Starting to regret the career transition to IT

I was recently able to make a career change from criminal justice to IT, even declining jobs in interview as I refused to work in a call center, help desk type job. (Calls back to back to back)

I currently work at a school (IT department of two), where I periodically get calls, roam the school, interact with the students, hands on with WAPs, servers, punching wires, break/fix issues, etc.

In my early 30s, and I declined a job at the sheriff’s department during the transition and I’m starting to regret it. Even though the entry level pay is great. $19.00+ an hour. There is just so much down time at this position and I’m starting to get frustrated. I can’t study in my spare time, as I see so many other people do on the forums. I’m expected to stay/look busy with something work related, even if there is nothing to be fixed.

I know I’ll make more in the long run in IT than criminal justice. It’s just I’m not being pushed mentally, I get frustrated. I don’t know what I want to do in the long run. In school, working on my Net+, while I have my A+, and following that up with Sec+, along with the other certs through WGU.

I don’t know, I just constantly catch myself looking at indeed…..

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NOC-Ninja

IMHO

1. Stop going to WGU. Do that after you get the certs so you dont waste your time. You want ROI ASAP.
2. Concentrate on certs that you want to get. Lets say you want system. Go for VMware certs or Microsoft certs since it looks like thats what your experience is. If you want cisco, go for CCNA > CCNP > CCIE. Do not get any COMPtia anymore.
3. Study. Shut your world and just study. You cannot get **** done if you are doing other things. Dont go out on the weekends. No excuses.

OctalDump

See if you can cast study as research. Is there anything that needs renovation? Updating systems? Maybe refresh on security policy?

For example, you want to virtualise some servers, so you study up on HyperV, or maybe you are looking to refresh the network monitoring, so you study up on Cisco and Nagios (or whatever). So you can learn something, do a project, make things better, get good hands on experience and fill your time more productively. It's also great stuff for your resume and for job interviews: virtualised schools aging server infrastructure allowing better up time, more flexible provisioning, faster recovery, simpler management etc.

If there's really no opportunity for growth where you are, then maybe it is time to move on.

chrisone

Daneil3144 wrote: »

There is just so much down time at this position and I’m starting to get frustrated. I can’t study in my spare time, as I see so many other people do on the forums.

Sorry, no disrespect, but I don't follow these two statements.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

It’s just I’m not being pushed mentally, I get frustrated.

I think a big mistake many do in the IT field, is that they wait or expect someone else to push them or give them a new role. You are your own master, elevate your goals, study on the weekend, study after work, study at lunch hours. Present a new project, explain the business need, look towards having more responsibilities, own those responsibilities, conduct more team meetings, start showing some leadership qualities. Get out of the limited bubble of where you wait on someone else to give you a job, raise, projects, goals.

As for your goals, you should be done with those Net+ and Security+ by the end of this year. Target professional level certs next year from whatever direction you want in your career (routing/switching, security, server infrastructure, voip, wireless, databases, etc)

Start telling yourself where YOU want to be, what projects YOU want to do, what certs YOU want to complete, what "technologies" YOU want to learn. If you don't know how to do all of the above, YOU need to research it.

We have faith in you!

kohr-ah

Ok. First off I apologize because I been doing this almost 10 years now and other here beat me farther than that.

Your statement "even if there is nothing to befixed"
There is ALWAYS something to be fixed. Running Telnet? You shouldn't be.
Wireless corporate not running 802.1x? why not?
Monitoring up to date? Do HAVE monitoring?

Nothing to do? EVERY JOB has something to take away from it no matter how bad. How do I know? I specialize in it. I join screwed up companies and standardize them then leave when they are set to go.

Jobs (mostly at corporate) are SILO'd. Push yourself. You are a brand. You need to show your worth and in the end if there is down time then there is something to learn.

I work 9 hour days and study 3 hours a day (WGU) and have a wife and 2 kids. Find a way to have no down time.

TheFORCE

I agree with the previous posts. There is always something to be fixed, you might think that there isn't, but trust us there is.
When was the last time you did an inventory at your school?
How many devices?
Are they all up to date?
Any assets that are old? Any software no longer supported?
How about those Windows 2003 or 2008? Identify them and submit them for projects to be removed.
How about vulnerability scanning?
Running Nessus or something else? Who reviews them?
How about the Security department? Does it exist or not? If it doesn't start building some foundations. If there is a security team, start asking them if there is something you can do to help.
How about guides and how tos? How about knowledge base documents with instructions to correcting weird issues that come up once in a blue moon.
All things that you can start doing.

