What should I do? I'm 26 years old help me!!

johansen89

Hello everybody! I am currently attending college at Intellitec and will be graduating in about a month with an Associates in Computer Networking with a 4.0 GPA and hopefully an A+ certification. I just recently passed the A+ 801 hardware test and will be taking the A+ 802 in about a week or so. I'm extremely nervous because other than school I have no experience working in the IT field most my knowledge is theoretical other than fixing friends computers and helping my step dad update his website every once in a while. I am currently working part time doing landscaping and tree removal for my step dad and I do online marketing stuff on the side which doesn't pull in much money at all. I'm having a tough decision on deciding what to do. My original goal before starting all this was to get a CCNA certification and try to land a internship or job right away since I love the networking side of computers, but now time is running out and i still haven't studied enough to pass the CCNA. I've been researching if it is even worth it to get the certification and lot of it is disheartening to me it seems like it's not even worth it. The experience is all that matters. So my options right now are to look into going to back to school for a bachelors in web site development and then maybe try to get my CCNA while attending or start looking for a job/internship and just lay off from school for a while and try to get experience. I know some people will be like why don't you do both, work and go to school but i can't do that otherwise my grades will slip and will probably end up with too much stress and end up dropping out. After looking through forums it seems like people can't land a job even with a Bachelors + CCNA with no experience. I have been looking around and help desk seems like my only option, and whats worse is it only pays like $9.50/hr and you have to work a minimum 40hrs/wk. I am not the help desk type and get stressed very easily I also can get a temper and take things to heart even if they are mad at the company and not me. I also had a friend work help desk and he was so depressed from it that he was contemplating suicide. So I really want to avoid the help desk scene and do something more hands on other than listen to angry customers all day! Please any advice or help would greatly be appreciated. I know I may seem like kind of a loser being this old and trying to get in this field but I have loved computers ever since I was 13 and have always had a passion to learn new things about them. Any ways if you have an idea or can give me some input good or bad it would greatly be appreciated. I just feel like I'm lost and the clock is ticking and I have no idea what to do. Feel free to ask me any questions too. Thanks

Danielm7

OK, first get over the age thing, you're 26 not 76. Lots of people, myself included started professionally at the same age or older and are doing great as long as you set goals and aggressively go after them.

Next, if you want to get into networking then finish school and study for the CCNA while looking for jobs. You seem to be predetermining whether you can or can't do any of these things. Read some of the success stories on this forum, they aren't made up, they are all real people, you've got an entire life ahead of you with a lot of opportunity but sitting back and talking yourself out of a career isn't going to help you in any way.

A lot of the people here (again, myself included) went to school while working in IT. I'm sure others will jump in here and pimp WGU, I went there, great experience. Even without any grants you're looking at a max of $6K a year in loans for as many classes as you can gobble up. You'll have to be self motivated to work hard and I don't know the accreditation status of your current school so I don't know what your transfer options are like otherwise. Sure, the first job might not be your dream position and it might not be easy to get, but it is a stepping stone. Finish your AS and finish your A+, put your resume up on here (with your personal details removed) and let everyone rip it apart and put it back together again until it looks good and helps show your school training, personal work, volunteer work, etc. You don't have to quit working to go to school, there are a number of accredited online options where you can finish your BS in your free time. Sure, it's hard, you'll lose some extra social time and some sleep, but you also won't just sit home for the next two years being upset that you are now two years older and not in the IT workforce.

Helpdesk isn't always fun, it is also the most typical first step for most people in IT. You can either get a helpdesk job and suck it up and study your butt off while there and get promoted internally or start applying to higher level jobs in a year with that experience on your resume. You can also work in smaller companies where you might do less call center type work and be more of a desktop support / general support type, you can learn a lot that way but you'll lose the name recognition that you might have gotten by working at a giant company that everyone has heard of.

Take a deep breath, stop thinking of yourself as a loser or you really will be one, and start planning your future.

johansen89

Best advice I have ever gotten! Thank you! Hopefully most the credits transfer but it is a for-profit college so I'm not totally sure but at least half should transfer. This post was very motivating to me, and I will take your advice. Thanks again.

AnthonyG

After reading your post, I'd suggest staying away from working with retail customers(Comcast help desk). Find an IT job where you are working for people employed by the same company...Its much easier to go to your boss or HR if someone is treating you like a dog.