Transition from Tech Support to Software Development

Hey TechExams,
I've been doing Tech Support for about 12 years. I started at Geek Squad, and now I work for my local county government IT department here in rural California. This is my 9th IT job.
I graduated from WGU last year with my Bachelor's in Software Development. I went from having almost no programming experience to being just proficient. I obtained the OCA: Java SE8 certification during my studies. I also have the CompTia A+, N+, S+, and P+ certs.
I like where I'm at with my Tech Support job in the local government, but I'm starting to stagnate. I'm not really using my programming skills. The way I see it, I have a few paths forward:
1. Continue with my Tech Support job, hope that an 'Analyst' position opens up, nail the interview, and use my programming skills there. If I stay here 5 years I'll be 'vested' with a pension.
2. Find an entry level Software Developer job. I don't feel like a strong enough programmer to pass an interview at this point. I would have to really study and practice on LeetCode and HackerRank.
3. Shift gears into studying DevOps, CyberSec, AWS/Azure, or something like that where I can use my programming skills without being a full-on Developer.
What would y'all do in this situation?
I've been doing Tech Support for about 12 years. I started at Geek Squad, and now I work for my local county government IT department here in rural California. This is my 9th IT job.
I graduated from WGU last year with my Bachelor's in Software Development. I went from having almost no programming experience to being just proficient. I obtained the OCA: Java SE8 certification during my studies. I also have the CompTia A+, N+, S+, and P+ certs.
I like where I'm at with my Tech Support job in the local government, but I'm starting to stagnate. I'm not really using my programming skills. The way I see it, I have a few paths forward:
1. Continue with my Tech Support job, hope that an 'Analyst' position opens up, nail the interview, and use my programming skills there. If I stay here 5 years I'll be 'vested' with a pension.
2. Find an entry level Software Developer job. I don't feel like a strong enough programmer to pass an interview at this point. I would have to really study and practice on LeetCode and HackerRank.
3. Shift gears into studying DevOps, CyberSec, AWS/Azure, or something like that where I can use my programming skills without being a full-on Developer.
What would y'all do in this situation?
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Comments
I currently do tech support and only see it as a dead end job of password resets, printer fixes and teaching people who get paid more than me how to do their jobs.
Cloud is where it is at and "everyone" will need to hop on that wagon at some point.
Maybe try and work on some open source projects to help learn / train. That will keep you sharp and add to the resume.
I would not stay in your position and wait it out, most of the time, you have to go get the things yourself. You'd find a decent amount of programming in the cloud, especially automation...so it looks like that DevOps/Cloud engineering with an AWS cert would definitely fit your immediate skillset whereas SWE takes quite a bit of time to master.
Goals: CCNP Enterprise(ENCOR + ENARSI), AWS CSA - Associate, Azure AZ-104, Become better at python, learn docker and kubernetes
Degree: A.S. Network Administration
Pursuing: B.S. in I.T. Web and Mobile Development Concentration
Thank you for the advise itdept. Indeed, I am worried about being perceived as a 'job hopper'.
Yep, that's pretty much my day to day. I've done Tech Support for Rocket Scientists, literally. Even they need help with stupid printer issues. I don't blame them.
Cloud is where it's at, huh. That what a lot of people are saying...
You're right, I should find an open source project where I can contribute.
I like the sound of that career path. Front End > Back End > Full Stack. The problem with this path is I have very limited Front End Experience. I'm more of a Back End guy (Giggity
Yes, I do have a GitHub: github DOT com/tr4v1sty . I only have one project on there, a school project with 2000+ lines of code. It's a 'School Schedule Tracking' Android app. It interfaces with a basic SQL lite database. I thought I never would complete this program. I spent months pulling my hair out over this project.
I think we're on the same wavelength. I think DevOps with the AWS cert might be my best path forward... I hate to say it but I don't think I will ever be a full stack engineer. I don't have the passion or talent for it.
- Cloud, containers, and Kubernetes are the (hot)3 topics for programmers right now.
- Docker or Google are great containers to learn.
- Don't stay married to Java; learn Python and Golang.
- Forget anymore "+" certs and aim for the Microsoft, AWS, and Google Cloud programming certs instead.
You can do all these things regardless of where you are and what you are doing in your current career path.Forum Admin at www.techexams.net
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Forum Admin at www.techexams.net
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LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jamesdmurray
Twitter: www.twitter.com/jdmurray