Priston

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I can’t study in my spare time

Are you telling me you can't go through every single device and look at every single line of configuration and google what it does? You can't verify that it meets a standard or meets best practices?

I learn way more and I'm more motivated to study when studying is work related.

JoJoCal19

So much great advice here. I'll add, you can get pretty much every cert book electronically nowadays so you can be at your workstation and reading, so it looks like you're working. Even 30 minutes here and there will add up. Get there early and get some study time in. Lunch breaks. Go home and get in another 30-60 minutes right after work before you get into wind-down mode. Chrisone is spot on. YOU have to be the one to push yourself and put in the effort.

Advice here may sound harsh, but it's reality and most of us have zero sympathy for people who don't want to put in the work. I know myself during my schooling and all of my certs I was a newlywed, a new homeowner, a new parent (eventually to 3 kids), relocation across the state, new jobs, I was still able to find time to study and obtain two degrees and a multitude of certs, while not taking much time from my family. Wake up early and study, stay up later and study. Sleep is for the weak and uninitiated.

volfkhat

If i may,

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I was recently able to make a career change from criminal justice to IT, even declining jobs in interview as I refused to work in a call center, help desk type job. (Calls back to back to back)

Lesson #1
I.T. is a mile wide.
Saying that you want to work in IT... isn't really saying anything at all.
You need to narrow it down to a particular focus.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I currently work at a school (IT department of two), where I periodically get calls, roam the school, interact with the students, hands on with WAPs, servers, punching wires, break/fix issues, etc.

That's actually Not bad experience for someone with ZERO previous exp.
What is your coworker's background?
Is he your Boss, or is he your Peer?
You should be hounding him Everyday to TEACH you stuff that he knows.
Seriously. You are on a PAid Internship.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

In my early 30s, and I declined a job at the sheriff’s department during the transition and I’m starting to regret it. Even though the entry level pay is great. $19.00+ an hour.

Boo hoo hoo, Cry me a river.
Guess what? i just got back from an Alternate Universe... and you are unhappy in that one too.
You took the SHeriff gig... but now regret that you didn't take the I.T. gig.
See where i'm going here?

Daneil3144 wrote: »

There is just so much down time at this position and I’m starting to get frustrated. I can’t study in my spare time... I’m expected to stay/look busy with something work related, even if there is nothing to be fixed.

Now THAT is a fair point.
I gotta appreciate the Irony: Working at a School.... but Not allowed to STudy.

JoJoCal has a good idea; read ebooks sneakily on your work-computer.

I had a job a couple years back; all i did was BOX, unBOX, and reIMAGE computers ALL day.
it was Mind-Numbing.
I would get to work in the morning and (figuratively) turn OFF my brain.
When 5pm came around, i'm out the door and my brain turned back ON.

The bright side:
My Brain was actually Energized; I was EAGER to learn anything.
So Mon-Friday, I started waking up at 5:30am and studying until 6:30am.
Later on, i would spend HALF my lunch-break sitting in my car Reviewing the same Material from earlier that morning.

Professor Messer, Danscourses, Microsoft Virtual Academy.... i made it happen.
I lasted 9 months at that job; got a few certs; and got something better.
You can Too... if you make the sacrifice.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I know I’ll make more in the long run in IT than criminal justice. It’s just I’m not being pushed mentally, I get frustrated.

There's no guarantee of making more money. You could just flounder & flail & never make it.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I don’t know what I want to do in the long run.

Yeah... which leads back to Lesson #1. You need to narrow down your area of interest.
and Only YOU can decide on this.
Fwiw, i work with a younger guy (similar to you). Criminal Justice Degree; but wanted out.
He was the guy with the K9 that had to check the "mysterious" packages sitting in public places.
lol
He took an entry helpdesk gig... got his Security+... and 2-years later, is now working on the S.O.C.
Looks like he was able to leverage that Criminal Justice degree after all...

NOC-Ninja wrote: »

1. Stop going to WGU. Do that after you get the certs so you dont waste your time. You want ROI ASAP.
2. Concentrate on certs that you want to get. Lets say you want system. Go for VMware certs or Microsoft certs since it looks like thats what your experience is. If you want cisco, go for CCNA > CCNP > CCIE. Do not get any COMPtia anymore.

