Help desk internship

so theres a chance i may be working at a helpdesk soon and i don't want to walk in there totally clueless... can anyone maybe pass some tips on, maybe some usefull information (ie, troubleshooting/repair/etc guides or something)

thanks

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bighusker

Do you have any previous experience, or any certifications? At my first helpdesk job, the company was very good about training me on their special software and configurations. Most of the stuff was pretty basic (installing software, adding printers, fixing some basic problems with windows).

Sie

Depends what the helpdesks for?

Is it Hardware?
Software?
ISP?

Darthn3ss

its at a school, not sure exactly what i'd be doing.

oh, and no experience. this would be my first time working anything related to computers (outside of using a touchscreen after saying "Hi, welcome to McDonalds, may i your order?" [not a joke either lawl])

its also unpaid.

as far as certs, i have none because i'm a slacker (actually, i've been putting them off until i get closer to getting my degree).. I have been through A+/windows/etc classes.

Aldur

Darthn3ss wrote:

as far as certs, i have none because i'm a slacker (actually, i've been putting them off until i get closer to getting my degree).. I have been through A+/windows/etc classes.

You can still get certs while pursuing a degree, I'm almost done with my BS degree and all the certs I've gotten have been while going to school. Mind you, I haven't done anything fun while I've been doing this and I get do say hi to my wife whever I get the chance

I really can't wait till I'm through with school.

But really, I understand, you probably don't have crap for free time and the thought of using up what little free time you have for cert study doesn't sound too appealing.

kmfinegan1

Job Interview tips:
- Wear a suit
- Prepare 3-4 good questions to ask, such as:
How did this position become available
- Arrive 10-15 minutes before the interview
- Always turn a negative answer into a positive, such as:
Interviewer: Please give me one of your strong points and one weakness.
Me: One of my best strengths is that I love to be challenged. I am a quick learner and like to take on new projects that will help expand my technical skill set.
One of my weakness is that I tend to get a bit unorganized when I am involved in several projects at once. I am working on better organizational skills by reading personal development books on organization and using technology to help better organize and prioritize my time.
- DO NOT talk money on unless the employer brings it up first.

Technical Tips:
-Be honest, if they throw a troubleshooting question at you that you don't know, say you do not know the answer but would use tools such as google or call the vendor for help if the appropriate support contract was in place.

I would say a job interview is based 75% on YOU, not your technical skills. No one can know EVERYTHING there is to know. If they feel that your technical skills are lacking a bit but that you are a quick learner, chances are you will get a good shot at a second interview.
If you do not get the job, do not get discouraged, take it as a learning experience and reflect back to see what you can critique to make the next interview better. If at all possible, get someone from you family to do a mock interview with you. This will help to increase your comfort level.

Certs are like a drivers license. Just because you have them does not mean you know what you are doing and just because you don't have them doesn't mean you don't know what you are doing. Most employers require them, or will give you a set time frame to get them. Go for Certs like the A+ and MCDST for desktop support.

Good luck

Darthn3ss

no interview here man but thanks for the tips, i'll keep them in mind for the future.

Talic

I'd say go volunteer at a non-profit organization rather then do it for a company that's too cheap to pay you anything for your time. I also think it looks better on your resume that you did work for non-profit rather then a unpaid internship but someone else should chime in about that. If it was paid, even minimum wage, that wouldn't be bad then, but I don't believe in anyone's labor should be free.

Get cracking on getting your A+ at least, your school should have a certification discount program going and once you leave you may have to pay full price. Not to mention it'll help with looking for work.

Aldur

Talic wrote:

Get cracking on getting your A+ at least, your school should have a certification discount program going and once you leave you may have to pay full price. Not to mention it'll help with looking for work.

I agree, you really need to have some certs, A+ is a great place to start.

Darthn3ss

Talic wrote:

I'd say go volunteer at a non-profit organization rather then do it for a company that's too cheap to pay you anything for your time. I also think it looks better on your resume that you did work for non-profit rather then a unpaid internship but someone else should chime in about that. If it was paid, even minimum wage, that wouldn't be bad then, but I don't believe in anyone's labor should be free.

Get cracking on getting your A+ at least, your school should have a certification discount program going and once you leave you may have to pay full price. Not to mention it'll help with looking for work.

well actually, i'm going to end up paying roughly $400 for this internship.

err... the lottery addicts of South Carolina really helped foot the bill.

Its my at school, and its through a class.

I tend to agree with you however if you look at it from my point of view: No experience, live in a small area without a huge amount of IT jobs... This is a great opportunity for me to get something on my resume that i could count as work experience. I've applied for a few internships posted on my school's job search website but no response yet, one was a non-profit.

As far as free labor, i tend to think its risky letting some college kid with no experience, certs, interview, background check, etc. work at your help desk.

as far as certs, I'm shooting for CCENT and A+ by mid september, CCNA by December, and hopefully CWNA by the end of the year. might try and throw a MCP in there too. big goals but i think i can do it.

mid october is assuming my student loan comes in time