Studying rut...

I'm posting this here rather than the general certification forum for reasons that will become clear as you read on

I got my CCENT after about 5 weeks of studying, and CCNA about 5 weeks after that (being unemployed helped; the wife is being supportive of me getting certified so I can get a better career than what I previously had).

Local job market is pretty sparse, so I started a 'what now?' thread in the IT jobs forum and was told I should get a microsoft cert so I could get help desk and work from there. I grudgingly picked up the study books for MCITP:SA, even though I had thought/hoped with a CCNA I could go with a NOC (tier 1?) job rather than help desk.

I'm trying to study this material, but I'm really not very interested in it, and I'm finding myself doing other things rather than studying (something I never did with the CCNA material, or the CCNP material I'd started looking through, and only marginally did with the boring CCNA:Security study guides).

So I'm posting this here, where it's somewhat more likely to get answered by people with a focus more on networking rather than a mix of everything.

Are there any (viable) alternatives to forcing myself through this microsoft cert?

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Comments

hooklow

Don't force it, if you don't like it now how are you going to like it later? do what you like doing.
There is a Cisco meetup group in Chicago, good place to network

Ryuksapple84

Hey,

I was in the same boat about 5 months ago. I had just gotten my CCNA and was not able to find work.

This is what I did and I hope this helps out. I live in the Dc area so I am not sure how the job market is out where you live. I started to call recruiters. They love to hear that you have your CCNA. That is the only way I saw that I had a chance of getting a job. Now I work in a NOC as Tier 1.

Also if you get your CCNA Security, you may have a better chance of getting hired. I did mine in about 2-3 weeks. Let me know if you need the material. I have it and we can work on how to get it to you.

Good luck.

Netwurk

Good luck with it - job market is tight right now. Plow through sites like monster and dice, and keep at it.

Be positive and seem eager when you interview.

Again, good luck.

bermovick

Cool, it's good to know that it can be done. Tier 1 NOC is about what I'm hoping to get, to get experience. I've called a couple of contract places nearby that leafdaddy suggested (he used to live near!), and I'm going to check with TEKsystems tomorrow; they have an office about 1.5 hours away. Hopefully something will turn up.

I made it about halfway through CCNA:Security before getting frustrated at the lack of any hits on the job boards (indeed, craigslist, etc). I'll go back to my plan of getting :Sec and :Voice rather than (ugh) microsoft

Thanks for showing me it's possible!

jimmy6067

I hope you are able to find something one suggestion I have is to also look for positions within the government. However keep in mind that sometimes the requirements for certain jobs with them are a bit more stricter than being certified as they also desire individuals with a college background. Nevertheless, if you do land a job with the government their is a good chance for job security. Best of luck!

Ryuksapple84

bermovick wrote: »

Cool, it's good to know that it can be done. Tier 1 NOC is about what I'm hoping to get, to get experience. I've called a couple of contract places nearby that leafdaddy suggested (he used to live near!), and I'm going to check with TEKsystems tomorrow; they have an office about 1.5 hours away. Hopefully something will turn up.

I made it about halfway through CCNA:Security before getting frustrated at the lack of any hits on the job boards (indeed, craigslist, etc). I'll go back to my plan of getting :Sec and :Voice rather than (ugh) microsoft

Thanks for showing me it's possible!

I got this Job through Tek Systems... I called about 15-30 recruiters and bugged them. Keep at it man and let me know if you have any other questions.