i finally got CCNA certified but will employers

consider giving me a chance?

even with a bachelors and masters in computer science and with A+,N+, MCSA under my belt, I didnt get much calls from the jobs I wanted which was to do simply Help Desk or Networking. I only got Telecommunications which made me made mad that they were giving me these offers and nothing else. The pay was low too, less than what I am earning with my current job which is ofcourse Telecommunications (IT support over the phone).

Now I added Cisco's CCNA to my belt and have been working for almost 1.5 years with the company and already worked 4 months with a previous company as an Intern. Will the CCNA open doors for me now? Im getting completely frustrated with the job offers and believing more that Certifications are just eye candy and nothing much more. This does not apply thought to the most respected certs at the top such as the CCIE but every other cert seems it doesnt help as much, if non at all.

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Comments

blargoe

You are just going to have to get some more experience under your belt, employers aren't likely to entrust their network to someone who has never really seen a production network before.

borumas

Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and take a crappy paying job to get your foot in the door or get the experience you need. I graduated (well with an associates degree) and was making $11.75 as a manager at a grocery store, to get into the computer field I had to take a job paying me $8.50. I suffered through that job for 7 months and got fired for some other punks mistakes but after 3 months of searching I nearly doubled my salary with a job paying $16.50 (I had also earned my A+ cert at the crummy job)- my A+ cert and the 7 months of experience I got building pc's, loading operating systems, and repairing them got me the next job.

So stick in there, IT can be hard to break into and the good jobs are hard to get but sometimes you get lucky or earn it- you will to if you keep trying.

bighornsheep

the CCNA certainly will help you because it doesnt do harm. But I would perhaps looking into other factors at this point in time. Have you considered resume tuning and perhaps the interview skills? Those are really important if you feel you have the qualifications, but just isnt getting the jobs.

Often people think that CCNA, MCSA, MCSE, CCNP, BSc. M.Sc. and etc. leads to jobs. But they really dont, they prep you for one, it's YOU that leads to a job, your qualifications just help YOU show why you deserve the job.

buulam

blargoe wrote:

You are just going to have to get some more experience under your belt, employers aren't likely to entrust their network to someone who has never really seen a production network before.

Agreed.

I would suggest a low rung job at an ISP, doing tier1 network support or a colo facility doing footwork. Somewhere that you know a NOC exists. Then prove yourself and climb the ranks!

computerguy9355

Consider this. If you are a employeer, would you hire someone who only has 1 year of experience to monitor and troubleshoot the network ?

Probably not. Certifications is just there to prove that you know the "stuff". Its a lot different than the actual "hands-on". In other to get the hands-on experience, you must start at the BUTTOM of the chain and work your way up. There is no other way around unless you have connections.

CCNA is just an entry-level certification. You only learned the basics of routing, remote access, and some switching. What you need is a CCNP (even without much experience, getting a CCNP would provide you a competitive edge over other candidates when you are applying for an entry-level job.

sir_creamy_

Holy crap. A masters in CS and finding a job is hard?! What school did you go to?

x_Danny_x

master in computer science yes, but it was mostly programming. They had like 2 networking courses

I did though worked for 2 years in the computer labs doing help desk support.

thanks for the replies, that is one reason i dont want to leave my company since it will be easier for me to move on up. also that there is a highering freeze in the company as well and others i hear about around my area.

looks like im going to have to pack up and move again.

from new york to atlanta and from atlanta to who knows where.

Slowhand

One important thing is to keep sending out those resumes. Sometimes, it seems like there isn't a single job to be had in the entire damn market. Then, those job offers come flowing in like they were going out of style, (especially right after you get a job). You've got a good degree, you've got the certs, and you're looking to get experience. Sooner or later, someone will sit up and take notice, just don't give up.

Slowhand

sir_creamy_ wrote:

Holy crap. A masters in CS and finding a job is hard?! What school did you go to?

A degree helps get you a job, it doesn't guarantee one. If the job market is bad in your area, (which it is just about everywhere,) the competition is tough.

