Advice needed for my future studies!! Pleasee

FloOz

Little bit of background info on myself. I just graduated with a B.S. in IT, and am currently a desktop engineer at a firm that I interned at during my senior year of school. During my internship I also took it upon myself to pass my A+ cert.

NOW, here is the dilemma I am facing. I want to continue my studies, however, i dont know what path to take. Since passing my A+ i have been studying for my N+ and CCENT. I know networking is where i want to end up. I stumbled upon WGU and saw that their b.s. degrees offered tons of certs you aquire. For example, one that caught my eye Bachelor Degree in IT Network Administration | WGU College of Information Technology Online

I feel like this would be a great way to continue my studies and also get a bunch of certs along the way. Would it be bad to go for another b.s. degree?? Should i possibly go for their masters degree program instead?? (Online IT Network Degree | MS in Network Management) The problem i see here is that it doesnt offer any certs.

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks

EV42TMAN

Honestly i think you'd probably be better off to do the certifications on your own and maybe looking into the masters. i don't see the point of paying for another bachelors degree just to get certifications.

tpatt100

A lot cheaper buying some books and a decent computer to run some VMs on as well as set aside some money for exam retakes.

onesaint

Go for the masters, do the certs on your own. Another bachelors will not be as relevant as a masters in your future. The certs you can go after on your own, think CCNA, CCNP, Etc. The BSIT certs contain a good number that are unknown and thus less beneficial to your career.

Akaricloud

I agree with what other have said here. Pick up a few certs on your own then work on their masters program. Another BS isn't going to benefit you nearly as much as a masters will when applying for jobs.

FloOz

thanks for the advice guys. i was thinking along those lines as well. The only reason i considered another bs is becasue i liked the way wgu had it layed out.

In terms of going for my masters do you think it is more respectable to go to an actual college campus? or would doing the wgu masters program suffice?

techdudehere

IMO the future of much tech work will be on getting high quality technicians at low end rates, already is that way in many environments and always has been in some. Paying out of pocket for a second BS would really set you back since you can't make a profit at those rates with loans. I think the MS will help with the higher level positions at big companies and with government work. 3rd party support probably can't pay you enough to make it worth spending your own money on an MS and are likely too cheap to pay for it for you.

ptilsen

I will reiterate what everyone else has said in saying that getting a second Bachelors in the same general subject just for certifications is absurd. Just self-study. I will elaborate in saying that getting some certifications and more work experience should be your top focus right now.

pruspeter wrote: »

In terms of going for my masters do you think it is more respectable to go to an actual college campus? or would doing the wgu masters program suffice?

The WGU Master's degrees will be respected and generally add value to yourself. However, a more traditional B&M at a more-respected university is certainly worth considering. Even an online degree at a more reputable university is worth considering as an alternative. Again, nothing is wrong with WGU and it will add value, but it's not going to get the same level of respect and recognition as a more traditional school. The certification aspect is nice, but it's a relatively minor factor, IMO. There are top 100 schools offering purely online Master's programs in Computer Science, IT, and Information Assurance, and being in Philadelphia there should be some good B&M programs available. Again, nothing wrong with WGU, but weigh some other options to see what you really want.

FloOz

thanks everyone. yah my plan as of right now is just to continue getting work expereince and passing my n+ and ccent. After that possibly my ccna and then getting the masters degree.

Devilry

Certs on your own, that way you can get relevant certs to your needs.

And yes, start your masters now, it will payoff bigtime.

JayTheCracker

Master is the way to go
having a sandwich working year would be great too

FloOz

so you think i should just apply for graduate school now and postpone the certifications i had planned??

veritas_libertas

Why not do at least the CCNA and then pursue the Masters? This seems like a good clean path to future gains.

FloOz

i just feel like my networking knowledge is not good enough to pursue the ccna yet

veritas_libertas

pruspeter wrote: »

i just feel like my networking knowledge is not good enough to pursue the ccna yet

That is why you pursue the CCNA and study for it I was certainly no networking guru when I started. My AAS degree did not prepare me for it like it should have. Grab some material and study. I think a CCNA + MS degree would be a great blend.