Career path advice

ScottK89

Hi all,

I'm more or less just starting my career in IT after years of being a PC enthusiast (building custom PCs for friends and family, doing basic troubleshooting and things like virus removal, etc). I've been mostly self-taught, but after some recent life experiences I've decided to go back to school and get my career on track. So I'm currently in school and also working in a help desk doing mostly software troubleshooting (but also using Active Directory, Exchange console, RDP, new PC builds using images...basic help desk stuff).

I'm currently towards the end of my Net+ class in school after completing the A+ courses and the Win7 course - my Net+ final is next Monday. Because of my background and my job, school has been easy for me thus far and I've kept a 4.0 GPA with little effort. I'm currently trying to figure out which precise path I'd like to take with my IT career. Fortunately, school will prepare me for the CCNA as well as the Server+ cert, which gives me options going forward, but I also recognize that these certs will have limited weight behind them for higher-level jobs.

I'm torn between the MS and Cisco cert paths. I'm thinking of heading more towards Cisco, but I do like the server environment and networking is the one area that I don't have much experience with (though my Net+ class has been relatively easy for me thus far, aside from memorizing the various network speed types and the physical infrastructure each requires - 100base-T, etc). So I'm looking for some guidance from professionals in the field. Which career path makes the most sense going forward?

Thanks in advance for any input!

iBrokeIT

ScottK89 wrote: »

Which career path makes the most sense going forward?

This is a question of preference so which ever one you enjoy working in the most.

I would encourage you to buy some cheap home lab equipment off of ebay and so you can get better feel for working with servers, switches and routers.

ScottK89

iBrokeIT wrote: »

This is a question of preference so which ever one you enjoy working in the most.

I would encourage you to buy some cheap home lab equipment off of ebay and so you can get better feel for working with servers, switches and routers.

I do have plenty of hands-on at work with servers, both hardware and software. That's what I value most about this job: the opportunity to have hands-on experience in a live environment. I understand a lot of what I do is out of the scope of work for some help desk techs, but it's been extremely beneficial for me. In our server+ class we'll be doing server installs as well as creating domains, and we have a CCNA course for "advanced" routing and switching, including hands-on with Cisco devices.

Still, it may be worthwhile to get some equipment at home. I like playing with things have my own set up at home (basic homegroup + various media shares for streaming and a small test box for testing a USB mutli-install flashdrive I made) - would be fun to add new things to it and maybe create a basic in-home domain or maybe set up a subnet.

Any recommendations for cheap equipment?

iBrokeIT

2 HP ProLiant G6 servers and a couple L3 Cisco switches would be a great home lab. The routers can be run from GNS3

dzzwhut

Go MS route then Cisco. Get's some experience (3-5 yrs) as a Sys Admin then transition to Networking. It will be better in the long run for job opportunities. If you go Cisco/Networking route first, you are most likely going to be limited for employment opportunities: large organizations, Service Providers, and possibility Consulitng firms. It can be difficult to transition back to a small/medium ogranization seeking mid/sr. level Network/Sys Admins because you don't have the experience managing AD/server environments... even though you have 5+ years as a Cisco/Network Engineer.

VAHokie56

Start playing around with Cisco...like some one mentioned before GNS3 and packet tracer are free for them most part. I would not bother with buying real gear you can do most of it with those two programs even more so at the level you are at.