Would studying and passing MCSA give me a better change to become Helpdesk analyst?

ande0255

advanex1 wrote: »

What the heck is a Help Desk analyst? New title? Genuinely curious.

When I was a trainer, there was a Heirarchy as such:

Help Desk Analyst I = Answer inbound calls as quickly and efficiently as possible (phone metrics monitored closely)

Help Desk Analyst II = Answer inbound calls, train new hires, access to update the 'Knowledge Base' that other Help Desk analysts had to follow to the T on their tickets when closing or escalating them

Help Desk Analyst III = Answer inbound calls during heavy outages, work on training / onboarding materials for new hires

I made it to Helpdesk Analyst II and actually refused an offer to go to III, I often referred to my job as Hell Desk Analyst.

I deal with the same amount of chaos at my current job, but it's actually network infrastructure related, not password resets and pissed off insurance sales people who don't understand how to plug monitors into PC's properly.



And @ OP, I am glad to help, keep adding those connections and getting leads for jobs! Listening to good advice is great, but following it is a great step toward climbing that IT ladder!

faintingheart

Hey I was wondering how can I earn more skills for my resume?

For example how can I earn these and proudly put it on my resume?

microsoft office
Trouble shooting
Customer service
Technical support
networking
windows
computer Hardware
Active Directory
Management
windows server
DHCP
DNS

ande0255

You must lab, lab, and lab. That is the only way I absorb material because over the years I've traded hand-eye coordination, however when I lab over and over the commands become second nature.

I'd recommend getting a trial version of VMWARE workstation 10, and build servers off of that.

Most customers have 2-3 backup Domain Controller servers, all are a single box running Terminal Services / RDP gateways / Citrix. You need around 12gb of RAM on the host (physical machine), vCenter sits on top of the ESXI host, and then you can setup multiple servers from that host and learn virtual switching at the same time.

Cert courses will teach you what you need to pass an exam, nothing like real world experience on a resume or linkedin. Just make sure you can coherently explain certain processes, or basic troubleshooting at an interview table.

If you learn how to navigate vCenter well, HUGE step up!

ande0255

Add me to your linkedin I can endorse you, ande0255@gmail.com

faintingheart

Hey I sent a PM to you ande0255. I appreciate the idea of endorsing me, thanks!

faintingheart

Hey Ande0255, Do they sell lab books out there for MCSA and stuff? I see alot of Cisco labs, but not much MCSA lab books.

valenlane85

@faintingheart I felt I needed to reply to you on this as I was once in your situation!

Really depends on the year, recently I have been applying like crazy trying to get a NOC job here in Central Valley in CA and I am getting nothing, 9months ago I was looking for a new job and I was scoring a ton of interviews but didn't get any cause they were really good jobs but I had hardly no experience/certs to show I can handle the complexity of the position.

Now I have the certs and understanding, I can't find ****.

So I say this, if you have the means to push forward in learning and gaining certs do so but also slow down. Employers may see you as someone who goes to a Cert Mill and just gets certs because you may not have the experience so in there minds they might question it. Also, with those applications are you sending Cover Letters?

I would say 9/10 employers wont bother with you or even look at your resume without a cover letter.

All in all, keep your head up, keep applying, evaluate your resume! build a default Cover Letter you can tailor to the position you will apply for. Also as for Skills: You can only accurately list them if you have on-job skills.

microsoft office = MOS certs help, but don't bother
Trouble shooting = on job experience need to list this
Customer service = any job that requires you to interact with customers whether tech or retail
Technical support = on job experience required
networking = get CCENT cert from Cisco will demonstrate you have fundamental knowledge
windows = MCSA in Windows 7 or 10
computer Hardware = A+
Active Directory = Read AD Book or get MCSA windows server 2012 will boost you big time
Management = ??
windows server = MCSA
DHCP = Major MCSA, minor CCNA
DNS = MCSA

If you wish to send me your resume I can take a look at it and give you tips or point this out on what I would change, just let me know or msg me your email or vice versa.


Also to make note:

I started with only an AA degree no certs, I got jobs through local staffing agency and did 1-2days jobs that built-up to 1-2 week jobs and gathered enough experience to get a full-time job, still had no certs. If you can, start at staffing agency that deals with IT