Career change into I.T
Discussion
Just looking for a bit advice from some of you I.T chaps, my backgrounds in sales, dealership and fleet however im considering moving into I.T pref Networking Design and Support, i did AVCE A Levels in computing and am now looking at my options away from Uni, anyone know of good courses or avenues into Networking without a degree?
TOENHEEL said:
Just looking for a bit advice from some of you I.T chaps, my backgrounds in sales, dealership and fleet however im considering moving into I.T pref Networking Design and Support, i did AVCE A Levels in computing and am now looking at my options away from Uni, anyone know of good courses or avenues into Networking without a degree?
Cisco qualifications are near enough de facto for any networking role when you have no experience:http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/le3/learning_car...
You'll need to work at the bottom and work your way up I'm afraid, just like we've all had too! 
Get yourself a helpdesk role, answering the phones, resetting passwords and basic IT fixes etc. No one will even look at you for network design/support type jobs even with a CCNA. Get a few years IT experince behind you before looking to specialise.
Get yourself a helpdesk role, answering the phones, resetting passwords and basic IT fixes etc. No one will even look at you for network design/support type jobs even with a CCNA. Get a few years IT experince behind you before looking to specialise.
XDA said:
You'll need to work at the bottom and work your way up I'm afraid, just like we've all had too!
Get yourself a helpdesk role, answering the phones, resetting passwords and basic IT fixes etc. No one will even look at you for network design/support type jobs even with a CCNA. Get a few years IT experince behind you before looking to specialise.
Good advice.Get yourself a helpdesk role, answering the phones, resetting passwords and basic IT fixes etc. No one will even look at you for network design/support type jobs even with a CCNA. Get a few years IT experince behind you before looking to specialise.
I've got good skills with computers even before my AVCE A levels but would a company be interested in a help desk role for me with only A Levels and no previous I.T job experience? I keep thinking about a degree but most people seem to think getting stuck in and getting hands on experience with relevant courses is the best way?
TOENHEEL said:
I've got good skills with computers even before my AVCE A levels but would a company be interested in a help desk role for me with only A Levels and no previous I.T job experience? I keep thinking about a degree but most people seem to think getting stuck in and getting hands on experience with relevant courses is the best way?
The advice XDA has given you is very good and one of the more common routes in to IT (was the route I took), but securing your first help desk role in the current climate may not be easy because as your rightly state, you have no working experience in that field.Can I suggest that you try and target help desk roles that perhaps underpin a customer base in sales or dealerships (which you have real world experience in from the other side of the fence so to speak) sometimes having that understanding of the client work experience and being able to display empathy to the user and the IT problems and commercial impact they are experiencing, coupled with a genuine interest in the technical aspects can give you the required advantge in landing a position.
IT qualifications without IT work experience would not improve your chances massively if at all in my opinion. Ditto a degree.
I would certainly forget design type roles as these are roles normally for very experienced techies who have been there and done that throughout the whole end to end technical lifecycle with many years of experience.
In the current job market I would say applying for any job where you have no previous work experience is going to make things extremely difficult as any job no matter how basic will have applicants who have the experience.
Best of luck on whatever you decide.
TOENHEEL said:
I've got good skills with computers even before my AVCE A levels but would a company be interested in a help desk role for me with only A Levels and no previous I.T job experience? I keep thinking about a degree but most people seem to think getting stuck in and getting hands on experience with relevant courses is the best way?
Helpdesk is entry level. If you're keen and have basic IT knowledge then I would imagine a company would take you on. The helpdesk is where most start out and it gives you great exposure to IT.I started on the helpdesk at 18, worked my way up the ranks. I'm now 24, work as a IT Field Engineer with a £20k+ salary, company car etc. I have no degree and only have an IT level 3 NVQ qualification. I've since done my HP and Lenovo warranty exams and the Comptia A+. So a degree makes little difference in my opinion, as one of my old colleagues has an IT degree and he's earning £18k doing 1st/2nd line support.
Hands on experience is definitely the way to go, it's worked for me. I can go into job interviews and show off my CV which displays all of my hands on skills, knowledge and experience.
Helpdesk jobs only pay around £12k, but after a year or so, you'll likely have a good understanding of IT and basic networking and could look to go down the networking route.
If you want to go for a degree then go for it. Personally, I think starting at the bottom is the best way.
Hope that helps. Let me know if you have any other questions.
okgo said:
I can't seriously see the benefit of getting a degree to get a 12 grand a year job!
it depends whether that job is considered a stepping stone or an end goal? I think the OP has put this forward as a stepping stone, so it might be a necessary evil.Experience speaks everything and that first step can be important. Another route in that could be a little more transferable for the OP, is to go in through the sales route. If you could get into a reseller of kit that also offers installation etc, you could leverage your sales background to get in - at first it may be box shifting, but it starts to build out your IT CV.
From there you can start getting into more account management working through solutions, whilst building up certs - you could then move into managed services sales, or take a side step into supporting kit or fronting solutions - not the arch as such, but fronting that.
And I am currently working with a contractor that has taken a very similar route, so it can work - just thought I'd mention it as an alternative to the helpdesk route - use your sales background as an advantage.
You don't need a degree for helpdesk work at all.
As for certifications, any hiring manager worth their salt will know that the value of a paper cert (i.e a Certification without the relveant industry experience) is not a lot.
