Next step after Help Desk?

markulous

I'm going to have my IT Associate's degree in two months and then I'm heading to WGU to get my BA in IT Security.

I've been a volunteer PC Technician at Protonic.com for nearly a year. I have trackable tickets as well. Also, a couple months ago I got a Tech Support job for a popular banking website. I've been around computers all my life but just managed to get experience on paper recently with a career change into the IT field.

I'm figuring after my degree (and a little more experience under my belt) I'll start applying shortly after for a better job. I can't afford any certs at the moment, but at WGU, I'll be able to charge them to my tuition and get a few. In your experience, what type of jobs can I get after that? I am not sure if I should wait to get a Security+ or CCSP before I start applying or if I should just get a job at a local computer shop. I only make $10 an hour now, but I'm honestly hoping I can get a $15 an hour job. Is that too unreasonable?

TechGuy215

What are the responsibilities at your current job? From what you've explained it sounds like you're probably not ready for the next step after helpdesk, but instead you're ready to pursue a helpdesk position itself. Considering it sounds like you don't have much experience in an enterprise IT infrastructure, I would recommend looking for an entry-level or tier 1 help-desk position. 15 dollars is definitely not unreasonable. The tier 1 helpdesk at my company makes a salary of about $42,000.00 ($20 per hour).

Don't be too worried about the certs. Pursue your degree and continue to gain experience and you can tackle the certs down the line.

It sounds like you're on your way though, and I wish you luck on you're journey!

J_86

Where are you located? With your degree $15 is not unreasonable, unless you are in an area with a bad IT job market. When I started working in IT at a help desk I started making $12 and when I left I made $15, but I don't have a degree or any certifications.

markulous

My current job at the banking website: Pin/Password resets, Java, Browser issues, anti-virus issues, internet connections, as well as troubleshooting the mobile app.
On Protonic: Anything PC-related; hardware, software, networking, security, etc.
Both jobs I ticket each issue of course.

I didn't realize a tier 1 helpdesk could make 20 an hour. I thought that was what I was doing, but I guess that's not exactly it after looking at some job postings. If I can make $20 an hour in about 4 months, I would be ecstatic!

I live near Denver, CO BTW.

J_86

Yeah, you will find that "tier 1" can very drastically from company to company.

phonic

There is no 'official' definition of a Tier 1 Helpdesk position, nor are any two necessary alike. It is simply a term used to define a group of people at a company. Some are very basic and require limited technical expertise - which sounds like what you are doing for the most part. In some cases, it might mostly be scripted responses, which requires even less skills. Other companies might require much more advanced experience and knowledge, which should result in a higher pay range.

For example, I used to manage a department that had two tiers of support. However, even the Tier 1 group needed to have an intermediate understanding of a wide array of technical competencies (networking, Linux, VoIP, security, telephony, etc.). The Tier 2 group was generally made up of the people who had a good amount of experience supporting our products and services and who excelled in Tier 1. But the amount of skills required to be a 'good' Tier 1 at our company was equivalent to what many companies would consider Tier 2 or possibly even Tier 3. Many of the people from that group went on to (or were stolen for...) other positions in the company like development, QA, system administration, etc.

So when comparing pay stubs, it's more important to look at job responsibilities and requirements versus titles. This goes with pretty much all positions.

gbdavidx

Is it possible to go from desktop to system admin? If so how is this possible? Certs?

phonic

From desktop support to system administration?

There is a big difference between the two. Certs are great, but you need experience. Your best bet is to learn as much as you can and then try to get a job as a junior sys admin so you can gain the experience required.

Krones

Depends on what area of systems administration you want to go into. Certs are nice and structured etc but I think hacking/tinkering and having your own lab is another avenue you should pursue.

