New York City jobs

sizeon

Is there such thing as $60,000 for Desktop support? I sometimes see job posting offering $60,000 for desktop support for hedge funds but you have to go through recruiters which turns me off.

techwizard

Maybe, but I would be real suspect of that job and job offer. too good to be true. You can always apply and find out the details, and not take the position if its not what it seems.

FloOz

Why is 60k something to be suspect of? I was making 45k as a Desktop Engineer at my first IT job, which was located in Philadelphia. So with the cost of living in NYC 60k sounds about right to me.

beaucaldwell

I wouldn't find it suspect, the last 2 companies I worked for capped desktop support at 53k and that's in San Diego/Los Angeles, doesn't surprise me too much to see a little boost for NYC

danny069

I don't know if i'm "allowed" to "name" companies specifically but yes, I knew guys that were making more than that plus bonuses at a certain financial company, and I'm talking about working for the company directly (which I believe everyone should strive for) not as a consultant, in NYC. Desktop Support meaning level 3 support of course, supporting software/applications, etc.

networker050184

Cost of living makes a huge difference in pay so $60k is pretty low in NYC compared to the majority of the country. Going off the CCN Money CoL calculator $60k in NYC is equivalent to $30K in a place like Raleigh, NC.

Cost of Living Calculator: Compare the Cost of Living in Two Cities - CNNMoney

techwizard

You're probably right. COL makes a big difference depending on where you live. There is no way I would see that job offered where I live, that's why I said what I said.

danny069

^ Yes living here is expensive, it's important to study hard, get certified, get your college degree in something specialized to have a unique skillset, which will make you become gold in todays' job market.

NightShade03

Don't get me started on cost of living in this god forsaken state....

$60k is certainly reasonable for NYC, however make sure you understand what the demands of the job are. Many roles like help desk are required to either participate in or be part of a 24x7 environment/rotation. That can certainly drain a person if there aren't a ton of people in the pool.

sizeon

i used to be on call 24/7 every other 3 months when doing support but only got paid $50,000 as a level 3 tech.

dpjackal89

I live in NYC and 60k is not suspect at all. Jobs here in NYC pay a lot more than that. My jobs pays $80k and I do CCENT level work. My first real IT job.

beaucaldwell

danny069 wrote: »

Desktop Support meaning level 3 support of course, supporting software/applications, etc.

In my experience I would have to disagree with this. I've been doing desktop support for 6 years and have never worked for anyone or seen any job that classifies Tier 3 as desktop support. I mean if you can score a T3 title for T2 work that's awesome and helps your resume but that is not the norm.

-Tier 1: helpdesk/call center
-Tier 2: desktop support/onsite support
-Tier 3 and above: doesn't so much as email/call the end-user 99.99% of the time, they purely deal with either projects/integration/programing/etc. or escalations from T2; and when they do get a ticket from T2 it's not like they actually work with the EU, they just tell T2 how to fix it and T2 deals with the end user. T3 is always specialist, never in my life seen someone get a T3 title for desktop support... Not even if they were considered "Sr. Desktop Support" did they get a T3 title.

Zomboidicus

My suggestion is not get a job at NYC for an entry-level position, unless you already live there.

I made the mistake of taking an enter-level job at NYC right after graduation. Then I walked away with debt, and owing IRS taxes (which was the first time I EVER owed IRS any tax.) Even with 60K, you may face economic hardship, because of living cost and income/sales tax. It didn't help the fact that I can't really cook lol.

danny069

Yeah here we called Tier 3 Desktop Support, which was deemed the final level of support to clarify. (My experience at financial firm here in nyc)

Akaricloud

Yes they exist but are usually for those with more experience where they want someone who will stay there for 5+ years. Honestly you're better off moving to a higher-level position and not worrying about trying to find the best paying low-level job.

Legacy User

In NY 60k for desktop support is common for a company with deep pockets.

danny069

^ yes, and especially if they don't know what you really do, they also panic when they hear Target got hacked and scramble to hire cyber security guys/girls.

cowill

In my experiences.....Tier 3 is usually defined as how the company sees fit..........Ive been in one place where tier 3 was doing the same things we were, he just dealt more with back end of IT (Server/Network/Workstation groups) than we did. But he got the same virus/re-image break/fix tickets we got....

