Got My First Job!! Having Some Doubts...

hungrypigeon612

Hey guys,

I just got my first job as technical support for a small company that makes/sells tablets. I start as a temp for a few months with the potential to move fulltime. My duties will be to assist end users via email/phone regarding troubleshooting, shipping, and complaints. I have a BA in Sociology and am currently pursuing my AS in information systems. I have no relevant technical experience but tons of customer service experience. I am currently studying for my A+ Exam. ..I was surprised that they decided to hire me the same day as my interview. They said that since the holidays are approaching they need some extra help.

I realize that tablets are a pretty small subset of the IT field and was wondering if this was a good opportunity for me, or if this is a dead end job. They made me take a typing test, which I was surprised companies still did (BTW I killed it typing 134 wpm with 98% accuracy) . This would be my first full-time job related to IT so I don't know what to expect or if this is even a legitimate opportunity that I should take. I've heard some bad things about call centers. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

SephStorm

Experience is experience. Future employers will see that you have technical support experience. Its up to you to capitalize and try to get as wide as experience as possible. I wouldn't waste your money on an AS degree at this point. the fact that you have a degree at all will work for you. You are moving backwards on that.

Verities

To me, it sounds like you are setting yourself up for success . You don't have to make a career with this company, just learn your job, build your skills and your certs then move on after a year or two.

jibbajabba

That is how I started. Do it .. To give you an idea, here a rundown of my experience

1. Degree in Electronics Engineering
2. Electrics got outsourced so company put me on a bus (was working for public transport company)
3. Did some bits here and there, but nothing really I.T wise properly
4. Started in Tech Support for Xerox, trying to fix printers over the phone. Most difficult IT bit at that time - printer server adapter for parallel ports (yepp, I am that old)
5. Then studied IT stuff in my spare time (NT4 / Win2000)
6. Job as Support Monkey in HP
7. Job as Slightly better monkey in Symantec
8. Senior in 888.com
9. Senior in several hosting / financial companies
10. Senior Consultant for virtualization


So whether you got experience or not, you can do it (and I don't even have an IT degree).

Cyberscum

Gotta start somewhere. If you are interested in an IT related degree I would go masters, not AS. Other than that as long as you have the drive the sky is the limit on how far you can go. The hardest part is getting the initial job in IT, which you have now. GJ and GL.

joneno

Stop the AS degree immediately and look for a Masters program that suits you, you're selling yourself short doing the AS.

markulous

joneno wrote: »

Stop the AS degree immediately and look for a Masters program that suits you, you're selling yourself short doing the AS.

I disagree. If the AS is cheap and at a community college, why not? It's pretty easy to transfer that to a Bachelor's program, then transfer to a Master's program. Also gives him something to put on his resume until he attains a Bachelor's/Master's. He's only selling himself short if he's stopping at an AS.

MeanDrunkR2D2

markulous wrote: »

I disagree. If the AS is cheap and at a community college, why not? It's pretty easy to transfer that to a Bachelor's program, then transfer to a Master's program. Also gives him something to put on his resume until he attains a Bachelor's/Master's. He's only selling himself short if he's stopping at an AS.

Only reason I wouldn't get the AS for him or a bachelors for that matter is because he already has a bachelors degree. Getting into a masters program would be better than an AS for sure. However, at this point, it would be better to pick up some certifications. Since he's new to tech, the A+ is a great one and then depending what his career goals are, focus on the next step. (IE, MCSA for Win 7 if he wants to jump into desktop support next, or CCENT/CCNA if he wants to go into networking.)

As far as the experience goes, good job with getting that position. Before we all walk we have to learn how to crawl and that will get you some experience that will be very beneficial in the long term. Also, keep your eyes open for any helpdesk type roles that may pop up in your area. They love those with a passion for tech and have a solid customer service background. The tech stuff they can teach to those who want to learn and grow. The customer service part takes quite a bit longer for a person to master and be proficient at. And also, with the company you are starting at, there may be opportunities to move up, so work hard, listen, and learn from those showing you the ropes and the supervisors will see that and reward a person who does that.

markulous

Whoops. My bad. I didn't see he already had BA.

tkerber

So he already has a Bachelors in Sociology--which will help. However, I don't think an AS would necessarily hurt either and especially if it's a cheap CC degree and is teaching you practical applicable skills. The BA in Sociology will check some boxes for you later on but if this AS is anything like some of the ones I've seen, it may be really valuable and really help 'the rubber hit the road' with concepts and understanding. I've met a few guys that took round two at a CC to get an AAS degree in an IT related subject after they chose Bachelors in History, Psychology, etc..