He doesn't actually have experience.
his resume:
http://www.techexams.net/forums/jobs-degrees/122576-resume-critique-help-me-change-careers.html#post1052188

Do you still think he shouldn't consider the Net+ and/or Sec+ for foundational Knowledge?
(just askin)

As for everyone else who chimed in;
Don't forget that he works at a School with an IT dept of two people.
How much of an Operating Budget do you think the school Really has for upgrading/improving their IT environment?
(again, just askin)

Verities

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I was recently able to make a career change from criminal justice to IT, even declining jobs in interview as I refused to work in a call center, help desk type job. (Calls back to back to back)

I currently work at a school (IT department of two), where I periodically get calls, roam the school, interact with the students, hands on with WAPs, servers, punching wires, break/fix issues, etc.

In my early 30s, and I declined a job at the sheriff’s department during the transition and I’m starting to regret it. Even though the entry level pay is great. $19.00+ an hour. There is just so much down time at this position and I’m starting to get frustrated. I can’t study in my spare time, as I see so many other people do on the forums. I’m expected to stay/look busy with something work related, even if there is nothing to be fixed.

I know I’ll make more in the long run in IT than criminal justice. It’s just I’m not being pushed mentally, I get frustrated. I don’t know what I want to do in the long run. In school, working on my Net+, while I have my A+, and following that up with Sec+, along with the other certs through WGU.

I don’t know, I just constantly catch myself looking at indeed…..

If you go into law enforcement you'll have long periods of no action as well; lots of driving around on patrol waiting for stuff to happen. Personally, if given the opportunity, I would have rather gone the law enforcement route but that's just because I come from a law enforcement/military heavy family. Anyways, most departments will take people up to 40 years old so you still have time to switch careers and if you made it through to one department's offer letter, then you can easily do the same for another department.

Keep in mind you have to do a lot of overtime to make as much money doing law enforcement as you can make in IT. I've been in 6 years, put in hard work to make my skills relevant and now make over six figures with no overtime involved. So that means more time with family, no holidays worked, no birthdays missed, and I have a fixed schedule. Starting out in law enforcement you will almost certainly get put on graveyard, have to work holidays, and birthdays....so there is a lot of sacrifice involved.

jamesleecoleman

Okay so heres the thing....

If there is no work then make work for yourself. If there is something that you would like to learn then try to find a way to implement it. You're going to get some great experience since there isn't 10+ techs along with network/server admins there. If you go into a corporate environment, you might not get the same experience that you're getting now. You have potential to get a lot of experience with this job. I'm in a similar spot as you are as for as employment but I'm the only one. I can call in support for things that I can't do at the moment.

dontstop

Sounds to me like your current role is holding you back. I'd look at skilling up and moving on. School roles are notorious for this. No budget, dealing with fires all day, teacher politics, low pay. Most schools either have soon to be retired or very young beginner staff because most very quickly move on and away from such a role.

dhay13

If possible set up a server at work with a hypervisor so you can set up some VM's for testing and practice. Just be sure it is ok with management

. Pass it off as a test bed for the company network

SweenMachine

My company has a 'no downtime' policy. I had a lot of downtime when I first started and I was forced to fake being busy. It sucked, but I did EXACTLY Priston suggested. I basically made my own work. We had so many servers and infrastructure pieces, I would immerse myself in my environment. I couldn't get in trouble for surfing the web when I was in my own environment.

With that said, you're brand new in IT - The world will not be handed to you. Make your breaks!

good luck!

-scott

Iristheangel

*scratches head*

So you've been in IT for less than 6 months and you're regretting it because you're not being challenged enough? Er... What did you expect to happen? Your first IT job was going to give you all this time to study and train you for the next job you jump ship to? Find your own time to study and challenge yourself. Even if you can't do it at work, get in early and start studying before your shift. Study during lunch. Study after work. Do whatever you need to do to get that next position you want.

DatabaseHead

The studying part can be managed with your management staff. Find something that aligns with your environment (a technology being used there current) and explain to them that you want to learn more about it so you can better use it in the environment or at least better support it. No way they would deny that IMO. Why?

If so then it sounds like you are a in a bad environment to grow in.

Daneil3144

NOC-Ninja wrote: »

IMHO

1. Stop going to WGU. Do that after you get the certs so you dont waste your time. You want ROI ASAP

Thanks for the advice, yet it doesn't seem to be sound advice. Especially since WGU pays for my certs.

volfkhat wrote: »

If i may,

Lesson #1
I.T. is a mile wide.
Saying that you want to work in IT... isn't really saying anything at all.
You need to narrow it down to a particular focus.

