career change

hi everybody i need some help here...im changing my career to IT-Networking. i was wondering if its a good idea to go to a career school offering a 1yr program in Networking like Chubb Institute or to go for an Associate's degree?

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Daniel333

mark69,

Welcome to the forms.

That is a tough question to be asking to random strangers. Are you local to "Chubb". I have heard good things from www.ed2go.com for just starting out. But if you are good at self study I would recommend just starting with your A+ and then move to your CCNA and then re-evalute yourself at that point.

You can pick up a great set of videos from TestOut and any number of great books from Amazon.com

What's your background look like?

silentc1015

mark69 wrote:

hi everybody i need some help here...im changing my career to IT-Networking. i was wondering if its a good idea to go to a career school offering a 1yr program in Networking like Chubb Institute or to go for an Associate's degree?

I'd go w/ the associates. W/ an associates, a CCNA, some hardcore lab work, and a killer resume/cover letter/attitude you should be able to get a NOC job. From there, the sky's the limit!

mark69

silentc1015 wrote:

mark69 wrote:

hi everybody i need some help here...im changing my career to IT-Networking. i was wondering if its a good idea to go to a career school offering a 1yr program in Networking like Chubb Institute or to go for an Associate's degree?

I'd go w/ the associates. W/ an associates, a CCNA, some hardcore lab work, and a killer resume/cover letter/attitude you should be able to get a NOC job. From there, the sky's the limit!

my background is i have a B.S. in healthcare. but i really wanted to shift to Networking, i was also thinking does the employers look more into the degree rather than a certificate?

silentc1015

mark69 wrote:

silentc1015 wrote:

mark69 wrote:

hi everybody i need some help here...im changing my career to IT-Networking. i was wondering if its a good idea to go to a career school offering a 1yr program in Networking like Chubb Institute or to go for an Associate's degree?

I'd go w/ the associates. W/ an associates, a CCNA, some hardcore lab work, and a killer resume/cover letter/attitude you should be able to get a NOC job. From there, the sky's the limit!

my background is i have a B.S. in healthcare. but i really wanted to shift to Networking, i was also thinking does the employers look more into the degree rather than a certificate?

Since you already have a BS degree, I would not pursue an associates. I would look into actual training and certification. I don't have a computer science degree (or a degree in any kind) and it has never held me back at all. The fact that you have a degree weighs very heavily in your favor, regardless of the major. Although many jobs listed a BS or MS in Comp Sci as a requirement, the fact is most of them don't really care. They're just hoping they get some sort of networking/admin god.

I guess I sound a little contradictive here. My point is a degree in any major helps. But a lack thereof doesn't hold you back very much. You have one. I wouldn't do it all over again just for a different major. I'd try to get some experience and actual training in the area you want to get involved in.

Claymoore

Forget about the associates degree - some vendor certs and a BS is healthcare is worth more. Most companies have Business Analyst positions that are in between IT and the various business units - basically you take the customer requests to the engineers because you have people skills. These positions pay better than entry level IT work and you should be able to transition to a sysadmin role later. I am sure one of the local insurance / health care entities in your area has a business analyst position open right now.

I work for an insurance company and some of our programmers are worth more to the company because of their insurance experience rather than their programming skills.

mark69

Claymoore wrote:

Forget about the associates degree - some vendor certs and a BS is healthcare is worth more. Most companies have Business Analyst positions that are in between IT and the various business units - basically you take the customer requests to the engineers because you have people skills. These positions pay better than entry level IT work and you should be able to transition to a sysadmin role later. I am sure one of the local insurance / health care entities in your area has a business analyst position open right now.

I work for an insurance company and some of our programmers are worth more to the company because of their insurance experience rather than their programming skills.

Thanks for the advice guys. I will try to take my chances and make the most out if. I hope i'll find some luck out there. if there are anymore tips...they are most welcome. thanks in advance.

Mark