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Starting Career Questions
Walrock
Registered Users Posts: 1 ■□□□□□□□□□
Hello all, i have an interesting situation here, and would really like it if i could get some directional help here.
Ive been in construction since i was 14, and had a crap high school that didnt help me with getting ready for college. Once i graduated high school I attended 4 schools over the past 10 years, along with moving a few times. I am currently enrolled in Tri-C in clevleand ohio, my current program is associate of applied business in information technology - programming and developement. blah, mouthful...anyway...ive always been into computers and interested in that type of thing. the hardest thing that im having trouble with is...where do i start. im 28 years old now, married and i have a 17 month old son...unfortunately living with my mother in law...so i need this more than anything. Where do i start? ive heard a lot about experience, but im not sure what to do about that. I also do not have knowledge that most people have, even before degrees and proper schooling. How do i get experience? and where do i start to get even more educated? where do you guys go to get your knowledge and what programs should i be looking into learning? what certs (if any since im getting my associates) should i get? any advice would be EXTREMELY helpful. i appreciate anything and i have open ears and mind!
Ive been in construction since i was 14, and had a crap high school that didnt help me with getting ready for college. Once i graduated high school I attended 4 schools over the past 10 years, along with moving a few times. I am currently enrolled in Tri-C in clevleand ohio, my current program is associate of applied business in information technology - programming and developement. blah, mouthful...anyway...ive always been into computers and interested in that type of thing. the hardest thing that im having trouble with is...where do i start. im 28 years old now, married and i have a 17 month old son...unfortunately living with my mother in law...so i need this more than anything. Where do i start? ive heard a lot about experience, but im not sure what to do about that. I also do not have knowledge that most people have, even before degrees and proper schooling. How do i get experience? and where do i start to get even more educated? where do you guys go to get your knowledge and what programs should i be looking into learning? what certs (if any since im getting my associates) should i get? any advice would be EXTREMELY helpful. i appreciate anything and i have open ears and mind!
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markulous
Member Posts: 2,394 ■■■■■■■■□□
Ultimately, you should have a decent idea of which field you want to work in IT. If you're wanting to do networking/security, then I'd recommend grabbing an A+ and start trying to apply to low-end help desk positions. There's a lot out there that don't require much experience because of how basic they are. That's usually a good place to start. I was 30 before I got my first official IT job and I was in a construction-related field also.
EDIT:One thing I also did was volunteer at a place called Protonic.com. All you have to do is pass a test (which you can Google the answers too) and you'll become a remote technician for their site. You can just grab tickets whenever you have time and it's 100% pro-bono work. I did that for a year and put it on my resume, which definitely didn't hurt. It at least shows initiative and gets you familiar with ticket management and shows you can do a few things. All trackable too. I'm sure there are other webistes out there. -
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CIO
Member Posts: 151
If it were me, I would start off with the CompTIA A+ to cover the fundamentals. After that, depending which area (Networking, Security ..etc) of IT you are interested in; i'would for certifications in those areas. I personally use YouTube, CBT Nuggets and various white papers and technical manuals for training and keeping up to date.