Experts assemble, help an entry level question regarding career advice

bolajibreeze

Hi guys, I need your help for career advice, what does certifications with CCENT, AWS CSA, LPIC1, Linux+, soon to come Security+, and RHCSA get you, I don't think I would Iike a career in networking, and my scripting skills at the moment are just ok, and by god I am trying to stay away from help desk support jobs. I also have like a year experience as a network tech and I graduated school last June. I would honestly appreciate your recommendations because I am pretty confused at the moment. . I would appreciate your answers. My goal would eventually to be towards cloud technology or devops, but I agree that I have to work for it. Based on your experience and foresight what would you recommend? Thank you

yoba222

Certainly not an expert, but I'll chime in.
This approach is kind of like saying, "I have a dress shirt, a suit jacket, slacks, and leather shoes. I intend to get a silk tie. What kind of company will hire me and in what kind of position, based on this outfit?"

Some companies require certain certs and others are nice to have. All of them are just extras that can highlight what you know, how you present yourself, and prior work experiences.

To answer your question, I'd spend a good amount of time browsing job ads to get a feel for what businesses are asking for and what the job role might entail. Then when you find a few job roles that catch your interest, start customizing your image in a way that makes you higher-able for that role.

bolajibreeze

This does make alot of sense, the thing is I never got certs to go for jobs but to be more productive through the training, and these days in IT almost everything is interwoven. I recently found myself in a bad spot and was just wondering if this is the time to revise my career plan

Mooseboost

What was your role like as a network tech? What were your responsibilities? Those certifications will definitely generate HR hits on a resume but you have to be careful to over-do it. I think of certifications at the entry level as a double-edged sword, they can help you land a position or make companies leery of you. Whenever I see a resume with someone who has several mid-to-advanced level certifications but no experience I assume they are either a papershark or someone who is going to jump ship fairly quick.

Helpdesk is always a solid way to build experience. Since you are looking to avoid it, then my recommendation would be something akin to a junior sysadmin or network admin. Junior engineering roles are not too common where I am but that may not be the case for you. If you can land one of those positions, within a few years you should be able to move up to a mid-level position.