Confused on where to go from here...

Phileeeeeeep651

Hello everyone, I'm looking for a little advice on advancing my career.

Currently I'm working as a monitoring analyst in an operations environment. My main duties include monitoring the company network and mainframe and servers, creating tickets when alerts pop up and contacting support teams regarding those alerts. I also do other things like tape operations and creating work orders for vendors.

This job is pretty much non technical work and half of my coworkers constantly question why I'm going to school to get my degree or why I get would even certified. The internal promotions within the company seem to be pretty non existent and the only real move from my position is a towards Production Support with more mainframe work, which interests me even less than my current position. I guess my biggest problem with my position is that I'm not challenged in any way and I pretty much spend 12 hours doing my WGU homework.

Before this position I was an IT in the Navy, working in a RF comms environment. I did a lot of building and troubleshooting of UHF/SHF/EHF circuits and managed 3 cisco routers(setting up WAN links and building ACL's). Pretty much the opposite of what I do now in the sense of technical work and pace.

I have a big interest in getting into the Networking field. I have about 3 years experience working with Cisco routers only and I should have my CCENT by the end of May. I'm attending WGU and I'm on pace to graduate towards the end of 2016.

I have been throwing my resume out in search of something a little more technical and network related and if I get a call back from a recruiter, its usually a help desk position doing Microsoft support. Now, I'm not against taking a help desk position but I just kind of figured my Navy experience and my current position would help me push past that, am I wrong in thinking this?

I guess my question is, has anyone else been in a similar position and how did you break through it?

Essendon

Get the CCNA asap and work on your resume. If you arent getting the calls for positions you are targeting, either your resume isnt doing you justice or you simply dont have the experience yet. Yep, get the CCNA quickly.

Codeman6669

x2 get your ccna. doors will open

N2IT

The internal promotions within the company seem to be pretty non existent and the only real move from my position is a towards Production Support with more mainframe work, which interests me even less than my current position.


Just curious why this is? More system experience would seem like a good thing, not many people have mainframe experience that isn't going away. They said that about COBOL about 20 years ago, there are still development position out there for that. I would assume system engineers for older platforms would be out there as well.

Why not take the promotion while finishing your BS? Would it pay more money?

Regardless I think it's a great you are getting your degree. That can only help IMO.

E Double U

x3 get your CCNA

successrealm

Use that off time to finish your degree, and get the CCNA. Then perhaps get CCNP and the big guy CCIE! I don't suggest going backwards to Help Desk. You are actually in a good position to up your certs game while doing network "stuff".

You were an RM/IT. So was I! USS Monterey was my last station. IT2(AW)

I'm sure your TS clearance is still valid? Don't know the market of Minn, or if you'd move to DC/VA, but that card may be an option to use?

kurosaki00

You got experience in RF networks (UHF/SHF/EHF)? Do you enjoy that? Try getting CCNA + CCNA Wireless. CWNP is another choice. If youre into more of the engineering aspect you can go for WCET (IEEE).

Phileeeeeeep651

Thanks for the responses! Consensus is... get my CCNA!

@N2IT, I want to like the mainframe, I really do. I think my biggest problem is that I understand things a lot better from a logical diagram type of way (stupid Navy block diagrams!!!) and when I ask questions like, "What exactly does this job do", "What is the reason this job Abended" or "How does the mainframe interact with the rest of the network", I either get an I don't know or they give me an answer that might as well be in Chinese. There doesn't seem to be a middle ground here. You're either typing in this command because this procedure told you to or your programing the system. Without rambling on too much longer, the lack of knowledge resources within my environment is the reason I am disinterested.

@successrealm, "I don't suggest going backwards to Help Desk" This was exactly what I was looking for. I didn't want to seem like I was better than a help desk position but I wanted to know if that would be considered a step back. IT2(SW) here, last station was the USS Abraham Lincoln. My TS is still valid, joined the reserves about a year ago and got it re-uped but the amount of clearance jobs in MN, that I've seen, are mostly very senior positions.

@Kurosaki00 I actually loved working with RF and eventually I'd like to get back into a SATCOM or IP transport type position. My goal after my degree is to get CCNA Wireless. Thanks for the info on the WCET, Ill have to look into that some more.