CCNA in antarctica

randy da great

I was hoping to go on a trip to antarctica one day but I recently found out that the only IT job there is the communications post which doubles as the helpdesk and I was wondering if the CCNA would be enough to land me the job. I am also currently studying for the MCSE which would greatly help in the helpdesk side of the job. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

astorrs

Which countries research station are you looking at?

randy da great

As of now I'm aiming for Australia as im a citizen, though I'm not sure what the policies for joining another country would be.

astorrs

Okay just wanted to make sure of that.

I would say it may be a coveted position (for its uniqueness). Do you have a link to a job posting you can share? Do you have any prior work experience or were you planning to "break into IT" with this job?

randy da great

http://www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=33907
Thats the link to the job. I plan to gain about 5 years experiance before I try for the job as that would incress my chances of getting it.

astorrs

I would say a CCNA and relevant work experience combined with some Service Desk/Field Services experience (with appropriate certs - can't hurt) would cover the following requirements:

- Helpdesk support to computer users. - Maintenance of IT infrastructure including routers and switches. - Installation of telecommunications equipment in racks or cabinets and installation of associated cabling.

That still leaves you with the following requirements:

- Maintenance of satellite communications systems. - Maintenance of HF and VHF radio equipment and systems, including masts and antennas. - Radio operating. - Other skills of use in an isolated Antarctic community.

How do you plan on covering those? Do you have a degree/ticket in electronics or communications?

randy da great

As of now I really don't have any plan at the moment on covering those areas as they seem quite distant from the job i'm aiming for as a systems engineer. Do you have any ideas on a way to cover all of those areas efficiently, as i don't want to have extra certifications I will not use.

astorrs

Off the top of my head:

- join the military as a communications specialist (extreme i know)
- hook up with a company that works on deploying ship-to-shore communications, or communications to remote places (logging camps, oil & gas platforms, etc)
- get a communications/electronics ticket and then hopefully some relevant work experience

I'm not sure how you're going to achieve that breadth of specialization without getting hands on with the tech in a job. Anyone else have some ideas?

Paul Boz

I seriously looked into relocating to north Alaska where the oil pipelines source from. Think "next door to Siberia" and you're looking in the right place. You have to know how to manage radio equipment, satellite uplinks, and be capable of coping with the severe weather. You can die if exposed for minutes.

Then I got married and derailed that indefinitely. Prior to getting hitched though, I took a phone interview with a guy who managed a com-station for an oil company. They really look for people with prior experience either in the military or telecom. My time working for the phone co got me in the door.