Cisco CCNA certified but never had an I.T. job before

I started learning Cisco Routing and Switching out of the blue back in late 2013 then was able to pass the exam and got my Cisco CCNA in early 2014.

I've had many calls from Recruiters and Employers over the past 4 years since I got my CCNA certification but still no job.

Even an internship never went through for some reason.

What you recommend I put on my Resume to reflect the fact I've NEVER had an I.T. job in my life but still hopefully NOT disqualify myself?

What type of position should I be applying for under these circumstances?

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JoshGarmon47

I should also note that I'm also in school and about to graduate this year in December.

The actual degree program is called "Networking Specialist", it's had a dual Cisco/Microsoft focus.

My absolute love and strength though is the Cisco side of things.

I'm also interested in learning Juniper's stuff and getting my Cisco CCNP cert.

I've taken an A+ class which I personally found difficult, some Computer Hardware classes, but again, for whatever reason, I have done better with Cisco
Routing and Switching.

yoba222

2014? As in expiring this year? Do you have plans to keep it current?

As far as getting your foot in the door you might have to aim a little lower just to get the first job. Then start applying at the 4-month point to jump ship. That little bit of extra experience and having an actual company name on the resume might make the difference.

I pogo-sticked probably 4 or 5 jobs in a 2 year period and more than doubled my salary that way, but I did start doing basic tech support initially at a low pay wage. Level 1 helpdesk, PC repair at your local electronics store, basically anything related to tech will do. You won't be there long anyways.

JoshGarmon47

Yes my CCNA expired this year, I plan on getting a CCNP.

In 3 years of having my CCNA though, I've never been hired.

My dad, who has been in this industry for 30+ years made it sound like I could easily get something once I got that cert.

Welly_59

If CCNA is expired then you will have to sit it again before you can do CCNP

thomas_

Are you still in college? Not being able to work 40 hours/week during normal business hours might be the limiting factor.

scaredoftests

Experience is also a key as well. Does your college have openings that you can apply to gain experience?

beads

There was a time when a certification would almost immediately land you an entry level job. Frankly, enough employers have been bitten by hiring certified people with no experience outside of 7/11 or the like experience.

IT has never been a particularly easy field to break into save the dot com nonsense. Most of us start off at the helpdesk and work hard to break out of the mold and into network engineering or get our CS degrees and move immediately into development. Unless your some sort of near idiot savant most employers want to see at least a 2 year associates degree if not a full four year degree and possibly a certification. Experience will trump a certification but combined experience and certifications will always win out over just a certification.

Yeah, here in IT we eat our young. Been like this for decades.

Good luck!

- b/eads

mikey88

This is when volunteering experience and any temp contracts you can get your hands on come in handy. Also, get your A+ cert and start with an entry level role. CCNA is nice to have with experience under your belt. You must crawl first before you can walk.

JoshGarmon47

Hello all

Would you say working at somewhere like Best Buy selling PCs and Phones is good I.T. experience on Networking resume?

I have a potential opportunity with that soon.

greg9891

Volunteer your time at local schools, churches, community center, it counts for a lot. Internships can be very helpful.

DatabaseHead

beads wrote: »

Yeah, here in IT we eat our young. Been like this for decades.

Good luck!

Ain't that the truth. Chances are you won't get a mentor, you won't get much help. You'll get shown somethings, usually semi helpful, but never the key ingredients. I hear people on her complaining about that all the time, but due to competition you see a lot off that.

It's a tough gig, help desk they usually pamper you and even through tier 2, but once you get into a real role play time is usually over.....

scaredoftests

JoshGarmon47 wrote: »

Hello all

Would you say working at somewhere like Best Buy selling PCs and Phones is good I.T. experience on Networking resume?

I have a potential opportunity with that soon.

It is something. However,not network experience..

NavyMooseCCNA

JoshGarmon47 wrote: »

Hello all

Would you say working at somewhere like Best Buy selling PCs and Phones is good I.T. experience on Networking resume?

I have a potential opportunity with that soon.

I would do volunteering over sales any day of the week. If your town has a local senior center, offer to do a class for them....

waspe3

I'm kinda in the same position i.e. looking for some initial IT experience. I think its best to find some temporary or contract work as a help desk technician part-time if you're still in school.

JoshGarmon47

thank you all

is PBX still a relevant good skill to learn?