Job search made easier with degree?

Hey Guys,

So I have been applying to a bunch of IT Help desk positions to begin with since I got my A+ certification back in June, and I have had no luck in getting any calls. I have changed my resume 3 times to try something different. I am attending school full time and will be graduating in December with my B.S. in I.T. and I am beginning to doubt my degree will help me get a entry level job in my field. I was wondering if anyone has had better luck in the job market once you graduated and no longer "in progress" for you degree? Or maybe the job market in South Florida is just that bad in South Fl.

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Comments

markulous

My Associate's got me into an interview for my first job. A Bachelor's should help get you an entry-level position I would think.

Vik210

Degree will definitely help at this stage.. I got my first job based on Comp Sc degree and later when you have years of experience, not many employer's care. Still if the question is degree or no degree, you always have good changes with a degree.

My colleague is doing a bachelor's with full time job and he takes 6-7 off during working hours to attend lectures. He is finding it hard to get another job as not many employer want someone to come with such work/ study schedule.

kohr-ah

A degree will definitely help.

Same as markulous. Associates got my foot in the door. Now my experience is what people look for.

Dojiscalper

If your not getting inquires you need to make your resume seem like you have experience from getting your degree. I was surprised to see my brother in laws resume, out of college, engineering degree but he got a job as a programmer with no experience. Didn't know anyone on the inside either.

Dakinggamer87

I just recently graduated with my Bachelor's degree and it has helped me immensely jump up much higher. It has helped open up even more doors for me as it complements my experience/certs very nicely. I have been contacted by 20-30 companies in the last two weeks alone with lots of job roles in architect/management...

Maybe you can put your resume out for us to evaluate. It might help us market you better and align you in the IT market.

Jose243

So here's my resume..this was with help from the career services at my school. I have the customer service experience down as I have 2 yrs in hospitality, for an entry lvl job...what do you guys think? Changed all of the position names, company names, etc. Should still make sense.

John Dow
123 Apple St. ▪ John@Dow.com ▪ (123)456-7890

EDUCATION_________________________________________________________________________________________
Bachelor of Science in Information Technology December 2015
University, FL

· Related Coursework: Java Programming 1 & 2, Windows Programming IT(VB.NET), Information Retrieval Concepts(MySQL), Computer Operating Systems, Applied Computer Networking, Network Security, Website Construction and Management, Statistics for Engineers
· Graduating December 2015

Associate of Arts Degree May 2013
College, FL

· Related Coursework: Intro to C++ Programming, Introduction to Microcomputer Usage
· Graduated high school with AA degree through dual enrollment
· Dean’s List from December 2011 to May 2013
· Graduated with honors

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE________________________________________________________________________
Supervisor, Valet Company September 2014 – Present
Hotel, FL

· Improved workplace safety, increasing scores from 62% to 98% from September 2014 to February 2015
· Facilitated in handling over $1500 of parking revenue on a daily basis, including daily revenue reconciliation using spreadsheet and database applications
· Executed daily “plans of attack” to stimulate financial growth
· Mastered Hilton’s OnQ POS System
· Supervised a small team pushing customer service, financials, and safety

Associate, Valet Company August 2013 – September 2014
Hotel, FL

· Assisted guests with valet parking and luggage services
· Provided concierge services to hotel guests

SKILLS______________________________________________________________________________________________
Proficient in: MS Windows, MS Word, MS PowerPoint, MS Excel, Hardware Troubleshooting, Software Installation, Java Programming, VB.NET Programming, Customer Service, Revenue Reconciliation

Knowledge in: C++/C# Programming, MySQL Server, Linux, Networks, Web Development (HTML, CSS, PHP), Point of Sale Systems

Fluent in: English and Spanish

CONTINUED EDUCATION___________________________________________________________________________
Certifications:
· CompTIA A+
Coursera:
· Duke University’s Excel to MySQL: Analytic Techniques for Business Specialization - In progress
Workshops:
· "University" Basic Android Development 2013

OctalDump

From your resume, you might try applying for more than Help Desk. Web Application programming, Android app development... there's got to be a few areas that might be interesting to you.
Casting the net wider, and being ambitious could help, I mean you can't do much worse than where you are. Also, you could try something like freelancer if you wanted to get some paid experience. Programming portfolios are good for getting work, so if you've got anything concrete you can show off, particularly when being hired by other developers they seem to like that conversation
"

aderon

Dakinggamer87 wrote: »

Maybe you can put your resume out for us to evaluate. It might help us market you better and align you in the IT market.

Actually I was kind of hoping you could post your resume haha. That's really impressive man. Are all the interest from linkedin or do you have your resume on some other job search sites as well?

Danielm7

Resume doesn't look bad at all, it could just be the timing that someone doesn't want to deal with your school schedule for the next month until you graduate.

I'm curious though, how many jobs have you applied for? Sometimes people say "a lot" but that means 8 places, sometimes it's 80.

NetworkingStudent

Can you add a few more bullet points to this job?
Associate, Valet Company August 2013 – September 2014
Hotel, FL

· Assisted guests with valet parking and luggage services
· Provided concierge services to hotel guests

Jose243

I wish I could..but honestly this job was nothing more until I got promoted. Once I got promoted, I was exposed to revenue, systems, etc that has helped mature my business and operations knowledge.

I would say I have applied to at least 15 postings..ranging from help desk, junior sys. admin, desktop technician, business analyst intern, etc. My degree path is more focused towards software dev. and sys admin, as those are the things I really enjoy. Current taking a class on asp.net and server admin as electives to finish.

Didn't really think about the school schedule issues, once I graduate I will have open availability. So maybe this will open up more opportunities.

Dakinggamer87

aderon wrote: »

Actually I was kind of hoping you could post your resume haha. That's really impressive man. Are all the interest from linkedin or do you have your resume on some other job search sites as well?

I have mine on DICE, Careerbuilder, and Indeed. The most traffic I get is on my LinkedIn. I get much more visibility on LinkedIn these days over the job search engines but that is just my experience. Everyone has a mileage that may vary.

Dakinggamer87

OctalDump wrote: »

From your resume, you might try applying for more than Help Desk. Web Application programming, Android app development... there's got to be a few areas that might be interesting to you.
Casting the net wider, and being ambitious could help, I mean you can't do much worse than where you are. Also, you could try something like freelancer if you wanted to get some paid experience. Programming portfolios are good for getting work, so if you've got anything concrete you can show off, particularly when being hired by other developers they seem to like that conversation
"

WorkMarket was one area of freelance opportunities I was going to recommend. I haven't used it much myself only because many of the assignments conflict with my work schedule. However, it might open up some new opportunities for you to build your skillset and portfolio.

iBrokeIT

Entry level IT jobs are huge on soft skills. Try to find a way to add more information about the quality of customer service that you have provided in your two jobs.

bpenn

I have had the most success with SimplyHired.com if you havent tried that yet.

Baffour42

I graduated in May and I'm located in Washington DC area and I'm going through the exact same thing, I'm actually now trying to grab an A+ cerification.. Smh the way its lookin it seems like it depends on a little bit of luck and continuous applications.

Jose243

bpenn wrote: »

I have had the most success with SimplyHired.com if you havent tried that yet.

Thanks for the suggestion, I will try it out. I usually use Indeed and Monster, doesn't hurt to try another service. Thanks again everyone for the discussion I will see what happens and keep you guys up to date.