Job interview tomorrow.

gonzales_joel

dynamik

Thank you so much for your comment. You have no idea how hard and competitive it has been to obtain the proper knowledge, experience and motivation. I guess I took people’s comments person because I never expect people or any Company to do anything for me. This New York City, the city that beats you up, chews you up and spits you out if you are sit around waiting for someone to give you a break. Nothing is guaranteed in this life and I hate the so called “IT Professionals” here discouraging anyone to achieve the goals and dreams. I mean, if everything is a scam, wouldn’t you say that Universities and Colleges are biggest scammers??? I mean I paid 40 to 50K for my BS only to take my first two years of Biology, History, Chem and other subjects that don’t mean a thing to me. How is that going to help me get a Technical Job but yet we are forced to go through all of 4 or 5 year of Education to obtain a College Degree because society dictates that is something that’s a MUST. Granted, I am very proud of myself for achieving my BS and now my Certs. So, I don’t feel that where you go for technical training matters as long as you put your heart and desire into making yourself a better Professional. Anyone with an education knows that Knowledge is power. I just wonder if all these people that take the time to write long negative things about someone or a Company are actually IT professionals. I just wanted to share my experience with everyone because I feel that not everything in this life is FREE and if people were to put as much motivation on bashing someone or something, would there be so many people without jobs? I pray my lucky stars that I have achieve some of my goals and dreams. I never expect anyone to do anything free for me… Because of those classes at IT Solutions Xchange, I have the confidence and knowledge but not only did I depended on the classes and training. I also learn to network, and find other resources to feed of what I have learned. I.E CBT’s, books, friends in the career and of course Google.. LOL Sorry guys.. I am just happy that I am where I am and it wasn’t because I waited or sat on my butt for things to happen to me. I went out and did it on my own and because of that I can consider myself as a Professional. I have the knowledge, skills and hands on experience to back it all up. Again sorry.. I hope my success inspires some people and if it doesn’t….well I guess the only person that matters is ME… Good luck...

mikej412

gonzales_joel wrote: »

Nothing is guaranteed in this life and I hate the so called “IT Professionals” here discouraging anyone to achieve the goals and dreams.

Huh?

We encourage people here to get an education and get certifications to help advance their careers.

We DON'T encourage people to fall for SCAMS like FAKE JOB OFFERS to SELL TRAINING.

We DON'T encourage people to take out large student loans to pay for Technical School Classes they can pass even if they don't attend.

With so many good schools offering the official vendor training, why reward a company that is DISHONEST in their SALES METHOD by paying their outrageous prices. Most of those certification classes can be taken at local Community Colleges for a LOT LESS.

But while I have you here, owning a Bridge would really advance your career. And You're In Luck!! I just happen to have a Bridge in Brooklyn I can sell you -- cheap!!. But you have to act FAST! I only have 1 Bridge left!

meadIT

mikej412 wrote: »

But while I have you here, owning a Bridge would really advance your career. And You're In Luck!! I just happen to have a Bridge in Brooklyn I can sell you -- cheap!!. But you have to act FAST! I only have 1 Bridge left!

I'll take it!! But the only check I have covers 2 bridges. I'll send you this check, and you can keep half of the difference for your troubles and send me the other half ASAP. I just need your bank account number so I can wire this check!!

BradleyHU

gonzales_joel wrote: »

dynamik

Thank you so much for your comment. You have no idea how hard and competitive it has been to obtain the proper knowledge, experience and motivation. I guess I took people’s comments person because I never expect people or any Company to do anything for me. This New York City, the city that beats you up, chews you up and spits you out if you are sit around waiting for someone to give you a break. Nothing is guaranteed in this life and I hate the so called “IT Professionals” here discouraging anyone to achieve the goals and dreams. I mean, if everything is a scam, wouldn’t you say that Universities and Colleges are biggest scammers??? I mean I paid 40 to 50K for my BS only to take my first two years of Biology, History, Chem and other subjects that don’t mean a thing to me. How is that going to help me get a Technical Job but yet we are forced to go through all of 4 or 5 year of Education to obtain a College Degree because society dictates that is something that’s a MUST. Granted, I am very proud of myself for achieving my BS and now my Certs. So, I don’t feel that where you go for technical training matters as long as you put your heart and desire into making yourself a better Professional. Anyone with an education knows that Knowledge is power. I just wonder if all these people that take the time to write long negative things about someone or a Company are actually IT professionals. I just wanted to share my experience with everyone because I feel that not everything in this life is FREE and if people were to put as much motivation on bashing someone or something, would there be so many people without jobs? I pray my lucky stars that I have achieve some of my goals and dreams. I never expect anyone to do anything free for me… Because of those classes at IT Solutions Xchange, I have the confidence and knowledge but not only did I depended on the classes and training. I also learn to network, and find other resources to feed of what I have learned. I.E CBT’s, books, friends in the career and of course Google.. LOL Sorry guys.. I am just happy that I am where I am and it wasn’t because I waited or sat on my butt for things to happen to me. I went out and did it on my own and because of that I can consider myself as a Professional. I have the knowledge, skills and hands on experience to back it all up. Again sorry.. I hope my success inspires some people and if it doesn’t….well I guess the only person that matters is ME… Good luck...

