Some questions.

StuartT44

I did have a longer post but my browser deleted it

Question 1: How important is having an honours degree or a normal BSc? When applying for my second/third/management jobs does simply having a BSc allow me to pass the HR selection? Or does the fact it opens up the possibility for me to get a graduate job and to specialise early + get paid more make an hons worth it anyway?

Question 2: I plan on sitting the Sec+ and CCNA in the next 2 months, my current course has covered these and I'm hoping 2 months will be enough to recap the CCNA. Is this the best thing to do? Once I've finished the BSc/hons (1/2 years) I will likely have totally forgotten these but I'm hoping it will show that I had the knowledge at one point and should hopefully have it come back quickly when working in these areas.

Question 3: My course has also covered the A+ and Network+, are these worth getting even if I have a Sec+ and CCNA?

adrenaline19

1. I graduated with honors, no job cares. It made getting into a real grad school much easier though! Most real schools care a lot about GPA. I guess you could always go to a joke school like WGU or University of Phoenix. They don't care about GPA at all. My advice is, get good grades because you really want a deep understanding of the material. If you really understand the material, the grades will take care of themselves.

2. If you intend to forget everything you learn for the CCNA, why would you take it at all?

3. Net+ is worth getting just because it's a good stepping stone to prepare you for the other two. Could you walk in and pass the Net+ right now if it was put in front of you? If the answer is no, don't even think about the CCNA.

You are worrying too much about pieces of paper bro. Be a digital jedi, not a paper chaser.

McxRisley

I agree with adrenaline, I have never once been asked about my GPA in a job interview. Hiring managers in IT could give a **** less if you got an honors degree. If grades were that important to managers in IT they would be asking you your cert test scores as well. What hiring managers in IT really care about is experience and knowledge, yes certs will land you an interview, but you need to be prepared to be drilled on any material related to the job you are applying to.

scaredoftests

I have never been asked about my GPA and it doesn't need to be in the resume. It is really how you interview and your skill set.

Danielm7

The OP is talking about Scotland, people are replying about GPA in the US. I could be completely wrong but doesn't a BSc vs honours degree over there mean more actual schooling? Like closer to the US equiv of associates vs bachelors degrees?

dhay13

Honors grad here too and have never been asked my GPA.

PC509

When it comes to GPA, I'm always reminded of : What do you call the guy that finishes last in medical school? Doctor.

You should shoot for a high GPA. That number alone doesn't mean anything for a job. How you obtained that number does. It means you studied, learned the material, were committed, and kicked some ass in school. Your GPA won't matter, but you learned does. It's the difference between Dr. Nick and Dr. House (Simpsons/House reference).

If you over achieve in school, you'll probably do that at work, too. Excel in school, excel at work, excel at life.

We had a guy that applied for a job. He would do training "if it was required". He would get certified "if it was required". He didn't want to go above and beyond at all. He did the bare minimum. He didn't go too far. Those that go far continuously push themselves to do better, to learn more, to move forward in their career. "Is it worth it?". That's up to you. What would you personally gain from it?

Plus, schools offer a lot of networking. If your Honors friends and colleagues can introduce you to other people at companies of interest, then it's definitely worth it.

StuartT44

Probably should have mentioned I was from the UK, I did in the original post that got deleted.

But yeah an honours degree is different from a normal Bsc, 1 year extra study; this mostly consists of a personal project but gives you a "grade": 1st, 2.1, 2.2 or a third. I'm not sure how it relates/compares to the U.S. system. In order to get onto company grad schemes you usually need a 2.1 minimum, a first for the pickier companies.

And I don't plan on forgetting all the ccna stuff, I would like a job in networking, but the next year (2 if I do the honours) won't include any cisco, the next year is very virtualisation focused. And whilst I could likely remember configuration and troubleshooting skills, I'm not going to remember alot of the theory.