How/where do you start within the IT profession? 5

[maidenmac]

Currently where I work I'm classed as the person who knows however as far as qualifications go to support what I know there's a lot of air.

What I currently do is support on software etc, mainly microsoft office. I work closely with our IT firm on all the issues and often install or am at the hands on end of things and as such my knowledge has increased ten-fold.

What I would like to know is where is the best place to start on a career in IT. Which courses etc would benefit me?

Hope someone can help.
Maidenmac ;-)

 

[gringomike]

Hi maidenmac,

My advice to you would be to update your CV and "sell yourself" as much as possible. If you've trained anybody to use a software package for example or shown anybody how to patch in a network point, call yourself "the in-house trainer for softwareX" or the "Network Technician". Employers these days are looking for a diverse skill set and the technology you've had experience with in the past should be bumped up at every available opportunity. Potential employers don't know about you until you tell them and they expect a certain amout of exaggeration when reviewing the CV's of potential employees.
With regard to your lack of qualifications, there's no doubt that they give you a head start on others applying for the same job but if you can show your a hard worker looking to go far in the industry (and you can back it up with a reference - possibly attached to your CV) employers will take note and realise that you have something significant to offer them. Inter-personal skills are also valued highly these days. Employers want to hire those who can fit into their existing team.

Don't give up and something will turn up!

Good Luck!

GM

 

[Jedi420]

Excuse me for askings, but what's a CV?

-Jedi420

A man who has risked his life knows that careers are worthless, and a man who will not risk his career has a worthless life.

 

[MDXer]

Curriculum Vitæ

Pretty much the same a a resume just a diffrent name for it.

"Shoot Me! Shoot Me NOW!!!"
- Daffy Duck

 

[Rougy]

I think a lot of us got in through the "back door," i.e. an opportunity arose at our employer's, we stepped in to fill the void, and just never stepped back out.

Building a broad base of real-world experience carries a lot of weight. Look for any opportunity to participate in any of your employer's IT activities.

I started by debugging programs for a company when I was a temp word processor. I was thorough, so they just kept giving me a little more to do until I was finally a full-fledged programmer.

I don't think that experiences like that are too uncommon.

-----
The death of dogma is the birth of reason.

 

[MDXer]

Rougy

I think they are not uncommon for the people that strive to be more than what they currently are. If people are content with what they currently do and show no initiative or intrest in anything else then oppertunities pass them by. However I think the people who show the initiative and get these oppertunities are uncommon.

I have rather quickly rose through the IT ranks. starting out in Customer Support for a local mom and pop ISP. I took every oppertunity to learn and practice what I was learning. This lead to Web Designer, which lead to needing to learn SQL. My Last company extended an offer for me to be trained in OLAP I was the only one who recieved this or any training from the company. With a guidance of a couple Mentors I am now a Olap Consultant. All of this was done with no formal computer training and in less than 8 years. Many of the people I have worked with in IT are still doing the same jobs and complaining about the same things.

Your career is what you make of it not what people let you do. In todays IT market I think the people who show the initiative and ability to exceed beyond expectations are going to be the ones who will always be in demand.

Focusing on a specific area in IT that you enjoy (not necessarily good at) is a good approach to mapping out one's career path. Find something you enjoy doing and focus on that. I feel the nice thing about IT is that many things are inter-related. You can be the best vb programmer in your area but unless you enjoy doing it you your wasting your time. A good career is one that allows a person to live the way they want (with in reason we all wand Million dollar houses), and more importantly one they enjoy.



"Shoot Me! Shoot Me NOW!!!"
- Daffy Duck

 

[TrmblingBluStar]

Well said, MDXer!

Of course, showing initiative can always backfire on you, so be wary of this.

I was working for a large mutual funds company on the night shift for tech support. I was lucky to take 7 calls a night, so as you can imagine I spent several hours surfing the net, talking on the phone, and studying.

I offered several times, as politely as possible to do other things around the office, like mirror drives and other routine maintenance. Other than earn me a reputation as a self-starter who works hard, people thought I was being obnoxious and arrogant.

Of course, most of my coworkers were envious of the fact that my night position entailed very little work - as if that was my fault.

 

[NiteLink]

The current trend now is that employees who take the initiative to make more profit for the company do not get retrenched. It's still going on.

Thus, I find that there's a pressure to learn more than what I like doing, developing databases in-house.

In the past, employers liked to hire "specialised skills".

It has changed now.

Fight?

What fight?

 

[Krits]

Hi Everyone,

I was following this discussion and I would like to pose a question myself:

I am moving into Database Administration from website developement. Throughout my website development days I have built and interacted with databases (though I'm not heavily into it). Now that I am looking for a job in this area, could someone please advice me how do I craft my CV that the person who reads will at least give me an interview and any other advice will be welcome.

For info:
1. I have been into website development for over three years; and
2. have cleared my first OCP exam (1Z0-007) with 93% marks.

Thanks in advance.

Krits

 

[CajunCenturion]

You could always consider going to school. It has been shown to be a good learning experience.

Good Luck
--------------
As a circle of light increases so does the circumference of darkness around it. - Albert Einstein

 

[gringomike]

MDXer:

If people are content with what they currently do and show no initiative or intrest in anything else then oppertunities pass them by. However I think the people who show the initiative and get these oppertunities are uncommon.

I totally agree. I'm tired of hearing people complain about the lack of opportunity for personal development. Where I work it's the same people who complain and it's these people who (generally speaking) lack motivation and desire to get on in the job. They don't seem to understand that you have to work to improve yourself. Respect and knowledge doesn't just fall into your lap.

Krits:

I would advise you to do the following;

1. Focus on the projects you have worked on which have involved DBA work.

2. Mention that over the past 3 years you have been consistently involved in the database side of things and you now realise that you would like to pursue this avenue as a career. (It may sound obvious bur employers want to know that you see a long term future in your chosen subject!)

3. Highlight the fact that your looking to become Oracle certified and state your score from the exam.

4. Don't dwell on the Web Design side of things. Do your best to highlight your achievements in Database Admin.

5. When writing your CV, don't write a "book" 2-3 pages should be more than enough. Anything more and you've probably said too much!

Good Luck!

GM

 

[maidenmac]

Hey to everyone!

Thanks for all your advice it has given me a great deal to think about. What I do now at work is something that just ended up as expected. I like helping people and sharing what I know with other people, but my job title doesn't really reflect what I do. Would you beleive that I'm actually a HR Assistant lol! Anyway, thanks again to everyone whose replied I shall take heed from you all.

Cheers
MAC

 

[GlenJohnson]

One thing nobody has mentioned here. What line of business do you want to go into. I got into fastener manufaturing 12 years ago. Worked on pc's on my own before that, but this had insurance and a 401k. With my experience, I moved into IT 6 years ago. Became server admin and all around techy. Times got rough, the company put all of us in IT except the two with the most number of years, and eliminated our jobs and moved us out into the plant running machines. Cut our pay and then hired summer interns for half the pay. Stay away from manufacturing. The money is in the service industry nowadays. Good luck. (FYI, I'm not bitter, just passing on life experiences. Also looking for another job, while running my own business.)

Glen A. Johnson
Johnson Computer Consulting
MCP W2K
glen@johnsoncomputers.us

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