A career in IT (Support/Network)?

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Soldato
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29 Dec 2009
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What's the best way of getting into one?

I've no IT related job experience nor specific qualifications, although I quite often build or repair PC's for friends/family/friends of friends etc but I can hardly pull a job with that on my CV! :p

Is it worth doing a college course (I.e. BTEC level 3) and then perhaps uni? Or should I pay for MCITP / CCNA training etc?

I'm 19, so what sort of spanners will that throw into the works re course fees etc?
 
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You don't need to do any courses to work in IT. Thats not saying they won't help you learn, or that some people won't hire you because of them, but you can pretty much replace any cert with pure experience.

  • Teach yourself how to do the jobs, apply for small companies, be cheap. That'll be the most fun way to do it.
  • Find a 1st line support role, that'll be the easiest way to start off.
  • Know someone. Thats usually the best of the lot.

If you're really good at training yourself, you can probably skip the longer rungs, but without having a degree, you'll probably start off on the phones if you don't know someone.
 
At 19 you should try to get into 1st line and grind your way into 2nd line and onwards. Once you've made it off the helpdesk though things can progress as fast as you're capable of if you're ambitious enough and don't stick in the same post for too long.

Depending on where you want to end up you may need some qualifications, don't get me wrong I agree with aln on the whole, but some posts do require them or the equivalent experience etc which can take years to gain.

I started out in a small private firm as a trainee engineer and just fell into IT (probably a similar story with many on OCUK - I didn't aim to be in IT. I think that was a fairly lucky way to go and I'd recommend to anyone to get into a small firm as it can mean moving into another post after a year or so that isn't in 1st line support, I've only ever done 3rd line support after I left my initial employer and got into 3rd line without qualifications. That was 15 years ago though.. and I'm no longer in IT support.
 
Halfmad said:
Depending on where you want to end up you may need some qualifications, don't get me wrong I agree with aln on the whole, but some posts do require them or the equivalent experience etc which can take years to gain.
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Totally true. But for example a 4 year degree is often considered worth about 5 years experience. Thats simplifing the issue immensely but the point is the extra time working and making money can off set the potentially quicker boosts of paying for certs.

In addition to that, once you get to the interview stage nothing beyond your technical ability, price, and personality matters. You'll get the job based on what you can do, not what your qualifications say you can do.

Don't get me wrong though, I went the degree route. Both are fine options as long as you learn what you need to learn.
 
Halfmad said:
I'd recommend to anyone to get into a small firm as it can mean moving into another post after a year or so that isn't in 1st line support
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To offer another perspective, in some cases small firms simply won't have many new/better/relevant posts become available so you can be stuck in a certain role for a while especially if the isn't much in the way of transferrable skills (working with proprietary stuff etc). You can probably gain a lot of experience at a smaller firm i.e. have a wider remit/responsibility but translating that into a future career move may not always be straightforward.
 
HangTime said:
To offer another perspective, in some cases small firms simply won't have many new/better/relevant posts become available so you can be stuck in a certain role for a while especially if the isn't much in the way of transferrable skills (working with proprietary stuff etc). You can probably gain a lot of experience at a smaller firm i.e. have a wider remit/responsibility but translating that into a future career move may not always be straightforward.
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Too true. Keep an eye on the job market and the roles you'd want and make sure you get some experience with the requirment, even if it is just in your own time.

When you're young, start looking for promotions after 6 months. If you get one, take it. If you've been at a company for more than 2 years and you're not getting anywhere, it's time to move sideways.

You don't want your CV to reflect that you're a job hopper, but if the moves have all furthered your career in a positive way, nobody is going to give a damn.

You always need to be thinking about the company of me. Apply for jobs and entertain interviewers even if you're not unhappy with where you are. Interviewers are like everything else, practice makes perfect.

