Sever Admin Interview

ed_003

I just went on an Interview and they couldn't justify paying me what i was asking ($20/hr) ... but the CEO said that if i have my MCSA he would've paid me even more possibly starting @ 23/hr. I hate to fail at something I want to be good at, one part of me was disappointed with myself thinking that i could've studied harder and had the cert already.. and at the very same time I felt extremely motivated. I don't like working with lawyers they dicks and degrading and cant stand ppl like that so I would've not liked working there anyway but im glad i went It was an eye opener!!

scaredoftests

they sound like a bunch of maroons...

cruwl

What was the title of the job? What did they offer to pay?

ed_003

cruwl wrote: »

What was the title of the job? What did they offer to pay?

"Server Administrator" was the job title. The starting pay was 15/hr

scaredoftests

That is downright insulting.

ed_003

I thought the same thing. I guess it was my experience as an admin, and if i would had the MCSA it would've been more

cruwl

Yeah you didn't want to work there.

ed_003

I dont like setting myself up to fail, if im not going to Be comfortable im not gona work there

ed_003

right now i cant take the pay cut.. They are calling it System Admin but to me its more like help-desk.. he was explaining about tickets bla bla but i HATE help-desk with a passion I guess its because i didn't start in IT as help-desk even tho ive done it only because i was the only IT person in the company.

gespenstern

I just don't get why jobs requiring so much knowledge and skill are paid that tiny wage. I earn several times more but still don't feel that I get a lot, how younger ppl are supposed to survive with 15 to 20 $/hour is beyond my understanding.

$23/hour with MCSA that's ridiculous. I'd say $35-50 in the middle of nowhere and $60+ in all major cities. No less.

techfiend

Do you have admin experience? Seems rather ridiculous to pay someone 50% more for an MCSA, I would have told him I'm working on it to see if he'd bite.

I know $15 for server responsibilities is terrible, I've been there, done that. Around here, twin cities, with 1 year of admin experience with light engineer responsibilities like migrations and complete server setups. I'm basically placing myself out of contention asking for $30 per hour with the experience and a CCNA. I better get on my MCSA studies f I can expect $35+ and more since it's a relatively large city. Unfortunately I've seen $20 admin positions that require MCSA, average is probably $25-30 per hour.

I may have to take a trip down I94/90 just to find a decent paying job. I know they exist around here but they require a lot of specialized skills and many years of experience.

ed_003

yea this interview was a learning experience..

DoubleNNs

gespenstern wrote: »

$23/hour with MCSA that's ridiculous. I'd say $35-50 in the middle of nowhere and $60+ in all major cities. No less.

I WISH it was at easy as "Get an MCSA, work in a major city, make $100K+" -- I would start my MCSA today if that was the case.

majestic_pecan

$15 an hour for a server admin?!? I make $19 an hour as a computer operator. This thread is eye-opening for me as well.

nascar_paul

The organization strikes me as one that will ask for ANYTHING. Just to see if you're dumb or inexperienced enough to give it. Not where you want to work at all. I'm in the Atlanta market, and I've just started the process of trying to break into Systems Administration and it ain't been easy so far, and my fear is that I may end up working for an outfit like this in order to get some experience in the role!

Deathmage

ed_003 wrote: »

I thought the same thing. I guess it was my experience as an admin, and if i would had the MCSA it would've been more

even with a MCSA pay rate is 25 an hour minimal

techfiend

nascar_paul wrote: »

The organization strikes me as one that will ask for ANYTHING. Just to see if you're dumb or inexperienced enough to give it. Not where you want to work at all. I'm in the Atlanta market, and I've just started the process of trying to break into Systems Administration and it ain't been easy so far, and my fear is that I may end up working for an outfit like this in order to get some experience in the role!

That's why I took my current position which is my first IT job. I had another offer the next day for more money but it was help desk and thought I could learn more at my current position. I was definitely right after showing the eagerness to do complex things I was thrown in within weeks but the money didn't really follow. Now I need to get out but a lot of interviewers don't think my resume matches up with my years of experience. They expect 5+ years, which I've told a couple now that I'd expect to be engineering by that point in my career. Apparently to a majority years of experience is more important than capability as I'm nailing the technical interviews.

DoubleNNs

ed_003 wrote: »

right now i cant take the pay cut.. They are calling it System Admin but to me its more like help-desk.. he was explaining about tickets bla bla

It seems like lower level and even mid Level Sys admins still need to handle tickets FYI. When Help Desk has problems or are busy, you are essentially the escalation point. One of the main goals of most sys admins is to automate and document as much as possible so that the help desk personnel can take over the task. However, if you don't do a good enough job, you'e stuck w/ the resulting tickets.
Just as a heads up.

That's pretty much why it pays to be a good (lazy) Sys Admin.

ed_003

I dont mind doing tickets, i use Spice-works. But that being my only task is unbearable for me.. My anxiety goes off the meters . I feel like im the receptionist for the real IT guys, Hell No