NetworkGod

dude, you're in new york and you can't get a job?
that's not normal.

keenon

resume, resume and resume

completely revise it

use different IT job sites if not already and DO NOT RULE OUT CONTRACT WORK that is a great opener take all and any that fit and even a few that don't

elover_jm

n3tw0rkg0d wrote:

dude, you're in new york and you can't get a job?
that's not normal.

lol

hey srry man......at least ur working now, anyway don't give up a good job out there waitin for you.

deneb829

What kind of job do you think you deserve?

People with less than 5 years experience are the most clueless about what they don't know. Now understand that I am not calling you a clueless person, it's just that you need more experience. You should be gunning for an entry level network position and be willing to take whatever you get where ever you get it - otherwise, stay at your current job and take what is available, but it's not fair to complain about the market or that certifications are worthless. If you're in it for the money before the experience, then maybe you want to put your energies into a more high paying career

A guidance counselor here at the college sent an email this morning regarding one of my students. The student wants things to happen faster. I need to republish an excerpt from one of the paragraphs that I wrote in reply:

"Bob would benefit greatly by becoming clear on exactly what path he would like to pursue in the technology field. Once this path is mapped out, I do not mind lending my own experience as a healthy dose of reality. My belief is nothing will stop a motivated person from achieving their goals except a of lack of willingness, skill, and patience. Skill can only be learned from experience, and getting experience takes patience and a willingness to do things that fall short of the rock star glory of running their own networks. I have been disappointed with some student's lack of willingness to do the jobs that they feel are beneath them."

Slowhand

deneb829 wrote:

I have been disappointed with some student's lack of willingness to do the jobs that they feel are beneath them.

This is something I've seen all too much. When I took the job as A+ technician for CompUSA, my friends told me that I should be "looking for something better". When I went and did helpdesk work for Kaiser, while studying for Security+ and MCSA, I got told the same thing. Now, while I'm a junior systems engineer, I get told "don't let them title you as 'junior', it'll hurt your career". From my standpoint, it's work. The A+ tech job led to the helpdesk job, the helpdesk job led to the jr systems engineer job, and I'm hoping that the "jr" part will be wiped out, in favor of "systems engineer", in the near future. (The certs I'm studying for, as well as learning all the ins and outs of the job, help a lot.)

The point is, no job is beneath you if you don't have one to begin with. If you're in a place you're not happy, if you don't have a job, or if you want something different, a title or a job responsibility shouldn't hinder you from getting there. You take what you can get, and you work hard to get to where you want to be. And you do what you have to do to get there, if you really want it.

Start as small as you need to. It takes a while to be a rock star, no matter how good you are.

blargoe

The "don't let them title you jr." argument is bull crap. You don't turn down experience just because of a title. 98% of all employers will know if they are getting a good candidate regardless of job title.

Jammywanks

Slowhand, at least you moved up from A+ to support to some engineer position. Those people were only pushing you to move on up!

Also, I have no certs and only a 2 year associates in networking, and have managed to find my first job at $12/hr, raised to 13, then my next job at $15 then raised to $17. And I did not really look long to find work. I am in the North East, I'm not sure if this makes a difference or not. Although I will admit, I have had trouble finding a stablized job. The first 12/hr job was only temp, but I applied for the position that was open (I was temp for someone who was recently fired). Unfortunatly someone else took over and I got the boot. It was worth a try. The second job they had 10 temps and they would keep the 4 best ones at the end of the project. Guess what? I made it to one of those 4, because of good work ability. They told us we were PERMENANT employees. Then sh!t hit the fan and budget cuts came into play. Since I worked under a contractor, they cut us loose first.

I know there are jobs in Atlanta, some in Texas, and Cali. You know what? As long as you don't live in the middle of nowhere, you should find some decent job in IT.

x_Danny_x, where are you looking for work? Which online places? Dice? Monster? Hotjobs? Also how does your resume look? Do you personally have connections to people who can get you into a job? There are many other factors to help you find work besides your credentials.

