Turning to IT after poker...

Hi all, happy to have found this forum. I am a former professional poker player looking to get into the field of IT. Unfortunately I lost my job when the government shut down the online sites and now have little work experience that translates to other areas. I am 27 y/o with a BA from a state school but am the quantitative type that enjoys computers. I have a few connections in the IT world that I am meeting with soon, but was wondering what advice you all had in transitioning (which certifications, which entry level jobs to apply to, etc.). I have saved up a good sum of money the past few years so I can afford to take time to exclusively study and learn, I have read that starting with A+ and Network+ is a good route. I would eventually like to get into server admin. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

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Michael.J.Palmer

What is your BA in? Is it IT related or something else?

I feel you on the poker thing, I was an avid player myself at one point but had to turn to IT when the bad beats started coming too quickly, lol.

Me personally I have the same ambition to become a system/server administrator and the certifications I already have (just look to the left) are a good place to start for that type of field. A+ and Network+ are good certs to start with, but one thing that hinders a lot of people in this field is lack of real world work experience.

What I would do is study for your A+ and maybe MCTS: Windows 7 Config (required for MCITP: EA or MCSE anyways) and seek a help desk job. Work some while you get your certs and build up that resume. Certifications are nice and all and can definitely open doors, but you'll never get a look unless you have real world IT experience on your resume, unless you know a hiring manager somewhere who's willing to take the risk.

I'd start A+ and Network+ route and then maybe look into the MCITP paths for some of the Microsoft System Administration certifications (MCITP: SA and EA for example) and go from there.

If you have a BA or minor in something computer related you could also look into enrolling WGU in one of their many IT programs and get certs there as well. The programs are pretty dirt cheap compared to most and the industry certs are just as good as self studying (maybe even better if you plan to drop about $500 in test money per cert including study material and money to buy test vouchers), they charge roughly $2800 for six months worth of classes and that's all the credits you can take in six months.

With a degree already you could transfer a lot of classes in and probably just have to take the IT courses to get those certifications, but the only draw back is they require that you meet one of three criterias to enroll into their IT program: 1. Have an Associates degree in IT, 2: Have an industry recognized certification (A+ works for this actually so if you just had your A+ and then enrolled that'd work), or 3: Proven three years of work experience in the field.

That's another route to look into.

I wish you luck on your IT future!

pokerpro

Thank you so much for the response. I'm going to discuss the options you laid out with my friend tonight. My BA is in Spanish (Sigh, when I was 18 I thought college was just something else I had to 'get by'") with a minor in Business Management.

I took a look at WGU, I was also thinking about taking continuing ed classes at NYU since I am right outside of NYC (Continuing Education - Management and Information Technology | New York University - SCPS). This is a more expensive route and WGU might be able to accomplish the same thing for less.

MentholMoose

How's your Spanish? Being bilingual can be very beneficial for landing a help desk job (where many people start out in IT). At some companies it's actually a requirement.

Forsaken_GA

You guys are missing the important question -

Have I seen you on ESPN!

pzero

Hi all, happy to have found this forum. I am a former professional poker player looking to get into the field of IT. Unfortunately I lost my job when the government shut down the online sites and now have little work experience that translates to other areas. I am 27 y/o with a BA from a state school but am the quantitative type that enjoys computers. I have a few connections in the IT world that I am meeting with soon, but was wondering what advice you all had in transitioning (which certifications, which entry level jobs to apply to, etc.). I have saved up a good sum of money the past few years so I can afford to take time to exclusively study and learn, I have read that starting with A+ and Network+ is a good route. I would eventually like to get into server admin. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

Damm Black Friday ey? I would resurrect my poker server if my damm internet connection didnt suck!

I think you have selected a good path with A+, Net+ its enough to keep you busy for the moment. As its been said, look for the MCITP stuff after that. There are heaps of posts and stickies with a lot of information here and everyone really has given me some good advice along the way.

Use or invest in a descent computer in which you are able to setup a virtual lab environment to practice the stuff you learn.

You will find that your poker skills will translate well in IT and life in general. Good luck!

PPforLife

pokerpro wrote: »

Hi all, happy to have found this forum. I am a former professional poker player looking to get into the field of IT. Unfortunately I lost my job when the government shut down the online sites and now have little work experience that translates to other areas. I am 27 y/o with a BA from a state school but am the quantitative type that enjoys computers. I have a few connections in the IT world that I am meeting with soon, but was wondering what advice you all had in transitioning (which certifications, which entry level jobs to apply to, etc.). I have saved up a good sum of money the past few years so I can afford to take time to exclusively study and learn, I have read that starting with A+ and Network+ is a good route. I would eventually like to get into server admin. Any help would be appreciated, thanks.