MSSoftie

The certs honestly aren't as important as the experience. That may be a bit of heresy on a site like this one but its true. The certs are great as a way to prove certain skills and often they will get you past the HR people that don't really know what they mean but are told to look for them. They can also help you land the interviews with IT Managers that want to see them but certs without experience will not help you. In fact, when I hire people I consider it a red flag when someone has certs well beyond their work experience. What you need to do is work. You will make moves in smaller increments. If tier one where you are is just a "call taker and ticket maker" work up to the person that the tickets get escalated too. If you work tickets, work your way up to the next level of escalation. Be open to changing companies to make the moves you want to make. I have found that changing companies has been a much faster route to more money and higher positions. I believe that you need come to a time that you need to move-up in a company or move out. The time period increases as the level increases. Personally, I wouldn't stay in a level 1 position much more than a year before looking for a level 2 position. It took me a year to move from a $12 hour to a $20 hour. Two years after that I was salary but at over $30 an hour and a couple of years later I moved up again and continue to move up. It can be done but most of those increases were with new companies. Companies can be funny about promoting from within. They all talk about how they do it but in practice, in my experience it is much more likely for them to bring in someone new. That is especially true in larger companies. HR departments have deep seated beliefs that you should only advance so fast and it may have nothing to do with your level of skill. Again, they never admit this.

phonic

I agree that in many cases you need to move out to move up.
I don't think it is necessary an HR conspiracy, since in many of the companies I've worked for HR had nothing to do with post-employment advancement outside of putting the paperwork through.
I think the biggest factor that can hurt people from advancing within a company is being so good at a particular position that the company doesn't want to lose you in that role. I've seen one company in particular lose really good people simply because they wanted to lock them in place. It was easier to find senior people vs good junior people, so they often would hire from outside to fill those vacancies. In some cases they would give fake promotions, where the person would have a shiny new title but still do basically the same job. And in the end, the people who were good would leave to other companies (who were probably doing the same thing).

RockinRobin

MSSoftie wrote: »

The certs honestly aren't as important as the experience. That may be a bit of heresy on a site like this one but its true. The certs are great as a way to prove certain skills and often they will get you past the HR people that don't really know what they mean but are told to look for them. They can also help you land the interviews with IT Managers that want to see them but certs without experience will not help you. In fact, when I hire people I consider it a red flag when someone has certs well beyond their work experience. What you need to do is work. You will make moves in smaller increments. If tier one where you are is just a "call taker and ticket maker" work up to the person that the tickets get escalated too. If you work tickets, work your way up to the next level of escalation. Be open to changing companies to make the moves you want to make. I have found that changing companies has been a much faster route to more money and higher positions. I believe that you need come to a time that you need to move-up in a company or move out. The time period increases as the level increases. Personally, I wouldn't stay in a level 1 position much more than a year before looking for a level 2 position. It took me a year to move from a $12 hour to a $20 hour. Two years after that I was salary but at over $30 an hour and a couple of years later I moved up again and continue to move up. It can be done but most of those increases were with new companies. Companies can be funny about promoting from within. They all talk about how they do it but in practice, in my experience it is much more likely for them to bring in someone new. That is especially true in larger companies. HR departments have deep seated beliefs that you should only advance so fast and it may have nothing to do with your level of skill. Again, they never admit this.

Lots of gold in this response. Thanks for posting this!

markulous

phonic wrote: »

There is no 'official' definition of a Tier 1 Helpdesk position, nor are any two necessary alike. It is simply a term used to define a group of people at a company. Some are very basic and require limited technical expertise - which sounds like what you are doing for the most part. In some cases, it might mostly be scripted responses, which requires even less skills. Other companies might require much more advanced experience and knowledge, which should result in a higher pay range.

For example, I used to manage a department that had two tiers of support. However, even the Tier 1 group needed to have an intermediate understanding of a wide array of technical competencies (networking, Linux, VoIP, security, telephony, etc.). The Tier 2 group was generally made up of the people who had a good amount of experience supporting our products and services and who excelled in Tier 1. But the amount of skills required to be a 'good' Tier 1 at our company was equivalent to what many companies would consider Tier 2 or possibly even Tier 3. Many of the people from that group went on to (or were stolen for...) other positions in the company like development, QA, system administration, etc.

So when comparing pay stubs, it's more important to look at job responsibilities and requirements versus titles. This goes with pretty much all positions.

That answers a lot of what I was confused on. Thank you.

I do not do anything scripted at where I work now and we are limited on what we are supposed to troubleshoot, but I try to work within those parameters and come up with different solutions. I'd like a more techy job though that pays more.