38 y/o , whats involved in training for I.T

[V-Spec]

This thread is not encouraging to me, I'm graduating in the summer with a MEng in CS Want to do something interesting though, I've experienced years of helpdesk-type role already and it's definitely not what I want to do.

lol

I started on a helpdesk ages ago, quickly went from there...

I hate sitting down all day, it makes me feel disgusting and unhealthy, I struggle enough to keep my weight down but sitting here for 8 hours feeling annoyed makes it so much harder sometimes..

Seriously, think hard about what you could do that would make you happy, and not just the money side of things,

 

[gumbald]

I hate sitting down all day, it makes me feel disgusting and unhealthy, I struggle enough to keep my weight down but sitting here for 8 hours feeling annoyed makes it so much harder sometimes..

That's what I don't want to do. Being in support gave some variation in different problems and I was never sat down for extended periods, but wasn't very rewarding overall.

 

[V-Spec]

That's what I don't want to do. Being in support gave some variation in different problems and I was never sat down for extended periods, but wasn't very rewarding overall.

To be fair, doing basic I.T support wasn't as bad because I was out on my feet fixing printers and problems with outlook, in the days of win98 and no remote access, I used to enjoy heaving boxes around as I felt like i'd done a hard days work, now I just feel like i've been sat down all day, sure playing with some of the biggest customers in the country who we have on our network, can be highly mentally challenging, when I get in I just feel numb and dreary because i've just sat down all day....

 

[Richdog]

To be fair, doing basic I.T support wasn't as bad because I was out on my feet fixing printers and problems with outlook, in the days of win98 and no remote access, I used to enjoy heaving boxes around as I felt like i'd done a hard days work, now I just feel like i've been sat down all day, sure playing with some of the biggest customers in the country who we have on our network, can be highly mentally challenging, when I get in I just feel numb and dreary because i've just sat down all day....

90% of desk jobs cause you to sit for most of the day... it's not exclusive to IT...

 

[freebooter]

Interesting if not encouraging thread. I am similar age to the op and need a career change and was going to look into it as an option. I have afriend who left banking, did an msc in it and seems to have no problem getting reasonably paid temp work in London. Not sure what her course comcentrated on or what field she now works in though.

 

[gumbald]

To be fair, doing basic I.T support wasn't as bad because I was out on my feet fixing printers and problems with outlook, in the days of win98 and no remote access, I used to enjoy heaving boxes around as I felt like i'd done a hard days work, now I just feel like i've been sat down all day, sure playing with some of the biggest customers in the country who we have on our network, can be highly mentally challenging, when I get in I just feel numb and dreary because i've just sat down all day....

Did you just get where you are now by progressing through a series of jobs? Rather than taking this too much off topic, mind adding me on MSN? My address in profile

 

[V-Spec]

90% of desk jobs cause you to sit for most of the day... it's not exclusive to IT...

90% of desk jobs, well yeah I imagine you do sit down all day, I imagine the bin man has to sit down for 30-40mins at a screen to do his timesheet/whatever at the end of each day, i'm not saying that I hate desk jobs, just looking at telnet.exe and command line all day is enough to make me want to tear my face off.
I'm a photographer at the weekends, and I can sit happily for a few hours messing with my pictures, but looking at the matrix all day is too much..

 

[V-Spec]

Did you just get where you are now by progressing through a series of jobs? Rather than taking this too much off topic, mind adding me on MSN? My address in profile

<will do when I get in>

I started off working as a welder when I was 16 which I enjoyed back in 1997/1998 but it paid me £1.30 an hour
went to college worked part time as I.T support installing/fixing PCs and printers etc, getting a foot in the door I guess.. Passed my CCNA and CCNP and worked for a company called Azlan, then Accenture, then a University and now VM, so its taken a while to progress but salary wise its been worth it, i'm just contemplating making a big decision as to whether I ditch it all and change career completley as I don't think I can carry on with it,

 

[colinuk]

Well, if you get a desk job..............what do you expect to be doing! a clue is in the title lol...