lol...this dude is vexed yo!!! easy killah...you might pop a blood vessel. i'm assuming you really didnt comprehend what this thread was about. why would you say that we're against pplz getting IT certifications, when this is an IT CERTIFICATION MESSAGEBOARD of all things. i mean, i'm really tryin to understand why you went off on the rant that you did...because it has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with the purpose of the thread....

and all this talk about how nyc is the city that chews you up and spits you out is BLAH!!! man, thats anywhere right now in this country. the competition out there for jobs, regardless of field, is crazy right now...

markk2008

I agree with BradleyHU, the competition in any IT field is fierce right now, the problems with the current climate has obviously put a lot of the country into a downturn and even before the downturn IT was a difficult field to get into, just purely because of its nature, and will continue to be.

ladeedadeeda

I'd just like to share my current experience with this company. I currently have about 5-ish years in various help desk positions, so I am very familiar with how the IT industry, especially in this part of the world, goes. I think that some of the reviews here are a bit unfair and are from people who lack real-world experience within the IT industry here in NYC.

While the methods that this company uses to get you in the door aren't top notch, what they're selling to you is an opportunity to take courses to update your skills and get certifications at a fraction of the price that what it might cost you to do out of pocket. For me, it is not an issue because I know what my company would pay for me to take the courses. I chose not to go the route through my company because I do not want to have any obligations to stay on with them after I'm done.

Do you have to pay to take the tests? Yes. Do you have to pay to take the courses? Yes. But when you know that the total cost outside of working with a company like this would be 4-8 grand, 1k doesn't sound too bad. Do your research. I did for about two weeks before I went ahead.

I just recently started the MCSA/MCSE track. The training is very good but the courses could be managed better (the class was overbooked). For people who have difficulty with the concept of a bootcamp for certs and think that you're not getting very much out of them, the classes just might not be for you and you might need to do some additional reading or work at home outside of the class. But for someone who has a little bit of experience working within IT such as myself, it works out perfectly. It fills some of the holes that I had as a result of being self-taught and lets me know what I need to focus on in order to pass my exams. So far, my class has been very hands-on, and the instructor is very good about answering questions. This training, in addition to the server I have at home to play with, will do exactly what I need in order to better my career.

And for the fresh out of college kids who say, "OMG! I DIDN'T GET AN IT JOB! SCAM!", please wake up, smell the coffee, and read this:

Your BS/BA in <whatever> isn't going to get you anywhere unless you're willing to work hard afterwards, make sacrifices, and take a few hits -- or if you just get lucky and are in the right place, at the right time, with experience or internships. I myself am actually still in the process of getting my undergraduate degree and am doing better than most of my friends with college degrees. Why? Because I understand that just walking into a recruiter's office and saying "I have a college degree and want to work in IT, please hire me, LOL" isn't going to get me anywhere. Unlike my friends who finished before I did, I didn't sit on a high horse and say, "I have a degree in Environmental Business! Why does this help desk position only pay 30k! I'm going to continue being unemployed and live with my mom." (actual conversation with my friend)

My first "helpdesk" position was part-time, in the college computing labs, for $7.50/hr and I was able to work my way up financially by building experience with poor paying jobs to better and more satisfying help desk positions. Now I've finally decided where my specializations lies, and that is in systems or network administration within mixed-environments.

Having the certifications is good for people who want better paying work, or who have no experience because it shows employers that you have some knowledge and a willingness to learn and work hard.

Basically, my summary of my experience with them is thus:

-They called me in to interview, talked about staffing and training. I took some time to think about it and then decided to go ahead. I was worried about the risks and that it might end up being a waste, but even if they don't place you, it's not a terrible thing. Why? Because so long as you work hard and pass your exams, you'll have certifications that NO ONE can take away -- and that can be used to get you a better job, no matter what. Who cares if they place you afterwards? As far as I'm concerned, I've made out like a bandit if I only had to pay 1150k to get an MCP, MCSA, and MCSE within a decent training environment, without having to worry as much about staying focused with just relying on a book, or taking some practice tests. In a market where competition is fierce, any leg up is a good one.

Fox McCloud

This message is from 5/2006...
Today, 7/2009...over three years later...and this "company" is still at it!

I'm so glad I was able to find this thread before going for an "interview" tomorrow!!!

I'm a recent college grad, and it is already hard enough to find a job in the IT field. I don't need this waste of time!

From the e-mail:

Dear xxxxxxxxx:


Welcome xxxxxxxxxxx. This email confirmsyour first IT interview with Deborah Klein Anand on xxxxxxxx, at IT Solutions Xchange Inc. New York.

The time for your interview is confirmed for xxxxxxx.

Mrs. Anand is IT Recruiting Director of a computer and financial engineering/analyst, and staffing firm based on Wall Street.

Please send a copy of your resume to confirm receipt of this email and any technical notes about your background,.

