Help with Certification Direction

Hello All,

Thank you for taking time to read my post and any advice/comments.

I am kind of stuck as to a direction where to begin. I'm fairly new to IT industry, my first IT job which I am in now involves IT support for online database system(SQL server). I'm in a level 1 role where I handle IT tickets for customers and forward escalation to next level team(programmers/developers). The company is small so there is not much room for growth(without relocating across the country and become a programmer/developer). With this being my first IT job, I want to gain as much experience as I can to build on my resume and put in enough time to make an impact for my next job.

However my ultimate goal/education is focused more on networking/security. I've completed my associates and will begin my baccalaureate studies in Fall of 2017. Degree would be BS in Information Systems & Technology with concentration in Cyber Security and Intelligence.

I'm stuck in the sense where I want to gain as much experience where I am at but that would limit me to database management. I can get certified in SQL that will have a positive impact on my role with my current employer but don't see it adding much value on where I ultimately want to end up. I know I don't have the experience/certs to go for a security job right now and I've tried to do self study for certs but it stretches me thin with my schooling and home life(wife+2 kids)

Is there anyone else in a similar situation or have been in a situation that can offer some advice? Is it better to focus on the now and go for SQL cert and make the best of where I am at currently while I finish my schooling? Or focus on security side of things now and try to use sec+ to get into a security type of job?

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Comments

ming746

Learn as much about your active role currently as you can and get that certifacatuion it will compliment you later.

Try not to tackle too much at one time cause in the end it will likely be counter productive and burn you out.

Dive into your job role and study for your SQL. You can study for an entry level networking cert such as net+ at the same time and that should be enough for your plate. Anymore will likely hurt you instead of help you.

Just pace yourself. You got your foot in the door some where so from here out its up to you if you fail or succeeded but you sound passionate and passion is the key

stryder144

Learn as much as you can about how to manage databases. Almost all areas of IT, including cyber security, are impacted to some degree by databases. Heck, there is now a move afoot to use "big data" principles to assist in gathering and exploiting threat intelligence. Your area of experience by no means limits your ability to eventually move into a cyber security role going forward. Look at it as a stepping stone.

ming746

I have to disagree with focusing on all areas of IT. You don't want to be a jack of all trades but a Master of none. Find your area and excell at it. This is why yoU have a TEAM. see your self as the 12 0clock positon and your tram mate as the 3oclock and so on and so on each member an expert of his dedicated field.. Find who share this same philosophy and you will be unbeatable.

Choose administration or engineering or security and dive into it.

DatabaseHead

Database guy here. SQL certs are about as worthless as they get (no offense) (I did mine for fun, strange I know). Security, Systems and Networking are a different animal they help out a lot there, from my perspective. SQL ties to the development world a lot more, which could careless about certifications in fact in some cases they can hurt....

If your end game is security and networking focus on that as far as personal development goes. (That's not to say you shouldn't focus on MS SQL while at work, you should but in regards to certifications I wouldn't worry about it).

amcnow

DatabaseHead wrote: »

Database guy here. SQL certs are about as worthless as they get (no offense). Security, Systems and Networking is a different animal they help out a lot there, from my perspective. SQL ties to the development world a lot more, which could careless about certifications in fact in some cases they can hurt....

For the most part, this is true. From personal experience, I've found development certifications can actually help when marketing your services to prospective clients when employed to a consulting firm. Just throwing that in...

DatabaseHead wrote: »

If your end game is security and networking focus on that as far as personal development goes. (That's not to say you shouldn't focus on MS SQL while at work, you should but in regards to certifications I wouldn't worry about it).

Agreed.

DatabaseHead

@Am

Fair enough, if operating as a technical / managerial consultant I would agree credentials of any sort in the specific named space can help. I do stand corrected, but W2, 1099 and FTE efforts (SEEM) to not care about them AT ALL. In fact since I have been working as a SQL developer no one that I have met focuses on any of this type of stuff. If certs come up (again from my space) they are SCRUM or agile. They are looking to move into a lead role, for money of course.

In short, it's completely normal to see our developers (both front end and back end) with methodology certifications but 0 technical.