To IT or not IT

perrya1953

I have read many posts and replies and I need confirmation by the pros out there before I decide:

1. Spending $$ on a online course for MSCA or MSCE is a waste if one has little IT background and no direct experience amounting to at least 2 yrs. If you do, the odds of finding employment after completion is as poor as when you started because of no direct experience. Unless one has a lab to work in during training, functioning on the job is very impaired. Is this a fair statement?

2. If one was to pursue the MS server admin side of IT, one should start with MSCA first, then to MSCE. Is this the correct path?

3. What courses, if any, precede MSCA?

perry

Turgon

perrya1953 wrote: »

I have read many posts and replies and I need confirmation by the pros out there before I decide:

1. Spending $$ on a online course for MSCA or MSCE is a waste if one has little IT background and no direct experience amounting to at least 2 yrs. If you do, the odds of finding employment after completion is as poor as when you started because of no direct experience. Unless one has a lab to work in during training, functioning on the job is very impaired. Is this a fair statement?

2. If one was to pursue the MS server admin side of IT, one should start with MSCA first, then to MSCE. Is this the correct path?

3. What courses, if any, precede MSCA?

perry

Best advice I can give is to set about building a reference model at home to practice on. You can use VMware to reduce the number of physical servers you need. Microsoft are also offering some virtual server environments you can use to train on these days. The others will have the details about all that. My last production server build was an NT BDC is 2001

I would say forget the course. Save yourself some money and do it yourself. You learn more anyway. Plus if you cant stand the pain of figuring out how to get things working properly at home and losing a few weekends in the process, then IT support isn't for you. It's much worse in the field.

MCP then MCSA is the route I understand.

Things are difficult for everyone right now. Even so get as much hands on as you can and you will be better off with the certification than without it. Network with people well to get your first break!

perrya1953

thanks for the input, seems like #1 in the post is fairly accurate then?

perry

dynamik

It depends on the person, but unless you prefer classroom learning, I'd suggest that you forgo any courses. If you want (relatively) cheap instruction led training, check out CBTs like CBT Nuggets or Train Signal.

For a lab setup, I've found a Technet Plus subscription and VMware Workstation to be ideal, but you can get by with trial software and free virtualization solutions such as Virtual Box and VMware Server.

You'll obtain your MCSA on your way to the MCSE; the MCSA is just a subset of the MCSE.

Hyper-Me

I've actually found self-study mixed with CBTs to be far superior to classroom based training, and much much cheaper.

Most of the classroom based companies give you the absolute minimum to get by with the class and its not enough to pass an exam, and defintiely not enough to do a job.

Turgon

Hyper-Me wrote: »

I've actually found self-study mixed with CBTs to be far superior to classroom based training, and much much cheaper.

Most of the classroom based companies give you the absolute minimum to get by with the class and its not enough to pass an exam, and defintiely not enough to do a job.

I fear that is because most instructors either don't do the job or have never worked in live environments.

msteinhilber

The big problem with classroom based studies to me is that I am the type of person who prefers to work at my own pace. That pace could be quicker than the rest of the class or slower, either way if things are not moving along with the pace I expect them to be it really throws me off. Perhaps it's the ADHD in me that does that but it really frustrates me, I don't run into that problem when I'm studying on my own. Classrooms also pose an impact on my schedule, I obviously would have to make time in my schedule to accommodate it and it may or may not interfere with something else in my schedule (which is quite busy as it is). If it interferes with my schedule it's going to make my mind more clouded when I should be focusing on the instructor.

Self-study I think is one of the best ways to go in my opinion. It's a great way to learn on a budget and another possibly more important point that I think some overlook is developing and fine tuning ones ability to study independently is a large contributor to one's success in this industry. The IT industry changes very rapidly, and if you desire to remain competitive in this industry and continue to move upwards for better pay and more responsibilities then you need to keep yourself abreast of the hot technologies and remain marketable. You will not be able to rely on your employer to keep you trained on the latest technologies, some in this industry luck out and are fortunate enough to have employers who cover a large amount of training expenses to keep their employees sharp. Most of us do not have such benefits, some of us are fortunate enough if our employers will cover the cost of a certification exam (while you pay for the training materials and study on your own). Because of this, being able to have the discipline and ability to pickup a book or two, watch some CBT's, do some labs, and perhaps some practice exams is vital if you really want to prosper in the industry.

I work with an individual who refuses to do so for a combination of two reasons, one being he doesn't desire to invest his own money in training materials and the other being he expects our employer to allow him to train on their time. Guess what, he's still working the helpdesk and has been for over 9 years now for a fairly weak salary.

My vote goes to self-study with a mixture of books, CBT's (TrainSignal, CBT Nuggets, etc), and some hands-on through your own labs. It makes sense to get used to training this way, since you will probably be doing a lot of this sort of training throughout your career if you want to keep yourself marketable.

perrya1953

Ok, the online course seems the best bet, self pace. But, I should not count on getting a MCSA or MCSE cert to translate into a entry level job, correct? that is because most require 2-3 yrs experience. I guess I wonder at what point will the new career really mean job.

perry

SysAdmin4066

MCSA/MCSE level jobs are not entry level. You're talking a Systems Administrator/Systems Engineer. Help Desk/Desktop support are entry level. Which is why it would be rather difficult to pull in a Systems job with just the MCSX because you will need to have been at least working in IT for a few years. I would say the best track these days is to first get an entry level position, while working on entry level certs. MCP is any MS cert, basically could be towards MCSX, or the other older certs (the new MCP is now a MCTS for Technology Specialist). I would go the desktop cert route and get an entry level job before spending the time and effort towards a more proffessional level cert. Building the foundation before the house so to speak. Most if not all of us Systems/Engineer guys started in helpdesk/desktop positions. You have to pay your dues.