Need some personal direction...
jscimeca715
Member Posts: 280
Hello everyone, I'm looking for some advice on where I should head regarding my career and certification goals. First, a little background:
I work for a very small software company (about 5 users) doing their network administration. I also provide phone based technical support to the customers who purchased the software we create.
I don't want to make this post long so I'll post what I think my marketable skills are. I have above average experience with Active Directory, SQL server, and Windows operating systems. I'm also well-versed in troubleshooting TCP/IP issues.
I also consider myself to be strong with Cisco devices but lack real world experience. I've passed my CCNA as well as A+ and Network+ but have only demonstrated Cisco experience on a lab at home.
My big questions are based on the fact that I have a very bland resume that doesn't really distinguish me from other prospective employees. The only thing that sticks out is CCNA but I lack the real world experience to support it. I consider myself a great interviewer who is very engaging.
My two questions are:
1. What do you think my next learning track should be? My future goals include wanting to be more on the networking side moreso than administration that's why I chose the CCNA but I'm wondering if I should go for the CCNA: Security track or try to attain a specialty cert (Voice, Exchange, SQL etc.)
2. What type of jobs should I be looking for? I don't consider myself entry level because I've worked in IT for three years but I can tell from an employer's point of view that I probably am.
These are pretty vague questions, but I'm hoping to get a dialogue going. It's been about three weeks since I passed the CCNA and my learning break is coming to an end. I'll answer any questions you guys may have and I really appreciate all of the great advice I've been given here so any help is immensely appreciated.
I work for a very small software company (about 5 users) doing their network administration. I also provide phone based technical support to the customers who purchased the software we create.
I don't want to make this post long so I'll post what I think my marketable skills are. I have above average experience with Active Directory, SQL server, and Windows operating systems. I'm also well-versed in troubleshooting TCP/IP issues.
I also consider myself to be strong with Cisco devices but lack real world experience. I've passed my CCNA as well as A+ and Network+ but have only demonstrated Cisco experience on a lab at home.
My big questions are based on the fact that I have a very bland resume that doesn't really distinguish me from other prospective employees. The only thing that sticks out is CCNA but I lack the real world experience to support it. I consider myself a great interviewer who is very engaging.
My two questions are:
1. What do you think my next learning track should be? My future goals include wanting to be more on the networking side moreso than administration that's why I chose the CCNA but I'm wondering if I should go for the CCNA: Security track or try to attain a specialty cert (Voice, Exchange, SQL etc.)
2. What type of jobs should I be looking for? I don't consider myself entry level because I've worked in IT for three years but I can tell from an employer's point of view that I probably am.
These are pretty vague questions, but I'm hoping to get a dialogue going. It's been about three weeks since I passed the CCNA and my learning break is coming to an end. I'll answer any questions you guys may have and I really appreciate all of the great advice I've been given here so any help is immensely appreciated.
Comments
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dynamik
Banned Posts: 12,312 ■■■■■■■■■□
I'd pick a direction and focus on that. If you want to get into networking, I wouldn't mess around with things like SQL certs. I think the CCNA specializations are a great way to keep learning without risking being over-certified for your experience. -
UnixGuy
Mod Posts: 4,570 Mod
From what you said, your skills are not entry level skills, and many employers will appreciate that.
Now that you passed CCNA, I suggest you focus on getting a job doing more networking work. You need to do serious job hunting. Once you get a networking job..then you can continue with your CCNP or CCNA: sec... -
jscimeca715
Member Posts: 280
Thanks for the thoughts guys. I have been doing some serious job searching and have been applying to about 2-3 positions a week. I've been looking at getting into some scripting/programming but am confused at where to start. I feel like this would be a good place to advance my learning while I'm waiting to get a few calls. Any suggestions?
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UnixGuy
Mod Posts: 4,570 Mod
jscimeca715 wrote: »Thanks for the thoughts guys. I have been doing some serious job searching and have been applying to about 2-3 positions a week. I've been looking at getting into some scripting/programming but am confused at where to start. I feel like this would be a good place to advance my learning while I'm waiting to get a few calls. Any suggestions?
scripting/programming is a different field and help you more with system admin work not with networking.
I started my programming with C++, using this book:
C++ How to Program, 4/e -
Solaris_UNIX
Member Posts: 93 ■■□□□□□□□□
If you are good with Active Directory (and you enjoy working with it) then your next step should probably be to take Microsoft's 70-290 exam for Windows Server 2003. There's a really good forum about it here:
70-290 Windows 2003 Server - TechExams.net IT Certification Forums
There's still a lot of demand for people with good Windows sysadmin skills in the job market right now.
ps -e -o pid | xargs -t -n1 pfiles | grep "port: $PORT"
dtrace -n 'syscall::write:entry { @num[zonename] = count(); }'
http://get.a.clue.de/Fun/advsh.html
http://www.perturb.org/display/entry/462/ -
Kasor
Member Posts: 934 ■■■■□□□□□□
First, you need to look into your career perspective and see are you able to grow within the company to become a supervisor
Second, are you looking into IT business or just being a Techie..
Third, are you looking for higher pay job or career. Then you need to look at your local area IT market
Fourth, DO NOT GO AFTER CERTIFICATION WHEN U DON'T HAVE A CAREER GOAL. This is an endless pathKill All Suffer T "o" ReBorn