I find this difficult, if I haven't gotten my feet wet in the other fields. How would I know if I like doing it, if I have never experienced it? After reading multiple replies on this post, I am starting to lead towards the SOC route.

volfkhat wrote: »

That's actually Not bad experience for someone with ZERO previous exp.
What is your coworker's background?
Is he your Boss, or is he your Peer?
You should be hounding him Everyday to TEACH you stuff that he knows.
Seriously. You are on a PAid Internship.

Technically my boss. Same position for the past 20 years, no certs/or degree.

volfkhat wrote: »

Now THAT is a fair point.
I gotta appreciate the Irony: Working at a School.... but Not allowed to STudy.

JoJoCal has a good idea; read ebooks sneakily on your work-computer.

Don't think it hasn't crossed my mind.
Until he mentions this story of the one guy that got fired/quit, as he like sitting at his desk too much.

volfkhat wrote: »

As for everyone else who chimed in;
Don't forget that he works at a School with an IT dept of two people.
How much of an Operating Budget do you think the school Really has for upgrading/improving their IT environment?
(again, just askin)

You hit the nail on the head. If corporate doesn't authorize the upgrade for their many schools, it will never happen.

SweenMachine wrote: »

My company has a 'no downtime' policy. I had a lot of downtime when I first started and I was forced to fake being busy.

Glad, I'm not the only one.

Thanks for the advice. I'll just tough it out for 12-15 months, and hopefully move on to something grander. It can be a good fluffer for my resume as opposed to the typical call center help desk job.

During the interview, they even told me they didn't expect me to last 24 months before I moved on.

dhay13

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Technically my boss. Same position for the past 20 years, no certs/or degree.

Sounds similar to my last boss. He had no formal education or certs and any time I brought up certs he scoffed and told me what a waste of time and money. Pretty sure he just felt threatened so didn't want me to learn any more (I already knew 10x what he did). He actually wanted to go to school for accounting so it isn't that he was against schooling. He started out there in the Shipping dept. and the owners philosophy was that if they liked you they would find a spot in the office for you and figure you can learn it.

volfkhat

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Don't think it hasn't crossed my mind.
Until he mentions this story of the one guy that got fired/quit, as he like sitting at his desk too much.

Seriously??
Wow, dude... your job sucks.
lol

Time for Plan B:
Pull out your Calendar at home; Study it carefully; then figure out an Exit Date.

Circle it in Red.
Then start taking all necessary steps to meet this deadline.

Good Luck!

Daneil3144

Verities wrote: »

Keep in mind you have to do a lot of overtime to make as much money doing law enforcement as you can make in IT.

This overtime comment - I know firsthand to be true. In the criminal justice field, there is no shortage in overtime.

dhay13 wrote: »

He started out there in the Shipping dept. and the owners philosophy was that if they liked you they would find a spot in the office for you and figure you can learn it.

Wow, your last boss must have a doppelganger. My current one started in a different department and then was transferred to be the Network Admin of the school. He proclaims he is "self-taught," also.

volfkhat wrote: »

Seriously??
Wow, dude... your job sucks.
lol

Time for Plan B:
Pull out your Calendar at home; Study it carefully; then figure out an Exit Date.

Circle it in Red.
Then start taking all necessary steps to meet this deadline.

Good Luck!

Yea, but how soon, is too soon? My mentor at WGU stated to wait until 6 months.

I have an interview(phone) next week...I don't think they read the applications, because I'm surprised they called me, since I notated that I couldn't start until August.

volfkhat

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Yea, but how soon, is too soon? My mentor at WGU stated to wait until 6 months.

I have an interview(phone) next week...I don't think they read the applications, because I'm surprised they called me, since I notated that I couldn't start until August.

There's no such thing as too soon.
a better opportunity... is a better opportunity.

i think getting some intro certs would help your case.
(but it's on you to figure out which certification & how how it will take to earn it)

GSXR750K2

It sounds like a case of buyer's remorse, but you also don't want to give up the prospects.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice, yet it doesn't seem to be sound advice. Especially since WGU pays for my certs.

It is sound advice in the context of time, which I'm gathering you feel is running out. I don't know how far along in your program you are, but the thing with WGU certs is, you may have to wait a year or even two to do a particular one, whereas you can attain it on your own much quicker. Sometimes one cert covers multiple courses, whereas if you're already in the program, it won't. I'm sure it's changed since I did my B.S., but MCSE got me out of five courses alone. At the time I already had my CCNA and CCNA-Sec, so those got me out of those course requirements as well.

