New here, looking for advice

IUgrad505

Hi All,

I'm new here but thought it would be a good place to come for some advice from people who know alot more than I do. This may end up being a much longer post than I intended, but thanks ALOT to anyone who reads the whole thing and has any advice.

Here's some background: I graduated from IU (Indiana) in 2005 with a BS in Informatics, which was very new at the time (I think I was only the 5th graduating class). I took 2 courses in Java, one in networking, web programming and the other "major" courses that didn't matter all that much (mathematical foundations, social informatics, organizational informatics, etc.) We had to choose a cognate area, so I chose Telecom applications - video editing, Flash, DVD authoring, 3D modeling and animation, etc - at the time I really wanted to go into graphics and special effects, and that was the closest I could get. Essentially I had an IT major but not really an IT education.

All my work experience has been in multimedia, post production, DVD production, and web design. I was laid off from a full-time job 2 years ago, and since then I've been doing freelance web work and looking for a new career path. I've been back and forth the whole time trying to figure out what to do, but I'm very interested in the hot new area of infosec, IA, forensics or whatever it may be.

I have more technical knowledge than the average person, but definitely nowhere near as much as a real IT pro. I'd love some advice on where to start. I took 2 online courses through UCLA Extension, Intro to TCP/IP and Intro to Information Security Concepts. They taught me a little but, but not a whole lot more than I already knew and not enough to get a job in IT.

I'd love some help to start me in the right direction. Should I go back to school and get a Master's in Information Security from one of the schools on the NSA's Center of Academic Excellence list? Should I study for certifications and try and get a job that way and build up to security? A friend in the field told me I should start with the A+ certification, but I've been reading postings alot and I've found a few telling people it's not worth it unless you care to do laptop or computer repair. Can I use the little bit of knowledge I have in networking and try to build on that and really learn it through studying for Network+?

I need the work experience too, but how do I get it? What can I do to get that first job and get started in general?

VAHokie56

I would highly recommend the A+ as your first IT certification, it will lay down fundamentals and also your first IT job will most likely be entry level and the A+ is great for that. Once you get an entry level role you should be able to sniff out other departments at your work place and get an idea of what they do and if you would be interested. After you figure out what section of IT you want to specialize in research the professional level certs and go after them. Good luck and welcome to TE

IUgrad505

Thanks! Funny enough my friend in the field lives in Virgina, she's a Hokie fan too.

Do you think grad school would be beneficial at some point? I've been reading peoples opinions on getting a Master's vs. certifications and it seems to be split. Some say a Master's stays with you forever but certs expire in 3 years, though I read that CompTIA certifications are lifetime. I guess for now the A+ is the way to go though.

VAHokie56

God loves all but he is a Virginia Tech fan when it comes to college football.

I could not speak on getting a masters degree. I have only been in IT for 4 years and I only have an associates degree but its not in any IT related field. In my current job people seem to respect certs and experience, my education has never come into question. I just accepted a new position that I believe I got based on my last years experience and my CCNA. SO if you ask me I say get into the field and get your hands dirty and start working on certs but I am sure there are many people who would say take the education route. They are not wrong, things just worked out for me this way for some others it could be different.

tech5621

I don't regret at all going the A+>Net+>Sec+ route in my certifications and would still recommend it. It has provided me a very strong foundation to build off of and has definitely increased my opportunities. You are already a step above many people by already having a bachelor's, you show dedication, now enhance that with some industry known certs. It will open the doors for you and you can alway go back to getting a master's later...

IUgrad505

Thanks tech5621, that was a great answer - exactly the kind of thing I was looking for. I could've taken the GRE 2 years ago and thought about it, but I never did. Knowing I don't really have the IT background, I don't think I can get into a grad program yet anyway, especially without work experience. Hopefully studying for certifications will give me enough "education" in the meantime to at least get an entry-level job. It's tough only having really worked half the time I've been out of school, but I guess it's better late than never to start getting certified and stuff. Thanks alot! Any specific books you recommend?

tech5621

I haven't done much research if the tests are actually changing but here is what I used. I'm not sure if the actual tests are to be changed based on the new 3 year cycles CompTIA is introducing.

A+ certs = Exam Cram 220-701/702 Practice Questions 3rd Edition by Patrick Regan & All In One Exam Guide 7th Edition by Michael Myers (get the Myers book if your limited on practical experience)

Network+ cert = Exam Prep Network+ 3rd Edition by Mike Harwood (good book for reference as well)

Security+ cert = Get Certified, Get Ahead by Darril Gibson (fantastic read & I believe he frequents techexams.net) & All In One Exam Guide 2nd Edition by Greg White etc. (bit in-depth, actually breaks down algorithms etc., not all info necessary but interesting)

earweed

I highly recommend getting the Labsim for the Net+. It helped me a lot while studying for that cert.

IUgrad505

I have a Kindle app on my Mac and downloaded a sample of the Mike Myers book and it seems pretty good so far. I decided to start going down that path, because it's definitely the best option for me. Either way, getting A+ certified couldn't hurt unless I only wasted time doing that and nothing else, but right after that I'm working on Network+. I have a basic networking background already, I just need to put in the work to learn and really understand it in detail. After that, Security+ is a given seeing as it's what I'm really interested in, and maybe Microsoft or Cisco would help depending on my work situation. I think I'll buy the All-in-One Guide from Myers. Have a sample of the Network+ All-in-one too and bought the kindle edition of The Darril Gibson book, actually before I made my first post - so it looks like I made the right choices. The kindle edition was only $10, so its worth having even if it's a while before I go for it and there's a new edition out.

About test changes - the only thing I read was that because of the timing, the 2009 version JUST missed out on Windows 7, so that won't be on there until the 2012 tests so I won't need to know it. I'm definitely taking it before then.

@earweed, what's the Labsim? I've never heard of that, but just downloaded GNS3 and I'm trying to figure out how to use it to play around.