The job market is cut throat. Don't be a ****, but don't be a nice guy either. You'll likely spend years wasted and making nothing if you're loyal. Of course, do a good job. Having all you ex-employers bad mouth you isn't good for the company of me either. :)

You can lay off the sideways hopping when you get senior enough and you're breaking average wage for your area. You won't be able to easily find actual quantifiable promotions for quite some years at this point. You should be experience enough to know how long it'll generally take by then.
 
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Take a look at some of the apprenticeships from the big companies, free training and experience.

If you want to get certifications like the MCITP / CCNA just study for them yourself, I wouldn't suggest paying for a course.
Buy a book, your find videos online and your set.

Training courses will cram a lot of knowledge in over 5 days, take your time and understand the subject.

I've been told to find a training course to go on, they all cost £1700 - madness. Glad I'm not paying :D

I did a BTEC level 3 while studying towards my CCNA and then went onto the apprenticeship (required 2 A levels or equivalent) - make up your mind if you want to go to uni or try and get a job. Only you can make that decision.
 
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aln said:
Totally true. But for example a 4 year degree is often considered worth about 5 years experience. Thats simplifing the issue immensely but the point is the extra time working and making money can off set the potentially quicker boosts of paying for certs.
.
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for network support most companies will consider a 4 year degree worthless... you need industry qualifications which are much cheaper and quicker to get than a degree (unless you are stupid)
 
I want to move into this field of work. I enjoy problem solving massively and I enjoy working with the public.

I'm not at all happy where I am at the moment and despite the money being pretty good the stress that accompanies it doesn't seem worthwhile. It's also effecting my personal life which is probably an indicator that I need a change. I've felt this way for a good long while now and I have considered all my options and I have a very keen interest in IT.

I've done IT support before, worked for an agency providing support for BT Business Broadband, whilst I enjoyed the job at the time I had different aspirations about what I wanted to do for a career.

I'm good at what I do now and that has kept me doing the job for a good long while, but I also feel that I would be good at anything I apply myself to. I can imagine starting at some 1st line support role, getting my life back and progressing onto 2nd and 3rd line support later on.

I have spoken to my GF about this and she is extremely encouraging.

So my plan, have a look around at various 1st line support jobs, try and get in and get my head into with the prospect of moving on.

I have qualifications, a degree in international politics which vocationally is pretty useless.

Can anyone offer any advice, experience or pointing me in the right direction? Cheers.
 
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I've been working with the public in my current job for 7 odd years, I see the best and absolute worst of people and I can handle it. I wouldn't want to work first line indefinitely just use it as a stepping stone onto a new career in IT. To be honest I probably should've gone into IT from the start but kept convincing myself it wasn't for me, I think I may have been wrong.

I appreciate the comments though.
 
mrbell1984 said:
I have had 13 years in IT now and boy is it boring. Most of the IT jobs around you get treat like a Monkey, not respected and all you are is a piece of trash.
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I enjoy what I do but I'm not pigeon-holed (unusual for my sector) and I get to work with a lot of different tech. :)
 
mrbell1984 said:
I have had 13 years in IT now and boy is it boring. Most of the IT jobs around you get treat like a Monkey, not respected and all you are is a piece of trash.
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I have 19 years in it and its rarely boring and I (mostly) get treated with respect ... you must work for for a crappy company
 
edscdk said:
I have 19 years in it and its rarely boring and I (mostly) get treated with respect ... you must work for for a crappy company
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Public Sector, so yes......

Shouldn't complain really I get paid for just about nothing. Even if I don't do any jobs that day I stil get paid.

I'm creeping my way into different areas completely away from IT (Union / Health & safety / Plastering / Plumbing)
 
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I've just started in my first IT job. Working for a small scientific publishing company in London. Although I have a degree in science, I'm not using it for my job :p just showed I had interest in their sector.

I did a MCTS cert just to pop on my CV and got the job after my first interview :) Not entirely sure if it helped me though because nobody mentioned it.

We're a small IT team which is handy for me because everything is hands on 2nd line stuff. The other half of my job is managing their online journal content so it's good to have something different to do instead of the usual support queries.
 
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