How do I get a new job with no formal qualifications?

[AyJayEL]

I work in local government and have worked up from PA to ICT support. Everything I have learnt about pcs and software I have taught myself. I left school at 15 with no qualifications to do hairdressing. Now I am nearly 50 and doing a job that I love but that isn't greatly paid. I am a Crystal Reports writer. I support an Oracle database and create, maintain and support several Access Databases. My problem is that I am in a rut I think. I've been here 8 years and know that I can do the job elsewhere but I don't have any formal qualifications. All the jobs say graduate level, or minimum of 5 GCSE's. Dare I go for these jobs anyway? Will they consider me despite the lack of qualifications. I have got loads of experience now. I know that if I was given a chance I could prove my aptitude as happened in my present job.

What have others done? Do you advertise jobs? Would you consider someone like me? Learn something new every day *:->*

 

[ElijahBaley]

My personal feeling is that most potential employers would go for a person who can prove their ability to do the job through experience over a highly qulifyed paper candidate with little experience.

There are arguments raging throughout the IT sector about people waving certifications about, that were gained through boot camps and brain dumps - and these people de-valuing those certifications because employers are not getting the quality of skills that they expect.

Avoid recruitment consultants, as they are only interested in presentation and will insist on qualifications and "buzz words"

Go for it!

If you can get your knowledge, skills and experience to the attention of someone who is looking for those (knowledge, skills and experience) then you should have a great chance of moving onwards.

Best of luck,


Graham


"r tape loading error"

 

[Ngolem]

I am the same as you in a lot of respects...including being a Crystal Report writer...(I have seen your name come up in that forum).

First of all, I also have no formal IT training but have worked for the past 5 years for a software company and also as a contract Crystal Writer.

I noticed that in the software company, that I could not compete with the 20 year old wunderkinder...they have state of the art knowledge in a field that changed rapidly....so I decided to specialize in things they did not like doing....Report writing is one of those things....they hate it!! They have no patience to make the reports look perfect.

Also debugging software...they hate it too...they want to create!

So I niche myself primarily to report writing but have the flexibility to test/debug software if necessary.

"All the jobs say graduate level, or minimum of 5 GCSE's. Dare I go for these jobs anyway? Will they consider me despite the lack of qualifications"

All depends on how good you write your resume...the resume gets you in the door....then it is up to you to convince them you are worth the $. Also what can they do except say NO...right! they could say YES! Once you have established yourself you should be away to the races.

This is one career that I find Merit is more respected than degrees...as mentioned earlier...colleges flood the market with so-called IT professionals...it is what you know that gets you the job in this field....take samples of tough reports that you have written to show them what you can do.

As far as qualifications go for me...if asked I point to Tek-Tips and my status in 2 Crystal Decisions Forum...ranked by peers...the best reference you can get!

Good Luck

 

[wekkew]

Hi

As someone who wades through cvs and interviews my respect for "qualified" people has virtually evaporated. Send in some code to show exactly what you're capable of - no matter how many degrees they have I still make inteviewees go through a practical test and I've had graduates refer to text books during simple, simple operations; others have walked out in disgust at being asked to prove their ability.

I think the other misconception is that companies are inundated with replies for every job - believe me, we're not. One year we spent 50% of the advertising budget on ONE job - and we still didn't find anyone....

Other typical scenarios - advert goes national press - 3 phone enquiries - 3 app forms sent out - 1 returned and interview arranged. Week before interview we get phone call to say that they have found another job.


Get together some stuff that shows your ability ALONG WITH good documentation and make sure you know it inside out and back to front and can justify all your decisions and send that out with your cv.

Good luck!

Kate

 

[AyJayEL]

Jim, Kate, Graham

Thank you for your kind words. I have made up my mind. Over Easter I am going to work on my CV. I'll make it as concise as I can but I'll include examples of what I can do. Then I'll send it out for each job that I see within my area that I fancy. Nothing ventured, nothing gained eh?

I can do it! [Pc2] (That's me working in my new job!) Learn something new every day *:->*

 

[Ngolem]

wekkew

I did some hiring as well. I was a sales manager for 8 years

When I interviewed it was at least 2 interviews before hiring....we would get about 20 applicants that seemed reasonable...If I thought someone was reasonable in the first interview I gave them a sample piece of literature on a simple product that we sold...If I invited them back for a second interview, I mentioned the literature and told them to be prepared to make a short presentation on the product in a simulated "cold Call" environment.

This never failed to reveal the best candidate. It is a unfair test for a polished presentation....but I was not looking for that...I was looking for how they approached a customer and how they probed for the clients needs.

Yes...I am all in favour of a small practical test in an interviewing situation.
It reveals the pretenders for the true gold.
Jim