Just because you get them for "free" from WGU doesn't mean it's in your best interest to wait for the cert courses to come around.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I find this difficult, if I haven't gotten my feet wet in the other fields. How would I know if I like doing it, if I have never experienced it? After reading multiple replies on this post, I am starting to lead towards the SOC route.

volf is right. Saying "I work in I.T." is like saying "I work in the medical field." It's a very broad statement. If you're just starting out, you've got a lot of foundational knowledge to gain before you can get your feet wet in other aspects of the industry. You may not like it, but doing those back-to-back calls can expose you to a lot of elements that you want get while sitting bored at your desk, and that experience will help you understand why things are the way they are when you start looking for a specialty that you really want to dig into. I say "specialty" because if you think you can be a master programmer, master DBA, master SysAdmin, and master Network Engineer all at the same time, I have some bad news for you.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Technically my boss. Same position for the past 20 years, no certs/or degree.

If true, then that should be an indicator to bounce, as it will be a while before you get enough experience to surpass him, so you'll be under him the whole time and it doesn't sound like you think he has a lot to offer if you aren't actively learning from him.

Daneil3144 wrote: »

Yea, but how soon, is too soon? My mentor at WGU stated to wait until 6 months.

Your mentor is there to help you with any problems you have with the school. If you're willing to take his/her advice on job opportunities, then surely a lot of the things said here by people working in the field will be taken seriously.

blatini

It is odd that your job would get on you for studying, but I think you're a bit overeager and not allocating that energy properly. Like other people said take time out of your real life to study. Also what exactly are you doing to look busy when there is nothing happening? Reading technet, cisco or any other site will help you in your studies.

If you have downtime and something breaks don't stop at "it's working now." Drill down to a granular level and get statistics showing when it went down, from where, and why. When your boss wants you to get something they repeatedly ask for, learn to build a script to get it done. A lot of the interesting stuff with IT is things you do on your own.

I would imagine though that no matter how insignificant you are finding your work it will beat doing speed traps in the middle of the night. **** that

sillymcnasty

How is studying for certs not work related? CCNA can help you work with servers (routing, etc), punching wires (568B configuration), etc. It wouldn't even be a lie to say it is work related.

Also, this will probably sound offensive, but you sound a little whiny. If you don't push yourself, nobody will. Listen to audio of IT courses on your commute if anything!

KGhaleon

eh, I'm kinda starting to feel the same way TC.
I've been working Desktop support for a defense contracting company here in California for nearly 10 years, and I've gotten to the point where I'm pretty entrenched in everything so it would be hard to leave at this point. It's honestly been a nightmare working here due to the amount of security on all the hardware and the complex needs of our customers(mostly mechanics and engineers) and the hundreds of constantly changing procedures. I have money and benefits, but I feel pretty dead inside...lol

scenicroute

OK, so what you can do is get an empty computer case with the side panel off and put it under a desk. Then lay on the floor with one hand inside the case, holding a tablet so you can study, and have a screwdriver or something in your other hand so you look busy. Easy money.

In all seriousness, I relate to your frustrations. IT is a highly proactive field, but your ability to be proactive is influenced greatly by your environment and management. The worst environments are those that always want you to look busy but don't allow you authority to actually make any changes or be proactive. It sounds like that's what you're caught in. It can be discouraging when management shoots down/has no interest in any change/improvement you propose. On one hand, you want to show value, on the other hand you're not allowed the resources to do it.

Unfortunately, the best you can do in those kinds of situations is just try to get out and move to a better job/company (often easier said than done, I know). You want to be in an environment that will either A) keep you busy with real work,

let you study on your down time, C) let you be proactive, listen to your ideas, and give you the resources to implement them (difficult to find in entry-level). If you can't get at least one of those three, then your environment sucks and it's time to get out.

Daneil3144

GSXR750K2 wrote: »

If true, then that should be an indicator to bounce, as it will be a while before you get enough experience to surpass him, so you'll be under him the whole time and it doesn't sound like you think he has a lot to offer if you aren't actively learning from him..

Yea, there is no surpassing him. He's at the top.

blatini wrote: »

It is odd that your job would get on you for studying, but I think you're a bit overeager and not allocating that energy properly. Like other people said take time out of your real life to study. Also what exactly are you doing to look busy when there is nothing happening? Reading technet, cisco or any other site will help you in your studies.