Some what in the same boat. SIGHHHH to black friday. Before heading to the WSOP I interviewed for 2 IT position. While i was in vegas I got an email saying WE DONT WANT YOU. After spending 11 days there, i get back and a week later, i get another email saying .. WE DONT WANT YOU........ Just got turned down from two more places.... Its been pretty rough for me. Im also trying to get A+ certified. PM me we should do a study group for A+.

lenell86

Forsaken_GA wrote: »

You guys are missing the important question -

Have I seen you on ESPN!

LMAO I second this, very curious now o.O

PPforLife

lenell86 wrote: »

LMAO I second this, very curious now o.O

So funny how the "general public" view poker players. Needed that after the many rejections.

myedjo24

I'll be playing in the Bicycle Casino Legends of Poker Mega Million tourney this weekend. It's a 1mil guarantee and 1st is 300,000. The buy-in is only 150 and there is like 10 day 1's.

pokerpro

lenell86 wrote: »

LMAO I second this, very curious now o.O

Haha the only time you will see me on ESPN is having AA vs Joe Hachem's 99 on a AA9 flop and not winning a big pot (15 seconds). I will probably be on this years coverage losing a big pot with QQ v KK and AK for approx 15 seconds

.

As far as a computer goes, I have 16gig of ram I believe and a super fast processor with a 30" monitor and 1tb of space + a ssd drive. Being a poker player I liked having an fast computer because freezing/lag could cost me a lot of dough.

I'd love to get a study group going, I am very much a beginner and need to order materials first. I also need my 10 posts to PM unless admin can waive that.

Oh, and I haven't spoken a word of Spanish since graduating. Sigh.

pzero

pokerpro wrote: »

Haha the only time you will see me on ESPN is having AA vs Joe Hachem's 99 on a AA9 flop and not winning a big pot (15 seconds). I will probably be on this years coverage losing a big pot with QQ v KK and AK for approx 15 seconds .

As far as a computer goes, I have 16gig of ram I believe and a super fast processor with a 30" monitor and 1tb of space + a ssd drive. Being a poker player I liked having an fast computer because freezing/lag could cost me a lot of dough.

I'd love to get a study group going, I am very much a beginner and need to order materials first. I also need my 10 posts to PM unless admin can waive that.

Oh, and I haven't spoken a word of Spanish since graduating. Sigh.

Good old Hachem made the game go nuts in Aus. QQ v KK and AK what a cooler. I have not played in such a long time. Kind of miss it.

blargoe

pokerpro wrote: »

Thank you so much for the response. I'm going to discuss the options you laid out with my friend tonight. My BA is in Spanish (Sigh, when I was 18 I thought college was just something else I had to 'get by'") with a minor in Business Management.

I took a look at WGU, I was also thinking about taking continuing ed classes at NYU since I am right outside of NYC (Continuing Education - Management and Information Technology | New York University - SCPS). This is a more expensive route and WGU might be able to accomplish the same thing for less.

If you already have a BA, I don't know that I would immediately go back and get another 4-year degree... at least not first. You might even be able to get hired right now at a helpdesk with a 4-year degree and being bi-lingual, and you can start working on your "years of IT job experience" requirement right away.

For further training/education, go ahead and work on A+ and Network+, then depending on your preferences, Microsoft or Linux certification. If you have an inexpensive community college option locally which offers IT courses, consider that as well. Adding a 2 year IT associates degree to what you already have would add value I think.

Good luck!

erpadmin

pokerpro wrote: »

Oh, and I haven't spoken a word of Spanish since graduating. Sigh.

Spend some time in Spanish Harlem...it will all come back to you.

Being bilingual and a tech will open doors for you...plus your poker skills should help with you reading folks at interviews.

Alternatively to Spanish Harlem, there is always Univision....watch some programming for a while. Once you hear it, it will start coming back.

UniqueAgEnT

That was you with the AA vs 99 on the AA9 flop in 2009 WSOP Main event? I remember that hand specifically and the announcers were very surprised he laid down a full house but that board was sketchy. What stakes did you play online?

Also, I agree with the other posts. I would shoot for A+/Net+ to get your feet wet, then go MCITP:SA then EA and you should land a solid job. You could also find an entry level job/part time and study on the side. Just depends what you want to do but IT experience is also necessary to get a solid job

pokerpro

http://www.amazon.com/CompTIA-Certification-Seventh-220-701-220-702/dp/0071701338/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1311798707&sr=8-1

This seems to be getting the best reviews on Amazon. Just wanted to confirm this is a good book to study from, thanks.

drew726

Do you guys usually put you're bilingual on your resume? I speak chinese, but I leave it out.