Re-entering IT at 53yr old and ageism

jvel777

Greetings!  I'm a 53yr old who's been out of IT for 7yrs after a 22 yr career as a Network Engineer, System Engineer, Storage Engineer holding numerous certifications in the set areas at the time.

I stepped away from IT for an opportunity with a family business and although it's worked out well I truly miss the technology industry. That being said my certifications and skills are quite outdated although I'm currently in the process of updating my skills by pursuing certain certifications like Linux+, CCNA, and Security+.  

I would like to hear anyone's opinion on ageism or gaps in employment these days in IT. Your comments and suggestions are welcome.

scaredoftests

I am 60 years young and a female. As long as you are able to learn new skills and show people that you are eager and willing you will find a job. I still get calls in regard to my resume. Go for the certs and in the meantime, send out your resume! Where do you live? is it a hub for technology? 

DatabaseHead

It exist but it's more about staying positive and your attitude.  I'm 44 a get it.....  But.... not all that often, last time I remember this happening was at a start up.  Lots of developers in their 20's and I walked in, I got the look like oh Gawd it's dad.  Haha.  

Whatever, sad thing is I would of partied with them and probably would of hit it off.  Oh well.

jvel777

Thank you both for your responses they certainly are inspiring.  I'm a firm believer that experience as well as the desire and aptitude to continuously adapt / learn is what shapes your career. Age should not be a disqualifying factor in my opinion so long as you're maintaining competitive with the essential skillset.

scaredoftests said:

I am 60 years young and a female. As long as you are able to learn new skills and show people that you are eager and willing you will find a job. I still get calls in regard to my resume. Go for the certs and in the meantime, send out your resume! Where do you live? is it a hub for technology? 

I presently live in Florida which is not a technology hub, although I'm strongly considering a relocation back to where I lived years ago either the RTP area of North Carolina or the Northeast.

bigdogz

@jvel777

You don't have any gaps. You have gaps in IT work. Put your other experience on the resume.

Get your Cisco and vendor certs updated. Then go for some contract work until you get the comfort level you wish and start to find what you like to do. IT can be specialized but if you have certs in Virtualization, Cisco, and others, it will help.

Good luck!

xtremekey

I'm 54 Yrs young and after a number of years caring for a parent, I'm entering the IT field myself.  My career with mostly technical support and MS Exchange Administrator.  I too, am getting certifications and feel like it is a start over haha..  Things have changed as for interviews when I showed up in shirt and tie and the interviewer had a untucked shirt and casual shoes. 

JDMurray

jvel777, don't spend the rest of your working days being forced to fix other people's uninteresting problems for a paycheck. (This is the primary reason why I stopped being a software developer for other people.) You might find it a better life being a consultant and picking and choosing problems interesting to you to fix and get paid for. The age of consultants is far less of an issue than can they do the work.

My personal solution (as someone who is older than you) was to move into management. I now help all the youngsters deal with their career progressions and work-life balance issues. I find this interesting and rewarding. I'm also pretty good at it because I've already been where these younger people are now. Having the experience of kids and grandkids of my own sure helps in understanding the dreams, motivations, and emotions that people throw at me too.

jvel777

@bigdogz ---  Well put. I agree no gaps in work. I'm very confident that with my continual studies and certifications I will do well. My work discipline and dedication to my career progression have always been strong which is something that won't change. 

@xtremekey ---  Part of the reason why I had to take on part of the family business was because of caring for my very senior mother. You jogged my memory about that interviewer because in my last job that is exactly how they were dressed and often times you would see the baffled look on the candidate's face. This was at a big tech company too. So yes, things are changing in the industry. I'm very open to change both in culture and technology which is why I feel IT has served me well for so long. 

@JDMurray --- Consulting is definitely the avenue I was considering to taste the waters again since 70% of my career was as a consultant. I enjoyed the freedom of selecting the projects, locations and challenges that accompany it.  Of course there were some disadvantages at times but the pros outweighed the cons in my experience.

bigdogz

@jvel777 I think consulting would be your best bet.

Good luck!