Sadly I have been told, that "its not what you know, its who you know". And damn right I know there are some people out there that just "got in" because of their dad, brother, best friend, etc. And had the extra edge in this competitive field. But you must network, regaurdless of your credentials, you gotta talk to everyone you know who may possibly help you give some leverage into the workplace.

SRTMCSE

keenon wrote:

resume, resume and resume

completely revise it

i agree, i completely redid my resume and it helped SO much more. i just landed a job making nearly 25% just yesterday and I'm sure my resume revision helped somewhat.

x_Danny_x

im in atlanta not in new york! besides the competition is harder in new york since there are twice the number of people or is it three times.

i took the first opportunity that came my way and that happen in atlana. like most of you are saying you started small but with all the accomplishments that im getting i feel that i deserved more than what im getting which is over the phone support (yes i read about that part in couple of the posts posted in this thread). i expected to be in a higher position than im in right now and it is bumming me out.

by the way, where do i start in revisioning my resume since some mention that helped alot.

Slowhand

I wish you luck on the job search. One thing to remember is that you don't necessarily have to settle for something that doesn't take advantage of your skillset. Send those resumes out, keep on sending them, bite on everything you hear back from, and keep on knocking those doors down. Eventually, you just might come across the opportunity you're hoping for.

x_Danny_x

Jammywanks wrote:

Slowhand, at least you moved up from A+ to support to some engineer position. Those people were only pushing you to move on up!

Also, I have no certs and only a 2 year associates in networking, and have managed to find my first job at $12/hr, raised to 13, then my next job at $15 then raised to $17. And I did not really look long to find work. I am in the North East, I'm not sure if this makes a difference or not. Although I will admit, I have had trouble finding a stablized job. The first 12/hr job was only temp, but I applied for the position that was open (I was temp for someone who was recently fired). Unfortunatly someone else took over and I got the boot. It was worth a try. The second job they had 10 temps and they would keep the 4 best ones at the end of the project. Guess what? I made it to one of those 4, because of good work ability. They told us we were PERMENANT employees. Then sh!t hit the fan and budget cuts came into play. Since I worked under a contractor, they cut us loose first.

I know there are jobs in Atlanta, some in Texas, and Cali. You know what? As long as you don't live in the middle of nowhere, you should find some decent job in IT.

x_Danny_x, where are you looking for work? Which online places? Dice? Monster? Hotjobs? Also how does your resume look? Do you personally have connections to people who can get you into a job? There are many other factors to help you find work besides your credentials.

Sadly I have been told, that "its not what you know, its who you know". And damn right I know there are some people out there that just "got in" because of their dad, brother, best friend, etc. And had the extra edge in this competitive field. But you must network, regaurdless of your credentials, you gotta talk to everyone you know who may possibly help you give some leverage into the workplace.

Dice, Hotjobs, Monster, etc. There was a link here I think it is sticky of all the job online sites that you can upload your resume. I did alot of those and no feedback from the employers except with the ones that wanted me to do programming and low paying jobs like around $25,000 for over the phone support which is what Im doing now but for only $33,000. It used to be $32,000 but since I worked over year now they up my pay salary by $1000.

I didnt want to believe in connections such a family member putting you in, but that is how it seems to be to get the big jobs without having much experience on your side (self-taught not value as much compared to having experience working for some company)

Slowhand

Another place you can check out for less credential-intensive employers is Craig's List. That's where I found my current employer. Just search in your area.

keenon

SRTMCSE wrote:

keenon wrote:

resume, resume and resume

completely revise it

i agree, i completely redid my resume and it helped SO much more. i just landed a job making nearly 25% just yesterday and I'm sure my resume revision helped somewhat.

resume is 75% of getting contacted 25% experience

Non-Profit Techie

its not only what you know, but who you know. Talk to people you know, people you meet and keep looking. Talk to people and mention you would like a chance where they work.

If that doesnt work, try acting like a terd when you interview and see if that works, lol.

darkplayer

Slowhand wrote:

Another place you can check out for less credential-intensive employers is Craig's List. That's where I found my current employer. Just search in your area.

