New Member With A Conundrum

Discussion in 'New Members Introduction' started by keithdowle, Jul 20, 2011.

  1. keithdowle

    keithdowle New Member

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    Hi everyone!

    I have been reading through the site and have finally decided to register and start my first thread. I also have a problem i'm hopping you guys can help me with.

    I qualified from college with an Advanced GNVQ in IT way back in 2002. Unfortunately i never took the opportunity to further my education or get a job in IT, instead deciding to travel for what must have been 5 years in total. I am now back in UK and have spent the last 3 years working in a job that is not IT related. Anyway it is now i have decided to use my past qualification, and knowledge and love of all things Computer based, and try and break into the field. My dilemma is this. I am aware that my lack of real work experience, and education would almost certainly hinder me from getting a job. So my options are taking some Certifications like Comptia A+/MPC/MCTS or enrol at the OU and do a Bsc in Computing and IT Practice.

    I am more inclined to follow the OU route as you can study and qualify for MCTS Certs and CCNA as part of the degree program. Taking into account the fact that i can also come out of it with a degree, i am really keen on this approach.

    What do you guys think of this idea? I understand that i will probably have to get a low level help desk job during my study to build up experience, but i am thinking more of the long term goal of being a network engineer.

    Many thanks

    Keith
     
  2. Modey

    Modey Terabyte Poster

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    Welcome to CF. Sounds like you have put a lot of thought into this and your plan looks good to me so far. It's important to be realistic about what is possible and the fact that you may have to start at the bottom of the ladder as you have mentioned. A degree would open doors for you but you might want to think about how long it would take via the OU route. If you did want to get it done fairly quickly it would be quite a bit of work to take on if you are holding down a job at the same time. If a fast timescale isn't what you are after it would be much easier to cope with. The OU also do a Microsoft Server course ( TM128 ) now as well as the CCNA which you may be interested in.
     
    Certifications: A+, N+, MCP, MCDST, MCSA 2K3, MCTS, MOS, MTA, MCT, MCITP:EDST7, MCSA W7, Citrix CCA, ITIL Foundation
    WIP: Nada
  3. Bluerinse
    Honorary Member

    Bluerinse Exabyte Poster

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    Welcome to CF 8)
     
    Certifications: C&G Electronics - MCSA (W2K) MCSE (W2K)
  4. Kopite_21

    Kopite_21 Gigabyte Poster

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    Welcome to CF!
     
    Certifications: National Diploma IT Advanced ECDL
    WIP: A+

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