Career Advice for a newbie to IT

faizanchaki

I totally new to IT profession. Although have been attached to computers and internet for a long time but I don't have a degree in CS. I have been studying finance and commerce.
I now want to do a career change and need advice on how to go about being a certified information security professional. Please guide.

Jon_Cisco

Welcome to the forums.

Since you stated such a specific goal it should be something you can look into already. If you have more specific questions there are a lot of active members and plenty of past posts on the subject.

This is a great site so stick around and I can assure you this site helps with motivation when it all seems like to much.


I would try this for starters.
Let me google that for you

faizanchaki

Googled it. It seems most people suggest doing CompTIA Security+ to get started. But I don't have any sort of experience in the field. I'm from Pakistan so I also don't know about the testing centres and fees etc.

Doyen

If you don't have any experience, I would recommend looking into the A+ and Network+ certification before considering Security+. There are plenty of free material on YouTube (such as Professor Messer) that you could watch to gain some insight on the IT field.

Jonathan A.

I'm in the same boat as OP, looking to switch to IT and specialize in networks/security. I've received my CompTIA Network+ cert, but I still seem to fall on deaf ears/eyes. In my last application attempt, the recruiter told me I didn't have any experience in a Windows environment. The position was an entry level IT support and required basic Windows Vista/7 exposure.

Unless you're surrounded by a plethora of IT security companies, you're going to need to build on your certs and start from the beginning. Personally, I will probably sit for the Microsoft MTA exam, take a starter/entry level position, and maybe attempt MCSA shortly after.

When it comes down to it, you'll need to do some research yourself. As far as a career change, I would recommend obtaining an entry level certification such as the MTA because you're never going to beat out someone with professional experience.

If anyone else has any feedback or suggestions, I would certainly welcome it.

Barone

If your completely new, something I've learned from the Service Desk environment is to sell your customer service skills and client relationship building/maintaining/managing skills. Technical skills help but you still need to communicate with people everyday.