I dont know where to go next? In life.

I have a problem that I dont know how to solve. I want to persue 3 different areas of study and dont know where I should go. I love security, networking, and sys admin. I was pursuing my CCENT a month ago but stopped because I got married and that took up to much time. Now I am looking to get back into studying again because it now looks like I may be a dad.

I thought about going for my MCSE next but then I thought I would go for Sec+ because its an elective for MCSE. I also am 2 tests from MCSA thats why I kinda changed courses from Cisco. But if I start my Sec+ then I dont want to stop studying for security certs just to change courses for a different cert. Part of the problem is where I work doesnt have anything to offer in the way of MCSE/Cisco/Sec experinace. All servers are linux which I dont really have a passion for and we only have a few Cisco devices and no real windows servers to speak of. We already have a security team who deals with all that. I just feel like if I start down some track I will want to stick with it and finish it but which track? MS/Sec/Cisco?

I tell myself that I want to know all 3 areas but its not all that feasible it seems. Being a jack of all trades is nice but having a specialty in a specific area seems to be where the money is at. The job market out here seems to be about the same for all 3 fields so I just dont know where to go. I am planning on sticking with my job and getting more work experiance on my resume but I also want to knock out some certs to get a better job where I can start a real career. One thing that I am also wondering for those who have been through it does the Sec+ and SSCP-CISSP require a lot of math skills. I only went to high school algerba and well algorithms are out of my realm to say the least crypto worries me.

Any one been in this situation? Any advice? Thanks for the help.

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Comments

meadIT

This reminds me of an article I just read the other day: Wanted for hire: generalists, not IT specialists - Network World

networker050184

meadIT wrote: »

This reminds me of an article I just read the other day: Wanted for hire: generalists, not IT specialists - Network World

Man I was about to post the same exact article! Not sure if I agree 100% with it though.

kriscamaro68

After reading the article I dont agree with it totally either. When I look at the job market here where I live for certain jobs it requires a focus but now that I think about it some dont. Like that fact that companies want a sys admin that knows SQL and php and what not. I would think that that goes with a database admin but now days they want the sys admin to have those skills as well. Guess I should maybe go for all 3 areas like i planned. Its just gonna take a while to do all that I want. MCSE, MCITP-EA, CCNP, CISSP and everything in between there. I am gonna be busy for the next 5 years. That still leaves where to start.

networker050184

I'd say start with the MCSE since you have some server experience, even if it is with Linux servers. Some good experience and an MCSE could land you a job that would expose you to many different technologies like you want.

Paul Boz

meadIT wrote: »

This reminds me of an article I just read the other day: Wanted for hire: generalists, not IT specialists - Network World

Not that I disagree with that article outright, but I do have quite a number of gripes with it. The more specialized you are the fewer over-all jobs you are capable of occupying, but the jobs that you are capable of occupying are typically higher paying and more important. I would rather have a CCIE than a CCNP and a MCSE.

Also, when you get to high-level jobs in fortune 500 companies, service providers, and other specialized and large-scale computer system networks, having generalized skills can hurt you. Many of these companies have compartmentalized departments that specialize on network, servers, workstations, security, etc.

I see these arguments all the time but they are in direct opposition to the fundamental higher education structure that exists in this world. a PhD is considered infinitely better than two or three bachelors degrees. IT certifications are no different.

All of that being said, you should not be ignorant to technologies. A basic understanding of everything is important but you should have your solid strong points. In the end I would rather be one of these

Than one of these

Pash

I am not a fan of Paul's analogy above, simply because, some people might enjoy taking the sys admin role as the OP himself mentioned. You can not get by with just AD skills to become a sys admin, you will also need a range of skills to meet your scope of work ....which lets face it in today's world is getting larger and larger for all of us.

That said, don't be afraid to pick a subject like virtualization, security etc and become very good at it, if you enjoy it you may find this will choose your next job role

Paul Boz

Pash wrote: »

I am not a fan of Paul's analogy above, simply because, some people might enjoy taking the sys admin role as the OP himself mentioned. You can not get by with just AD skills to become a sys admin, you will also need a range of skills to meet your scope of work ....which lets face it in today's world is getting larger and larger for all of us.

Just because someone would prefer to be the jack of all trades in a smaller environment doesn't invalidate what I said. I was just refuting what that article said about IT jobs wanting more generalized skillsets. I'm on-site at top 100 bank and credit unions all the time and see the value in being specialized. I used to work in a service provider network where there were defined server groups and defined network groups. You have to know a fair bit about all technologies to be effective in any role but without a specialization you will never get beyond a certain point. It just depends on what your goals and ambitions are.

LarryDaMan

Paul Boz wrote: »

You have to know a fair bit about all technologies to be effective in any role but without a specialization you will never get beyond a certain point.

Very well put!

It is not a bad idea to have a wide set of generalized skills, but you can't be a well paid expert in "everything".