Another place I was, most of the Tier 3 was the same at the first place I was at, but they often dealt with more upper crust customers (Senior Execs and VPs.....)......

60K Desktop support is not too crazy in NY......There are some places that pay like that in DC.....its not the norm and it usually comes with other requirments (Clearance and/or degree), but it happens...Hell my first desktop support job was 45k with no certs and very minimal experience......

cowill

IMHO, Its nothing wrong with tier 3 unless you are trying to move up.I wouldn't want to move into a "tier 3" role from tier 2 unless it came with responsiblities that will further my career and decent pay.........


Also.....I personally think tier 3 is ideal for people who are trying to run a side business, trying to spend more time with their family or people who've done the crazy, non-desktop stuff and are trying to slow down.....Tier 3 tends to seem more manageable.........It may be crazy during work hours but in my expierence they always got off on time with no problem


But then again, a lot of that is where you are and not just the role itself.

....

sizeon

I have CCNA and windows admin experience but can't get a system admin or network job. What gives?

networker050184

Are you getting interviews? If not you probably need to work on you resume. Are you getting interviews but not offers? Then you probably need to work on your interviewing skills and selling yourself.

Akaricloud

Couple questions for you then:

How are you showing potential employers the value that you would bring to a Systems Administration or Networking job?

What that you're providing gives them a reason to trust you with their production systems where mistakes are costly?

sizeon

I only got one interview but didn't get it because i did not have networking experience even though it was entry level networking job. I am only getting interviews for desktop support.

BradleyHU

sizeon wrote: »

Is there such thing as $60,000 for Desktop support? I sometimes see job posting offering $60,000 for desktop support for hedge funds but you have to go through recruiters which turns me off.

yeah, there's $60k+ desktop jobs....i do helpdesk, and i'm over $60k before my bonus. If you do financial services, if you have like 5+ years experience, you're at least gonna b @ $70k starting. I've gotten interviews through direct applying & also through recruiters to a number of financial services firms....recruiters are annoying to deal with, not gonna lie, but sometimes they actually do help....

BradleyHU

networker050184 wrote: »

Cost of living makes a huge difference in pay so $60k is pretty low in NYC compared to the majority of the country. Going off the CCN Money CoL calculator $60k in NYC is equivalent to $30K in a place like Raleigh, NC.

Cost of Living Calculator: Compare the Cost of Living in Two Cities - CNNMoney

see i find reports like that to be severely skewed. it all depends on where you're living and your spending habits. if you're living in downtown bk, park slope, or anywhere in manhattan then yes $60K isn't gonna be much, but if you live other areas where you're not payin like $2k+/month in rent for a 1br, then you'll be iight....especially if you know how to budget properly....

networker050184

Well yeah, it's an average so you can definitely find cheaper and more expensive housing than what the list shows. As I've moved around I've found it it to be a fairly accurate tool, but as you said life style and budgeting can move the equivalent salary needle either way.

DoubleNNs

sizeon wrote: »

I have CCNA and windows admin experience but can't get a system admin or network job. What gives?

In a week or so, I'll be starting my search for a networking role in/around NYC as well. I actually had 2 interviews recently, where they seemed sold but didn't hire me because I had CCENT and not CCNA. (1 was a very, very well known NY based company, yet the 2 people interviewing me didn't even know what the CCENT was.) I can only imagine it'd be easier for you with the CCNA - you should be getting plenty of calls/interviews.

Do you actually live in NYC? Are you open to jobs in any of the surrounding areas?

sizeon

Yes i live in NY. Do you have some experience with networks?

j.petrov

60k is a NYC minimum if you want to have any chance of a decent quality of life. Like another poster here stated, be prepared you may walk away with a ton of debt if you take a low ball job offer. It happened to me before I changed careers and got into IT. I'm finally crawling out of that hole now, but its still gonna take a while. 60k might sound like a lot to some but not for those of us that live here.

edzyyy

j.petrov wrote: »

60k is a NYC minimum if you want to have any chance of a decent quality of life. Like another poster here stated, be prepared you may walk away with a ton of debt if you take a low ball job offer. It happened to me before I changed careers and got into IT. I'm finally crawling out of that hole now, but its still gonna take a while. 60k might sound like a lot to some but not for those of us that live here.

Half of NYC lives on <30k

Your definition of quality and majority of the city greatly differ.