It's going to be hard to get in, as (and this is true for most other disciplines as well) there is a sort of chicken and egg situation whereby even the most entry level jobs require experience yet how does one get that experience in the first place.
The thing is you're just going to have to persevere, apply to as many jobs as you possibly can, making sure you have a tailored C.V and covering letter for each one. Sooner or later you'll get the job. And once in and with a bit of experience it becomes a lot easier.
As for certifications, any hiring manager worth their salt will know that the value of a paper cert (i.e a Certification without the relveant industry experience) is not a lot.
It's going to be hard to get in, as (and this is true for most other disciplines as well) there is a sort of chicken and egg situation whereby even the most entry level jobs require experience yet how does one get that experience in the first place.
The thing is you're just going to have to persevere, apply to as many jobs as you possibly can, making sure you have a tailored C.V and covering letter for each one. Sooner or later you'll get the job. And once in and with a bit of experience it becomes a lot easier.
No need for a degree really, so start at the bottom and work up...
It doesn't really make any difference to most employers. They will generally look to see if you've got the skills or experience in the specific area they need. Two people could both be called network engineers but be working on vastly different types of projects.
I gotta ask though, since you have such a decent car history, why would you want to take such badly paid jobs in IT?
I mean outwith London your looking at around 40k for senior network/server engineers and that's after you've paid your dues in lesser jobs by getting the experience and industry qualifications. You can certainly be comfortable but the vast majority of IT people are never going to be hugely well paid.
It doesn't really make any difference to most employers. They will generally look to see if you've got the skills or experience in the specific area they need. Two people could both be called network engineers but be working on vastly different types of projects.
I gotta ask though, since you have such a decent car history, why would you want to take such badly paid jobs in IT?
I mean outwith London your looking at around 40k for senior network/server engineers and that's after you've paid your dues in lesser jobs by getting the experience and industry qualifications. You can certainly be comfortable but the vast majority of IT people are never going to be hugely well paid.
XDA has pretty much painted the most common route in to a decent IT role (and one that I followed, too) - but there is an alternative way in...
If you could find a sales role for an IT vendor (and there are many types) then you could move in to a presales role following that route. After presales you could move in to a more technical role. It's not common, but I've seen it done!
If you could find a sales role for an IT vendor (and there are many types) then you could move in to a presales role following that route. After presales you could move in to a more technical role. It's not common, but I've seen it done!
Wow thanks very much for all of your feedback. I'm just in a position at the minute where I'm very frustrated working in car sales with it's yo yo wages and good months and bad. I'm currently self employed with my own car leasing business. I.t has always been an interest of mine hence why I studied it at a levels, I've developed my own website and built up my own I.t network and system so that counts for something I guess. I just want to go to work and know what I'm coming out with each month. Are there any good websites or contacts for careers advice in I.t? Thanks chaps.
Don't.
IT is a hugely crowded market, with thousands of fresh young (i.e. cheap) graduates on the market each year, and many people (e.g. ex forces) coming in with training. Add to this the number of 16-18 year olds who are now able to get Microsoft Certification at no cost, and you are looking at a crap wage unless you have some particular niche skills.
Have a look at www.jobserve.com
IT is a hugely crowded market, with thousands of fresh young (i.e. cheap) graduates on the market each year, and many people (e.g. ex forces) coming in with training. Add to this the number of 16-18 year olds who are now able to get Microsoft Certification at no cost, and you are looking at a crap wage unless you have some particular niche skills.
Have a look at www.jobserve.com
as someone 20 years into an IT career, don't do it!!
As Zad says, the market is saturated, and so many roles are being filled from India / China / Philippines for sod all money.
And not just teh entry level stuff, engineering and project roles are also being flooded.
Also client budgets are greatly reduced so limited new projects coming up to help the industry move forward. (compared to the boom time of the '90's )
As Zad says, the market is saturated, and so many roles are being filled from India / China / Philippines for sod all money.
And not just teh entry level stuff, engineering and project roles are also being flooded.
Also client budgets are greatly reduced so limited new projects coming up to help the industry move forward. (compared to the boom time of the '90's )
okgo said:
I can't seriously see the benefit of getting a degree to get a 12 grand a year job!
cough* There's IT and then there's IT... My Computer Science degree lead to a graduate trainee programme in financial services. With a starting salary that was almost 3x that.
Went straight into a security architecture role.
Alongside people in their 40's who had been working it up from the bottom after a career change 15 years ago, and they were doing pretty well to end up where they were.
So don't rule it out
caveat: Obviously the above doesn't apply to an "IT Degree" from your local poly, but if you can get a proper mathematically based computing degree it's going to set a rocket off under your ass.
Edited by BMWBen on Sunday 4th September 21:01
You have a network X at site A and a Network Y at site B what do you need to configure at both ends for OSPF? This is a very simple networking issue and only requires 2-3 lines config on the router/switch each end. Most places use the standard industry exams as a basis for judging basic knowledge so expect passes in these exams.
MrP80 said:
Cisco qualifications are near enough de facto for any networking role when you have no experience:
http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/le3/learning_car...
Everyone has them and most are gained with exam cram cheat sheets which make them virtually worthless. As others have said get a job in support in you can and work your way up. Try to avoid specialising in anything as the change in technology will leave your specialisation with much less value in a few years time. http://www.cisco.com/web/learning/le3/learning_car...
I keep waiting to be made redundant by the self healing network.
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