Questions about CCNA cert and the liking.

Hey guys, I'm new here and would like to ask a couple questions about the CCNA field.

I was thinking about getting a CCNA cert, but I'm not too sure what that entitles me to, job wise. The schools/recruiters I've talked to all tell me things like "Yeah you can get a job when you get your cert from us" etc. But of course, they might be telling me that because they want me to spend my money there and couldn't give a **** about getting me a job, or me working. I don't have much experience in the IT field at all, I have a little bit of college networking courses, and basic computer classes though.

So, pretty much my questions are... If I get a CCNA cert... is that what employers hire people off of? Should I get a CCNA cert and a Network+ and MSCE maybe? What type of skill set/cert's should I be looking into getting? Or would I just be better off going to college and getting an Associate's in networking, or the liking, instead of going through some(quicker) cert programs?

Any information would be appreciated, and I am always open to any suggestions, as I haven't started the official schooling yet.

Thank you for reading my post, and thank you ahead of time for the help.

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Comments

mikej412

J Detroit wrote: »

they might be telling me that because they want me to spend my money there and couldn't give a **** about getting me a job, or me working.

They ARE telling you that to get your money -- but since you realized this as a possibility that does mean you're smart enough for a career in IT.

J Detroit wrote: »

would I just be better off going to college and getting an Associate's in networking, or the liking, instead of going through some(quicker) cert programs?

You're always better off getting a degree.

It's the combination of education, experience, certifications, and your networking/people skills -- plus some luck -- that help you get and grow an IT career. And Experience is King -- but until you have that, you'll have to rely on your education and certifications to open some doors and your people skills to get an opportunity to prove yourself so that you can earn that experience.

If you're a top student in your Cisco Networking Classes at School -- and your instructors have industry contacts -- you may be able jump into a nice junior network admin position or an exciting NOC position. But if you have people skills and no certifications you could still land something like a boring 3rd shift network/server babysitting NOC job.... while you go to school to work on your degree and certifications.

The CompTIA A+ and Network+ are good "starter certifications" -- but even those may not be required for some of the simple help desk jobs.

Add some Microsoft Certifications and a CCNA and then you'll have some ammunition to hunt down a better job.... so I guess I'm saying (unless your a recent high school graduate still living at home looking at starting college or trade school this fall) try and get a job to start gaining experience while going to school.

J Detroit

mikej412 wrote: »

They ARE telling you that to get your money -- but since you realized this as a possibility that does mean you're smart enough for a career in IT.

You're always better off getting a degree.

It's the combination of education, experience, certifications, and your networking/people skills -- plus some luck -- that help you get and grow an IT career. And Experience is King -- but until you have that, you'll have to rely on your education and certifications to open some doors and your people skills to get an opportunity to prove yourself so that you can earn that experience.

If you're a top student in your Cisco Networking Classes at School -- and your instructors have industry contacts -- you may be able jump into a nice junior network admin position or an exciting NOC position. But if you have people skills and no certifications you could still land something like a boring 3rd shift network/server babysitting NOC job.... while you go to school to work on your degree and certifications.

The CompTIA A+ and Network+ are good "starter certifications" -- but even those may not be required for some of the simple help desk jobs.

Add some Microsoft Certifications and a CCNA and then you'll have some ammunition to hunt down a better job.... so I guess I'm saying (unless your a recent high school graduate still living at home looking at starting college or trade school this fall) try and get a job to start gaining experience while going to school.

Ok great, thanks a lot for that bit of info. My people skills aren't too bad, and getting a job while I goto school isn't much of a problem, I am well out of high school at this point, lol. If I can land one in the field, that might give me the small push needed to meet the "experience" requirement that companies may be looking for.

I'll look into the A+ and Network+ as well as the CCNA cert. That seems like a nice little set of certs/skills to get started, and develop more later as needed per company.