It isn't about not having enough free time in my off-time to study. It's about reading in these forums about all this downtime and being surprised that you guys are allowed to read/study in your downtime. I really can't be at my desk during downtime.

What I am supposed to do, is roam the campus/classes, looking for issues - since every student has a campus issued laptop.

sillymcnasty wrote: »

Also, this will probably sound offensive, but you sound a little whiny. If you don't push yourself, nobody will. Listen to audio of IT courses on your commute if anything!

Missing the point of this thread. It isn't about studying in my free/off time. It's about too much downtime. Now if I am gone from desk, no one will question what or where I was doing. (Being gone for five hours - don't hear a peep from anyone )
Being at my desk, I'm checked on every 5 seconds - while he mumbles 'What to Do, What to Do (Even though I'm working on something)

scenicroute wrote: »

Unfortunately, the best you can do in those kinds of situations is just try to get out and move to a better job/company (often easier said than done, I know). You want to be in an environment that will either A) keep you busy with real work, let you study on your down time, C) let you be proactive, listen to your ideas, and give you the resources to implement them (difficult to find in entry-level). If you can't get at least one of those three, then your environment sucks and it's time to get out.

All I could do was laugh when I read this...because this is the epitome of what I was wanting, when I switched fields.
You understand where I am coming from....

blatini

Yeah I will say that being forced to roam campus is really weird and counter productive. I would look to get another job because that is definitely not indicative of what the majority of IT jobs are. Maybe during all that roaming you could do some phone interviews and get a feel for what's out there.

MontagueVandervort

Daneil3144 wrote: »

I currently work at a school (IT department of two), where I periodically get calls, roam the school, interact with the students, hands on with WAPs, servers, punching wires, break/fix issues, etc.

I haven't read through all the replies here. Don't have time (sorry), but I think I'm probably going to go with something different than I've seen so far.

This is the exact same thing I did on my last "job" (which was only work-study, but this is exactly what I was doing.) I loved interacting with the students and faculty, but the IT department was a whole other story. This is a really bad first image of IT because most of the people who work in these depts as I've noticed are just there because of who they know and not what they know. It's a big crapfest of "you pretend you're something and I'll let it go if you pretend I know something too" and mostly everbody there is just stagnant in their learning and knowledge levels and has just about zero drive.

Really bad first image of IT. I love Tech, but that atmosphere was even starting to turn me off.

You say you keep finding yourself on Indeed. Ok so go with that. If you're really this unhappy then look for something else that you'll feel more able to grow in...

BUT and here's the big part. I think you're too picky for a nube on the types of jobs you'll take. Come down a bit on that just for a while at least. I read through your post, and all I saw was "I declined" this and "I refuse to do" that. It's not looking so good right now in the "do what you have to do to get your foot in the door" process for you. I think in the beginning we're mostly stuck in the help desk or call center types of positions.

And really - nobody is going to push you. You have to push yourself. It has to be by you - for you.

kiki162

Clearly your strategy isn't working well, so you will need to change a few thing to get you going in a better direction. A lot of the ppl on here have the drive and make the time to get to that next level. You have a lot of downtime at work, so use that to your advantage. It shouldn't be an issue to study on something that's job related. You are relying on your school training to get your certs, and you should try and break away from that. If you need to go back to another job to make more money in the meantime then DO that. Although you really don't know WHAT you want to do, figure out what you enjoy first. Do you like system administration, or do you like network admin stuff more? Once you figure that out, then find a better school that will provide you with some of the basic skills needed.

There's a lot of people that deal with Criminal Justice and IT in forensics. I know a few people that have their degrees in digital forensics, and I can tell you that both system administration and networking experience will be useful. Get the basics down first, because you can use that anywhere, then go for the more specialty areas of IT to build on it.

_Nicolas_

Reality is that if part of your job is maintaining/deploying/administrate a network you will always have things to improve, fix, reconfigure, etc,etc

It goes from network diagrams , running cables, mount equipment, configuration and so on.

Same thing applies with servers.....

You learn valuable skills every step of the way.

I study for a CCNA cert on my off-work time.

What I did was talk with one guy at the IT department ( thats you in your case, so you can skip that) and started helping him with network diagrams (logical and physical). Then replaced some switches around the office with cisco switches and configured those to fit the actual network ( i bought the switches on ebay).

Then the guy saw that I was useful and let me contribute bit by bit. Now I have access to fiddle with most things according to my skills level and I have a small practice lab at work. If Im sitting at my desk hitting the keyboard with a console opened who is gonna say anything about it.

And last but not least