A reference to the bio of the IT Recruiting Director is attached.

Also, check out this person's experience with the same "company":
http://devarshjoshi.blogspot.com/2008/06/itsxchange-or-itsolutions-xchange-scam.html

Anyone else that gets this, STAY AWAY!

Cbogusemail

BackYardApe's experience sounds almost exactly like my experience.

I went up to their office today and the place was very unprofessional. There was no one to greet you at the front desk and the person who I was supposed to meet with didn't even come in until half an hour after our scheduled time.

Once the guy finally arrived, he went over my resume and my (lack of) job experience/certifications. Then he started going through a long list of skills (32, to be exact, including stuff like ADO.net, ASP.net, VB.net, a whole bunch of microsoft stuff, DNS, etc) and asked me to rate myself on a scale of 0-10. I don't have any experience with most of the stuff he listed so at the end he tells me that I don't have the skills to qualify for the job or any jobs except for help desk level 3 and desktop support. He told me that he'd try to help me since he "likes me" and goes out to speak to the vice director/president and leaves me alone in his office.

10-15 minutes later he finally comes back and says that the vice president agrees to help me and that ITS Xchange can offer training courses to me, to get some certifications (such as A+, Network + and CCNA). He told me that there are government vouchers that will help pay for these and that ITS Xchange will invest in me and help pay for it as well.

I was a little skeptical, but before I even asked him how his company can afford to pay for this training for me, he tells me that the company who hires me will pay them 20% of my annual salary, so by getting these certifications, I will be able to get a nice paying job (he showed me links for 55k a year minimum job postings that wanted CCNA) and they'll come out ahead.

He tells me that the training programs are 4 weeks each, and 7 hours a week and that its essential to get some hands on experience for the CCNA and Network+ (he didn't include A+ since i already told him that I am currently studying for the A+ exam, he told me that I can "probably squeak by" the A+ test from self studying).

At the end he told me that the 3 training program will cost $8,000, the gov't program will pay $2.5k for it, and ITS Xchange will cover $4.7k so all I had to pay was $150 for the deposit/registration fee and $850 on/before the first day of class, but if I "prepay" now I only have to pay $750 and it doesn't include taking the tests.

I'm glad I found this topic (thanks google and everyone who contributed to the thread!), I'm supposed to reply to them by 1pm tomorrow because "it's the last seat".

/Edit: I included a snapshot of the job posting that i applied to.

Zartanasaurus

Cbogusemail wrote: »

B He told me that he'd try to help me since he "likes me" and goes out to speak to the vice director/president and leaves me alone in his office.

10-15 minutes later he finally comes back and says that the vice president agrees to help me and that ITS Xchange can offer training courses to me, to get some certifications (such as A+, Network + and CCNA).

What scum.

Using car salesman techniques to get people to buy their IT training. Pathetic.

bgrablin

Thanks to this forum I was able to avoid this type of "job inquiry." A guy from New Horizons called a few days ago and wanted to setup an "interview" and I politely asked him if the subject being discussed would be about applying for a job or a career progression discussion. They obviously can't lie and I avoided wasting my time letting someone tell me what I can learn on my own through this site and a few well placed Google searches.

bassman1

HELP!!! I fell for the sale pitch am I out of my money The company was called Technology career services International. I was told by a miss Anand that I was missing part of the certifications puzzle and must pay a down payment of 650 to get started will this company help or was it a scam?

astrogeek

bassman1 wrote: »

HELP!!! I fell for the sale pitch am I out of my money The company was called Technology career services International. I was told by a miss Anand that I was missing part of the certifications puzzle and must pay a down payment of 650 to get started will this company help or was it a scam?

Did you go to any training or anything? Did you pay them anything, and if so, how much? The first thing you should do is contact your states attorney general, they are probably doing something illegal.

shanti4peace

Hello, I'm not in the IT industry, but out of curiosity I Google searched Deborah Klein-Anand and stumbled upon this forum. I am not surprised by ANYTHING that I read about concerning Ms. Klein-Anand and her shady role with this company. I won't go into all the details but I know this woman. I actually broke off contact with her years ago because she was a condescending b**** and it was all about her. She incessantly talked about herself and bragged she made it big in advertising (which I think was all BS - I think she's a pathological liar). I know for a fact that she does NOT have an IT background so have no clue why she's recruiting in the IT industry. It almost sounded like her husband was involved in something shady so not sure if he was tied to this business. I am so sorry that you got duped by her and this horrible recruiting company. I read other posts about Ms. Klein-Anand online - where people who were recruited were basically brow-beaten by her and they said all she did was talk about HERSELF and her accomplishments (yup, that sounds about right). I am not surprised she was connected with such a shady company - she was a sh** talker and I called BS on her years ago. It's too bad that people are unethical and scam people like this. Best of luck to you all in your job pursuits!

PS - I highly suggest you post your complaints on consumer reports (Pissed Off Consumer and Rip Off Report) online - that will send the message loud and clear! I haven't even been duped by this company, but because I knew this woman it pisses me off that she took advantage of people on this forum. She's a snake!