Comp Sci Graduate, Unsure where to go with IT

Miksi

Hi there,I'm graduating with a bachelor's in Comp Sci. from a reputable university.I've realized that being a software developer is not something i want to pursue and I've been interested in IT all my life.I'm not sure exactly what it is that I want to do in IT, I've always been interested in networks (also have taken many Comp Sci. networking courses) and I currently work part time with SQL, maintaining a small database.What I'm seeking advice in is a IT career path where I can utilize some of my Comp Sci knowledge but also pursue something with networking and/or SQL.Does anyone know something that would fit me and where I should start?Sorry if I'm being vague, please let me know if I can explain better, I'm just really confused where to go from this point and I'm about to graduate so I need to get my stuff together!

markulous

Do you want to continue to work with SQL or are you just trying to lobby that knowledge into a new job? I don't have a ton of networking experience so I'm unsure how much you would use that there as much as you would as a systems/database admin. I know it would come in handy in network security later down the road, but maybe someone else has a better idea.

If you're looking for networking, N+, CCENT, and CCNA (in that order) would be good. Or if you're familiar with N+ concepts, then go straight to the CCENT as CompTIA exams aren't really cheap and I don't blame you for trying to avoid them.

NinjaBoy

I don't see why you can't go into something with networking. I did my BSc in Computing (specialising in Software Engineer) and ended up in the support route (desktop/Server/Networks) now an IT Manager... Of course I augmented my BSc with experience in the tech field and professional certs (eg Comptia, Microsoft, etc)

Miksi

markulous wrote: »

Do you want to continue to work with SQL or are you just trying to lobby that knowledge into a new job?

Thanks for the reply.
I guess I'm just trying to use it in finding a job, not something I am very passionate about.

Could I skip CCENT and just do CCNA?

NinjaBoy wrote: »

I don't see why you can't go into something with networking. I did my BSc in Computing (specialising in Software Engineer) and ended up in the support route (desktop/Server/Networks) now an IT Manager... Of course I augmented my BSc with experience in the tech field and professional certs (eg Comptia, Microsoft, etc)

Thanks for the help, which certs did you do specifically when starting out?

markulous

Miksi wrote: »

Thanks for the reply.
I guess I'm just trying to use it in finding a job, not something I am very passionate about.

Could I skip CCENT and just do CCNA?

You have to take ICND1 and ICND2. You can take them separately or you can take them together. I personally think it would be easier taking them separately as they have different objectives.

kly630

That's an interesting goal to mix SQL and networking. Not sure there's much that's obvious except trying to be a database admin or a network admin somewhere.

I come from a computer science background myself and have only spent 3 short months as a developer at IBM in my career. And I quickly left that for other jobs. So there are other options out there. Not sure there will be a lot blending networking and SQL though. There's lots of opportunities in the network/sys/database admin space that I think more people should keep in mind. Stuff that's not always reached through a traditional developer role. Although, being able to do a hybrid devOps type role is becoming more and more important out there from what I see.

Miksi

kly630 wrote: »

That's an interesting goal to mix SQL and networking. Not sure there's much that's obvious except trying to be a database admin or a network admin somewhere.

I come from a computer science background myself and have only spent 3 short months as a developer at IBM in my career. And I quickly left that for other jobs. So there are other options out there. Not sure there will be a lot blending networking and SQL though. There's lots of opportunities in the network/sys/database admin space that I think more people should keep in mind. Stuff that's not always reached through a traditional developer role. Although, being able to do a hybrid devOps type role is becoming more and more important out there from what I see.

Thanks so much for your insight! I guess I'll just go towards network more then and just write the SQL in my resume. Which position names specifically do you think would be good to start training for?

markulous wrote: »

You have to take ICND1 and ICND2. You can take them separately or you can take them together. I personally think it would be easier taking them separately as they have different objectives.

Great, I'll start looking into it, thanks a lot!