What to do next? Need some advice...

quickman007

I'm currently doing desktop support for a smallish organization. It's me and one other guy in the team. Got my CCNA back in June of 2015 and started applying for networking jobs with no luck. dabbled with CCNP material until October when I started studying for the VCP-DCV. Didn't get to take the exam as family came down for two months in December and knocked out all of my study time.

So in two weeks they'll be gone and I'm going to hit the study game hard again. My issue is I'm at a crossroads. Long term I want to be a Network Engineer, however I'm finding it very difficult to get an entry level networking job for some experience. From what I've been hearing a CCNP with no network experience can do more harm then good, hence why I stopped studying last year. It seems like a Jr. Systems job would be easier to get and they're more abundant in my area, so I could finish the VCP and then go for the MCSA. The problem is I just don't want to be in Systems. I've also been considering a bachelors from WGU (already have an A.S. degree).

I'm just confused on what to do right now. I want to be a Network Engineer, but it's pretty much a case of you need experience to get experience. The single reason I'm not diving head first into the CCNP is the fear of my having the cert with no experience will hurt my chances even more. I feel like going for the MCSA will lead me in a completely different direction.

Does anyone have some suggestions? Should I continue with the CCNP? MCSA? Bachelors? Something else?

koz24

Don't bother with MCSA or VCP if you want to be a Network Engineer. Some guy on this forum landed a Jr Network Admin position with no experience and no certs, so the jobs are out there, albeit hard to find.

Another option instead of CCNP is to go broad in CCNA and get some valuable certs like Collaboration and Security.

bpenn

Well, there is always the NOC route. The pay maybe similar to your desktop support role, not sure. My area is very slim for networking roles and, even then, you need at least 4-6 years experience. Just keep trying to get a junior slot or a NOC role. Consider moving if the area just doesnt have enough opportunities. Theres jobs out there but you may have to go to them!

quickman007

I've mostly been applying in the two major areas near me (about 2+ hours away). I looked out of state but I'm not sure that would be a good move with my current skillset. A CCNA in another area might be good, didn't really consider doing that just yet. Maybe I'll knock out the CCNA Security and spam resumes, hopefully something will come up during that time.

Queue

I'm in your same boat except I have not achieved CCNA. Taking CCENT next week and hope to have INCD2 by April. I hope you find a job in networking so I can stay motivated. Is there no way to move up where you are?

techfiend

I'd continue on with the VCP-DCV. It's in very high demand and is a central point for systems, networking and storage. It'll likely give you a better idea of what you really want to do and should involve some networking if it's an SMB position. That can translate to an exclusive networking role later on at a different company if that's the route you choose.

The thing with networking is outside of enterprise few companies use Cisco equipment as it's much more expensive than comparable hardware from other companies. Enterprise wants experience because one mistake can be a financial disaster. Monitoring the network and notifying engineers is your likely starting point in networking, sound fun? Most really dislike it and seem to get stuck in this role for years.

I was recently in a 10,000's rack datacenter and saw very little navy blue, maybe 5% of the racks I looked at had Cisco. While many were smaller 1 rack systems. Some were 10+ rack systems with 100's of servers and dozens of switches, no cisco to be found. Sonicwall and Watch Guard were the most common routers, Dell and HP the most popular switches. Dell switches would give you valuable experience, same cli, to transfer to a cisco role. I don't know about HP.

quickman007

@Queue Well good luck buddy! You'll knock it out of the park for sure! There's no growth where I am whatsoever. We don't even have basic stuff like DHCP or Group Policy implemented due to....reasons.

@Techfiend Yeah, I don't think I could sleep at night knowing I've got a 70% off voucher for the VCP and never went for it. I'm not really specifically looking to work with Cisco gear exclusively. The certs seem to be the most popular an from what I've heard most of the information applies to any vendor, just some CLI difference. Unless I'm completely wrong on that, which is very possible.