If you want to work in IT - get 1st line support to get a good base in anything to do with IT. it will help you even as a programmer as you will be able to talk to the helpdesk staff better and get your issue sorted.

Dont listen to the people who got into IT and dont like it. I wake up each morning and can not believe i get paid to help people with computers/networks and server issues! its a great job. sure i started on simple jobs, felt around a bit and found a bit of the IT industry I enjoyed and got good at it.

Try it, if you dont like it, move on to something else. there are lots of people in IT just for the money, they are the ones who complain a lot and dont get a reward just by doing a good job, listen to them and you will stay in bed all day.

If you want an IT job, only one person stopping you......

ring the agencies, get on the books and badger them until you get one, will take about 2-3 weeks with a decent CV.

 

[Richdog]

Well said colin, there seems to be some illusion on this forum that everyone who goes into IT will hate it. That's just not true.

 

[stevenazari1]

wow so many replies thanks guys for all your opinions

my trade is an engineering machinist, a 'manual miller' is my main role, i was doing machining in a sub contract shop up till 9 1/2 years ago, then i got a job with an jet engine overhaul shop owned by G.E. i done machining in there for 4 1/2 years and then was working in dissasemly and fitting for 5 years.

so its been a while since i did my trade and was last in a machine shop, the other fitting roles i did for my last job did give me other skills and experience but only good to the aerospace industry so it does not allow me to get a fititng job elsewhere.

as far as engineering goes theres not much in this area of scotland (ayrshire)

i got paid off because of performance issues, i was in a department with full retraining in new skills and i could not get up to the high standard they wanted so eventually they paid me off. I was on 28k and worked shifts and had very good benefits.

so all i can do is build my own pcs etc and have an interest in pcs and hardware and tweaking my pc, although these skills are nothing special i would be interested in an i.t job because of this. It was just an idea to see whats involved in getting into this industry.

i am open to any ideas of other career paths to look into and i suppose the shorter term to train and get full pay is appealing ie somone mentioned hgv driving. i dont expect to earn 28k again as i worked shifts but i would be happy with a wage around 20k. i would like to get a job back in my trade but as nothing has turned up so far in 3 months its maybe time to start thinking about other options.

if thats your role you may be interested in CAD work (Computer Aided Design) as this is used a lot for engineering and to my little knowledge is still well paid. you have a good career background to which IT can be applied to, I dont think networking or things like multimedia or web design would benefit, but I think with 3D Design you could use that along with your work.

Here is a description of CAD you dont need to be a good drawer, infact I cant draw to save my life but I create some neat stuff on 3D Max. and just because you dont know the big picture, dont let that stop you. take it piece by piece, but first research into it.

 

[davetherave2]

I have now been in the IT industry for the last 5 1/2 years since leaving uni and have to say I am still loving it. I first started out doing first line support within a large call centre and within 2 years got to second line support. For the next two years I then started to study more and getting my self into my dream job of being a software developer. I had always wanted to do this but at the time of finishing uni I didn't have anyway near enough skills/ experience to even get an entry level position.

Although the last couple of months in that job were a living nightmare due to me getting bored and the standard of 1st line support agents getting worse I landed my current job. Now although I took a big pay cut to get it I am happy I did. I currently have the best of both worlds doing 1st/2nd line support as well as application development and can't believe the luck and fun that I have had doing this job. WIth my current role I get to do what I want when I want and work with some great people.

If you have some experience with computers then a first line support job in a call centre or something similar is probably your best bet, They aren't well paid but if you see it as a stepping stone it will help you loads. There is little to no thanks in the role, but if anything it taught me that if you can think quick on your feet and have a good phone manner it helps enormously.

If you wanted to go the support route then I would suggest getting something like the Comptia A+ / Network+ certificates as these will show you have a good basic understanding of various hardware and software issues but many first line jobs don't require this and some will even pay for training.

