCSE and ignored by recruiters

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Once again Hi,

I would like to know if I am the only one having such troubles. I did MCSE few months ago and have been aplying for a job for almost 3 months. Nothing have happened. No calls, no propositions of job interviews.
The job I was previously doing somewhere in Europe had nothing to do with IT, call centers and so on, but I had a lot to do with people. Firstly I started to apply for 2nd line support, than I moved downwards to entry level jobs, helpdesk, 1st line support and still nothing. I hate thinking I am to old. I tried to impress recruiters who claimed they needed people with the enthusiastic approach to studying by showing in CV my aptitude for learning things really fast, but I guess they were not impressed .
I browsed this forum and it looks like I am such a freak. My friends who were proceeding with MCSE certification at the same time secured their jobs very fast after one or two interviews immediatly after they had started to apply. I was so happy and full of energy after I passed the last exam. I had CCNA and Messaging in my mind but now I landed heavily on the ground without a clue

 

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You have fallen foul of what we here tell everyone. Certifications mean nothing without relevant experience to back it up. Without commercial experience of the MCSE role on your CV, you look like nothing more than a paper MCSE.

Unfortunately, you've shot yourself in the foot really. You have no experience, so MCSE employers wont look at you, but you have an MCSE, so entry level employers consider you overqualified and too high-risk to hire for their low level job.

I'd suggest maybe trying for entry level positions, and make no mention of your MCSE on your CV. You arent obliged to say you have it. It may help you get your foot in the door. Once in, you can gain valuable experience and, when you are ready, pop it back onto your CV and go looking for another job higher up the chain. Might work, might not.

 

Yes, I think exactly the same : too "clever" for the entry level and too "stupid" for the higher one.
I have to rebuild my CV and try to sell myself in the new less sparkling wrapping.

 

Hi Snowwhite,

Getting disheartened wont do you any good.. keep on plugging, I am in the same boat as you.. as soon as I finish my A+, I will be striking out CCNA qualifications from my CV... as folks rightly pointed out here, higher certification without any experience will do us no good.. and hence I am doing my entry level certifications which hopefully will land me that first illusive job. I have stopped applying for any jobs till I finish my A+ and am wishing the new year will bring new entry level jobs..HA,HA..once you are in, gain some experience and keep on hopping till you land the right job in line with your qualifications..yes dont get me wrong, I am as Pi***d off as you are, having not got an interview or job offer after applying for numerous jobs, but as I have found out CCNA without any experience (Home lab experience dont count ) is too hot to handle for most positons..and its even more frustrating when you have burned the midnight oil for two and a half years, sacrificing precious time with your kids and family for studies while you are working.

 

All the advice you've gotten on here is rock-solid - certification without experience is useless. Strike the MCSE from your CV, for now (later in your career, it'll become valuable again). Pursue the A+ (and perhaps the Network+ and MCDST certifications) and pursue those entry-level jobs. Hold off on the CCNA until later in your career.

Be persistent - getting an entry-level job is likely the hardest thing you'll do in IT... the competition for those jobs is fierce. Once you're in, and can start building experience, it will be easier and easier to get IT jobs... but it takes time.

Don't give up! You can do it!

 

Hi Purplejade,

I think that we all unfortunate ambitious people are by some means the victims of our strong belive in our possibilities. Others don't see us this way. We are simply unexperienced and that's all.
I will keep on fighting . These qualification costed me not only money but a big physical and mental effort as well. Besides I don't regret I did it. I am only a little bit disappointed

 

And thanks BosonMichael for these words!

 

You are welcome.

To be fair to employers, they don't know you like you know you. To them, you are an unknown. They don't *really* know what you can do for their company. After you've built some verifiable experience, they CAN know what value you can provide to their company. Just gotta get through this "hard part". Just remember... WE were in the same place you were, once upon a time, and we all found a way to get through it. You will, too. Be patient, persistent, determined, and confident.

 

Sorry to hear about your troubles Snowwhite.

Good advice has been given though, take the MCSE of your CV and get an enrty level position and go for the A+, N+ and MCDST if you havent already got them.

 

Snow white hang in there , its just like every1 else said. Its a matter of getting your first break. I know I have been trying to get that elusive ,evasive entry level job for sometime but to no avail. So I am just going to stop applying for a while and finish 70-270 and mcdst after and then try reapplying.
Its like a dog trying to bite its tail sometimes, but thats life and thats IT.

 

If I was you I'd keep the client exam on my CV but remove the rest.

I finished a contract in November and I'm having no luck at the moment and that's with 10 years experience. Still things do tend to slow down over the Christmas period so don't give up.

Have you tried to gain some experience by volunteering?

 

One word, if you belief your hard work was not in vain then I have one word for you and that is don't give up, sooner or later you'd land a job.

You might want to re-touch your CV to make it marketable and use bullet points concentrating on what you can and have done. Best wishes

 

Thanks guys, it really have raised my spirit.
Answering questions: I think I have applied for almost 100 jobs so far. I have lost the plot
I tried to convinced in the cover letter one direct employer that I could work voluntarily
but the answer never came.

 

Don't give up.

I am in the same position although I don't have my MCSE yet.

I have applied for lots of jobs and gave up for about 4 years, due to financial reasons is wasn't viable to leave my current place of employment but now my financial worries will end in about 5 months so this is why I have started studying again hopefully will get my A+ out of the way and get started on my N+ by the time 5 months is up.

Just keep applying like I am, and goodluck

 

Have people look over your CV and a sample cover letter... if necessary, someone trained to do so professionally. Perhaps they can provide some advice.

 

There was a period during my career that I was between jobs for almost 18 months, granted not a complete waste, I hit the books and got my CCNA, CCDA, CCNP, CCDP, CCIE Written (R&S) and upgraded my MCSE to 2k, but I was constantly sending out my CV, the problem was I was getting put forward for a lot of team leader roles, a lot of senior engineer roles (I already had over 3 years of experience by this time) but I was 18, most companies, whilst not having a problem with my skills, couldn't put me in front of their teams and say 'he's the boss' it just doest work like that

I'm 25 now and have over 10 years experiance, I dont even worry about certs that often anymore, and I've been head hunted for the last two roles

like everyone has said, your MCSE does not mean nothing, and the fact you have passed it with no traditional IT experiance is a testament to your determination, but unfortunatly you will have to bite the bullet a little in order to find initial work
unless you get real lucky and land a 2nd line role because of your certs alone, or can get creative enough on your CV to highlight any technical type things you did in your non IT role then you will need to start at the bottom, give it time, a years experiance and you should be able to start plasting the MCSE credential all over your CV, and by then you may well be CCNA or 2k8 certified too

I'm going to yet again disagree with the traditional A+ recommendations here, you have an MCSE, which tells me you probably know the basics, list some of the MCPs you took to get your MCSE (client and possibly electives) highlight some PC troubleshooting skills you have and move on
unless your confident you can get the A+ in < 3 months, or are that stuffed for work, I wouldn't waste the time

 

Only 100 job applications? I've probably applied for 250-300 over the past year, and am still plugging away (though I'm only recently an MCDST). But I've got one firm offer now (depending on my references) and one possible (if the Agency's client can make up their mind).

Keep at it. You'll get there.

Regards

 

Now that's what am talking about, that's the attitude. Phoenix is spot on too.