Waz up folks,

I've been a member for awhile but never really post anything significant, until now.

It's funny you mentioned craigslist, because that's where I started posting my resume for about 2 weeks, among other sites like careerbuilder, monster, dice, etc.... Since than, I've been getting a lot of emails but not able to land anything when they receive my updated resume. It gets a little discouraging @ times because there looking for some1 todo like 6 different jobs with at least 3 years experience. Majority of the email's are recruiters hired by the companys looking for candidates to fill a position.

I work for a private hospital and was planing to volunteer in their IT department. Just my luck, they outsourced the entire IT department. So now I'm trying to figure out what to do to gain some skills, I'm willing to volunteer. Probably check out Goodwill or some non-profit organization.

Just have to keep trying.

keenon

darkplayer wrote:

[

Waz up folks,

I've been a member for awhile but never really post anything significant, until now.

It's funny you mentioned craigslist, because that's where I started posting my resume for about 2 weeks, among other sites like careerbuilder, monster, dice, etc.... Since than, I've been getting a lot of emails but not able to land anything when they receive my updated resume. It gets a little discouraging @ times because there looking for some1 todo like 6 different jobs with at least 3 years experience. Majority of the email's are recruiters hired by the companys looking for candidates to fill a position.

I work for a private hospital and was planing to volunteer in their IT department. Just my luck, they outsourced the entire IT department. So now I'm trying to figure out what to do to gain some skills, I'm willing to volunteer. Probably check out Goodwill or some non-profit organization.

Just have to keep trying.

interesting, did u update the infomation on the resume or did u update the format? resumes that are hard to read usually get kicked first others that are easier on the eyes

read this thread its has some good guidelines as most tech resumes are not as standard resumes. tech resumes require a bit of work to find the flow and wording inorder to attract responses..

http://techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=15164

darkplayer

keenon wrote:

interesting, did u update the infomation on the resume or did u update the format? resumes that are hard to read usually get kicked first others that are easier on the eyes

read this thread its has some good guidelines as most tech resumes are not as standard resumes. tech resumes require a bit of work to find the flow and wording inorder to attract responses..

http://techexams.net/forums/viewtopic.php?t=15164

Thanks keenon,

for the link, that will definetly help me brush up my resume nicely. I still need to figure out a way to gain some real experience for a year @ least.

I have a good paying job, but it's not my dream job.

x_Danny_x

Slowhand wrote:

Another place you can check out for less credential-intensive employers is Craig's List. That's where I found my current employer. Just search in your area.

never tried that one! interesting web layout! will give it a go and also about creating a tech resume instead of a standard one.

sir_creamy_

Slowhand wrote:

sir_creamy_ wrote:

Holy crap. A masters in CS and finding a job is hard?! What school did you go to?

A degree helps get you a job, it doesn't guarantee one. If the job market is bad in your area, (which it is just about everywhere,) the competition is tough.

Correction: A CS degree from Stanford/Berkeley/MIT/or Waterloo coupled with an assload of certs and work experience gets you a job. Anywhere. Anytime.

famosbrown

Like what was suggested above...get your resume out and seen on careerbuilder, monster, dice, etc. YOU WILL GET EMAILS AND PHONE CALLS!! I have a B.Sc. in MIS, A+, Net+, and MCP...soon tO be MCSA. If you are willing to relocate, make sure you specify every state...but either way, recruiters and emplyers will contact you about positions nationwide.

I have a final interview with a small city (township) in my area for a Systems Administrator position. The experience and duties were WAY out there!! I applied, and now I'm on my 3rd interview. After every technical question they asked at each interview, I nailed it to the bone, but I always reminded them that the knowledge was from home lab, studying, and coursework, but not work experience...they keep bringing me back though

. Apply, apply, apply!

I was also in the same boat as you with the degree that only teaches programming. I had to take a programming job at first, but later bailed to accept a supervisory position on a Help Desk. The degree and my INTERVIEW got me the job, which started my track towards the systems/networking administration/engineering portion of IT. Just keep your head up and get that resume out to the world!!

Famos