I have always found that if you can impress prospective employers with practical skills rather than certificates (I mean to say that their are many people with MCSE's, CCNA's etc that don't understand the material but have completed the exams to gain the certificates yet struggle to deal with real world issues) they take this into consideration.

Well thats my 2pence worth and good luck with what ever career choice you make.

 

[MHayes]

Although I have said it is hard to get into I should have also mentioned I do like it very much. Hard work at first but if you can get a decent position it can be ineresting, varied well paid and my workmates and company are great.

 

[The_TailGunner]

hmm what is comms/cisco, what is ms market, what is mcse's

is the learndirect courses good enough for industry standards?

is it too much to expect to do the courses and get a job with these qualifications, i understand employers want experience too but the only way to get experience is by getting a job in i.t

avoid learndirect like the plague.


in my experience IT is a mind numbingly boring, repetitive and stressful soul destroying drudge at the 1st level support end of things which is generally what you will get with basic IT qualifications.

once you get past that, it gets more interesting.

 

[TriedandTested]

There is just too much competition. You have to spend thousands on qualifications, just to land a moderately paid job.

I don't agree with that. When you get some experience and move to a decent company, you get THEM to pay for your training.

 

[Ev0]

Not all desktop support starting roles are purely helpdesk bound, I feel it gets a serious knocking on these forums

My first job was for a desktop support team, it meant being on the helpdesk say 1 in 5 weeks, the rest of the time was spent doing a huge range of other stuff. It's only because of the diversity of the things we did that I got my new job. And for 'just' a desktops role it paid bloomin' well, more than the salaries bounded about here. And that's fresh out of uni, no experiance etc.

 

[clv101]

If I was in your situation, I wouldn't get into the IT industry.

There is just too much competition. You have to spend thousands on qualifications, just to land a moderately paid job.

If I were you, I'd look into environmental health, health and safety etc.

I agree, too many 18 year olds to compete with. Good suggestions from Bug One, maybe also consider something along the lines of renewable energy, energy efficiency etc.

 

[Fire Wizard]

I would completely disagree with everyone that has said, get out of the IT industry purely on the reasons they have mentioned.

If someone wants to do a certain job and is committed enough and will work as hard as possible to get that job then there is absolutely no reason why you can't possibly manage that. If people are scared of a little competition then quite honestly you may as well just shrivel up in a corner on the edge of the earth.

Why would you consider a job because you know it's going to be a walk in the park as opposed to a job that you really want to do but you will have to work slightly harder at it?

 

[V-Spec]

I agree, too many 18 year olds to compete with. Good suggestions from Bug One, maybe also consider something along the lines of renewable energy, energy efficiency etc.

lol since when?

Every single agency i've ever dealt with, is struggling to get the basic numbers let alone 18 year olds, it runs across the board in I.T, there aren't the people going into it that people seem to think.
The salaries for proper I.T jobs are still very decent but the people applying aren't, especially in the last 3 years, if you want to get into I.T there hasn't really been a better time as there is a shortage in the specialist stuff..

 

[V-Spec]

I wouldn't bother too much with qualifications either, i'm not going to be doing any more Cisco ones as i've watched them get braindumped to the point where they're totally meaningless, its the same with the Microsoft stuff, I used to think that degrees were worthless compared to industry certifications, I now see it the opposite way, the industry certs have been cheated to death, a degree at least proves a high level of academic ability not just the ability to memorise questions.

If I had to give advice to anyone starting out, i'd say just get a foot in the door and work your ass off, you'll quickly end up doubling your salary providing you get into it, it doesn't matter if all you do is fix printers or format floppy disks all day, fact is you'll be working in I.T and its a starting point, too many people say "I want to do Cisco" or "I want to administer active directory" having never worked in I.T before, its like a mechanic wanting his first job on F1 cars having never been in a garage before..