Is sacrificing salary for experience and a good work environment worth it?

kylepossible

At entry level, this is my first "career" job. Starts @ 10/hr and bumps to $12 when i get my Windows 7 & XenDesktop cert (Thoughts on the difficulty of obtaining these certs by the way?)

From salary reviews looks like 15~ is the average but I wasn't gonna complain really need experience, the company has all state of the art equipment, good environment and has room the room to grow from a help desk position which is what i am. From reading a lot of jobs are a dead end at help desk.

networker050184

Well, any job is better than no job so take what you can get. Once you have some experience and certifications under your belt the money will come. You can always keep looking for something else while you work there if the money is not enough for you to get by on.

As far as sacrificing salary for a good work environment it would be worth it for me (as long as it's enough to pay my bills and take care of my family of course). You are going to spend 40+ hours a week at work. If you don't enjoy the environment you are going to be miserable no matter how much they pay you.

paq7512

I completely agree with networker050184, just be patient. If you work with people that know more then you that always helps. And any entry job I would just be happy to have one with no/little experience. And then one day you will be happier with the funds.

lawrence_of_arabia

Don't feel bad. I had to volunteer for my very first IT job at a PC repair shop just to get SOME experience.

TechGuru80

First job in anything is rarely the best thing ever. It is about moving up the chain, gaining certifications, and experience.

instant000

Take the job paying $10/hr, build up your certs and experience, and you'll be over $20/hr within a year.

$15/hr will be in your rear view mirror soon.

Hope this helps.

pert

It depends how valuable the experience is. If youre talking working with the best tech in the world with full access, then yes by all means.

blargoe

There really isn't much sacrificing salary if it's your first job... the market is going to pay you well below average if you have zero experience.

Keep working on your certs and your soft skills, and as you gain experience your salary will not remain that low for long.

Now in general is giving up some salary worth it for gaining valuable experience and a great work environment? If you can afford it and it is worth it to you, then by all means. Personally, I would hate making 5% more salary but be miserable at work.

About7Narwhal

Money at entry level is worth less than having a job that fosters growth and development. Plus, it is easier to go to work when you like your job. Pay cannot make a job enjoyable.

Zartanasaurus

A job that rewards continuing education, certifications and has room for advancement? What was the complaint again? $12 for getting a Citrix cert seems pretty low, but it's good that they are wanting you to improve. Have you read the thread where the guy's manager said they don't want to pay for certs because they don't want employees to leave?

--chris--

I am doing just as the OP has said, about $10/hour but in a spot to learn a lot. The environment isn't the best, but its a start and I wont complain about it. I have learned a lot! I just seen the post above this one, and that is nice to be encouraged to certify! My employer places zero value on certs, which is good and bad. Good in that I was able to get in without having any certs, bad in that they discourage me (and others) from certifying.

Like others have said, keep learning and certify. Keep your eyes open for other positions (at other businesses?) that will offer better benefits or the opportunity to use your new skills.

Snow.bros

I am also experiencing what you are experiencing at this stage, but lets be honest here i think in any career besides IT they all go through the same issue, i think if you are only starting out in the industry, you shouldn't be thinking about money. The primary focus should be learning what you are interested in and along with get some experience and until you know what are you doing for sure then we can start thinking about salaries later but for now just look at it as an opportunity. The reward always comes after a hard work.

--chris--

@snowbros: interesting side note to this topic. Look at RNs in the US. They graduate with associates and start at $24.65 where my wife works. That's zero experience fresh out of school.

I know many people who are RNs and hate it or have moved on all together into a new field. They became a RN for the wrong reason....the money. Not all fields have low starting wages, but you have to wonder if that's good or bad?

About7Narwhal

My employer will pay you a premium on top of your pay if you are an RN. That includes employees within IT. Although I could seem them trying to draft you into the medical side if you earned it. (It usually goes the other way: We draft RNs to become technical analysts)

phonic

I'll also reiterate what many have said. Find a job you like/love as long as you can afford to live on the pay and use the time to make yourself better equipped for your chosen career path. Who knows, over time you may wind up getting significant salary bumps and stay at the same company in a senior position.

Two quick personal examples:
1) While my ideal career path was always in IT, I wound up getting side tracked into a different job and was out of the field for about 6-7 years. A lot changed, so my skillset needed some serious improvement. In order to get back into the field, I wound up taking an entry level job at a company doing some cool things in an interesting niche. It paid less than what I was making, but I knew I would enjoy it more. It was also a small company with room to grow. Within a few months, I was promoted to a senior tech position. Within a few months after that, I was running the department. About a year later, I was promoted to VP level. And all along, I was gaining more experience and technical skills. Within three years, my salary had tripled. Unfortunately, I became more of a manager and less of a tech guy, and I wasn't enjoying that role too much. I'm fairly young and while I will likely go down that road in the future, I personally felt like I was missing out on a lot of what I wanted to do - plus working 60-70 hour weeks. The icing on the cake was the company changed a lot over those years and wasn't a very nice place to work anymore.

2) So I decided to move on to a different job. Again, I took a big pay cut, but I found a company that I truly love working for and a position that was much more technical. I've been there less than a year, but already have a raise (and hopefully a promotion soon). I'm gaining even more experience and training in areas I always wanted to get into professionally but never had the chance.

So long story short, do what you love and worry about the money later.

cisco_dog

Last year I got called up by an agency chatting some rubbish about a job that didnt really interest me but I was unemployed and when they said it was $300 I was all ears. I did it for three months and it was the WORST working experience of my life (worse than my time in a supermarket) and it left me in a far worse position than when I started. The reason being I was completly disallusioned about network engineering at the end of my time there and its taken me 12 months to get back to where I was. I look back on the experience and wish I had just sat at home watching DVDs for 3 months, I resent the fact that I have this period of employment on my CV.

But when life gives you lemons make lemonade and the experience inspired me get my CCNA and I am back to wanting to be a network guy again (and have spent the last 5 months doing just that for a hospital) so good things have come of it but I dont plan on forgetting that period of my life in a hurry.

About7Narwhal

@cisco_dog,

Sounds like my time at the steel mill. I hated my job, hated by boss, but loved my pay. Plus, I realized something very important while I was there: You can learn something from everyone. While I was there I learned how NOT to lead people, and it has probably been much more valuable than learning some of the correct things from my better bosses. Just my .02 cents.