Looking to transition into the IT field from the Paralegal Field

Hello,

I just recently join this site and I am looking for advice to break into the IT field. Here's a bit of information regarding my background: I have sent the past 2.5 years working as a paralegal in real estate/title clearance. I found that this field is not a good fit for me. I always have the tech bug, and I am pretty proficient with Microsoft office, Java, and Adobe. I am also proficent in using both Macs and PC's. I would like to earn my certifications and return to school so that I may become a software engineer, which has been a dream of mines since I was a kid. I already have a BA in psychology that I obtained in 2011 (which I got instead of a computer science degree because I was going through a rough patch in life while I was in college). I took introduction to Computer Science my first year in college and I loved it, I just did not continue with it and I do kick myself everyone in awhile regarding that. Also, I was recently laid off from the title company I was working for. Luckily, I was able to save quite a bit of money so that I may concentrate on studying. At this moment, I am currently preparing to take the A + certification exams and I would like to work on beefing up my resume to obtain an entry level help desk job. I have excellent customer service experience according to both of my previous employers, however, I guess I lack the certificates to make myself stand out. Is it possible to obtain a entry level help desk job even though I am working on my certificates or should I wait until I have at least one certificate under my belt?

Now, I know this probably won't be an easy transition for me and I will probably have to start over as a bottom feeder. I have been studying for the A+ certification for awhile and I am hoping that I will be prepared to take 801 and 802 by the end of the year. One can be hopeful, right?

Any thoughts/comments with be greatly appreciated.

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Comments

dbrink

If you want to become a software engineer then I wouldn't bother with the normal IT entry level certs. I would just start coding. Find an area that you are interested in and just start whether it is web or your standard local programs. Maybe see what kind of programming classes your local community college offers. You can also check out sites like Udacity and Coursera that offer free intro to programming courses.

TechGuy215

It's not neccessarily that you don't have any certs that's going to hurt you, it's more the lack of experience. You can certainly apply to entry-level jobs, but you just have to be aware that there may be more qualified people than yourself that are readily avaialble (ofcourse this is the case in any career), but even more so in IT.

More than anything else your going to need dedication. IT is a rigrirous, ever evolving field so you'll have to put 100% into your endeavour to make the leap. You'll want to figure out exactly what your looking to do as well, this will help you narrow down which certs to pursue and what technologies to learn.

In your case, for a Software Engineer...what do you want to work with? Python, Java, Perl, PHP, Ruby....you get the idea.

IMHO I would suggest your first step be to research extensively the position you wish to obtain, make sure you understand all that it encompasses. From there you can map out your certs, education, internships/volunteer work, etc...

Good luck and I hope you are able to pursue your dream, just remember never give up!

Zartanasaurus

What do you mean when you say you're "pretty proficient with Java and Adobe?"