Getting outof IT Support

territt

territt

territt

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Joined
6 Jan 2009
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1,332
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Ramsgate, Kent
well i have been working in IT Support since finishing unit 3 years ago and while i have enjoyed it now it is getting a little boring and i really could do with earning a better wage, so I am after some advice on which way people on these forum went after doing support?

I looked into some grad schemes but most i couldn’t apply for because of only having a 2.2 and also because i finished Uni 3 years ago but there must be other options???

so any advice would be good
thanks again guys,

Rich :)
 
My advice would be to specialise in a certain area based on your skills- don't throw them away. General IT support can be quite dull and career progress can be limited.
 
It's odd that you don't mention what specifically you're good at or that you'd like to do? :)

"IT" is painfully vague.
 
Do a cisco qualification in your own time, move into the more specialised areas of network administration.

The money is decent and assuming you enjoy the subject there is a lot to learn to keep you occupied.
 
Specialise mate, choose a field that interests you and focus on that more. IT support I found was too general, you may know a lot about a lot but employers seem to want you to fit in a specific role as you move up the career ladder.
 
wush said:
It's odd that you don't mention what specifically you're good at or that you'd like to do? :)

"IT" is painfully vague.
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Sorry, at the moment just genural Deskside support, AD and bes admin stuff, just basic 2nd line work really.
 
Specialise. Definitely do this. Otherwise you'll continue to fall into the "jack of all trades, master of none" bucket and the prospects there aren't great. On the other hand, people pay good money for "subject matter experts". You just have to pick the right subject(s).
 
As previous posters have suggested, find a specific subject and concentrate on that.

I'm in a similar boat, although I'm a sysadmin i still do a lot of support and it's driving me nuts.

I'm currently taking a Microsoft certified IT Professional : Server Administrator course in my spare time. After that I'll be looking into Cisco and possibly Linux/VMWare certifications too, then move into IT infrastructure/consultancy.
 
DiscoDave said:
As previous posters have suggested, find a specific subject and concentrate on that.

I'm in a similar boat, although I'm a sysadmin i still do a lot of support and it's driving me nuts.

I'm currently taking a Microsoft certified IT Professional : Server Administrator course in my spare time. After that I'll be looking into Cisco and possibly Linux/VMWare certifications too, then move into IT infrastructure/consultancy.
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I am working on my MCITP Server Admin at the moment, and i did a ccna course at uni but didnt sit the final exam, wish i had now :-( but consultancy is the sort of work i would like to get into i think.
 
territt said:
I am working on my MCITP Server Admin at the moment, and i did a ccna course at uni but didnt sit the final exam, wish i had now :-( but consultancy is the sort of work i would like to get into i think.
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I see, keep at it and see what comes up. I think its natural progression to move from support and into backend infrastructure/network admin. Have you checked the job market where you're at the moment? No harm in looking around and firing off your CV if you see something good. The boss at my company and quite a few of my colleages/friends who are now in consultancy or network administration started their career off in support.
 
Word of warning. Don't bother with Cisco exams or similar unless that's the field you want to go into. We're recruiting at the moment and it's heartbreaking to see people who've spent a fortune on Cicso exams thinking that they're the gateway into any specialist field, when they're not relevant to what we do at all. Of course if you want to be a network guy, then fine. Same rule applies to general MS exams, Linux exams, etc.

If you want to be a consultant, in what field? General IT? It doesn't exist (as far as I'm aware). Again you need to find a specialism you enjoy, then you can be a consultant in that specific area.
 
Anyone no any good websites on where to do these type of exams etc?

We use VMware a lot at work and i use it everyday and would like to get further into that. I found out the other day we are the 2nd biggest UK company to use VMware so would like to get into that.
 
SiD the Turtle said:
Word of warning. Don't bother with Cisco exams or similar unless that's the field you want to go into. We're recruiting at the moment and it's heartbreaking to see people who've spent a fortune on Cicso exams thinking that they're the gateway into any specialist field, when they're not relevant to what we do at all. Of course if you want to be a network guy, then fine. Same rule applies to general MS exams, Linux exams, etc.

If you want to be a consultant, in what field? General IT? It doesn't exist (as far as I'm aware). Again you need to find a specialism you enjoy, then you can be a consultant in that specific area.
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Very well said.
 
SiD the Turtle said:
Word of warning. Don't bother with Cisco exams or similar unless that's the field you want to go into. We're recruiting at the moment and it's heartbreaking to see people who've spent a fortune on Cicso exams thinking that they're the gateway into any specialist field, when they're not relevant to what we do at all. Of course if you want to be a network guy, then fine. Same rule applies to general MS exams, Linux exams, etc.

If you want to be a consultant, in what field? General IT? It doesn't exist (as far as I'm aware). Again you need to find a specialism you enjoy, then you can be a consultant in that specific area.
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thanks for the reply, the problem i have is that my job is two general, and i cant get into anything specialised without experience and i cant get experience with the sort of role I am working in at the moment :-(
 
territt said:
thanks for the reply, the problem i have is that my job is two general, and i cant get into anything specialised without experience and i cant get experience with the sort of role I am working in at the moment :-(
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So decide WHAT you want to specialise in, and then focus on getting qualified in that area.
 
As everyone's said:

1. Pick an area to specialise in
2. Work supporting this area until you know it inside out
3. ???
4. Profit

You really need to have worked in an area while before becoming a 'consultant', so pick something you like and get cracking :)

My first job was pretty general, yet ther ewas time to pick certain things and work my socks off getting to grips with them. Then I left to be a contractor in that area, and now I'm doing that as a perm job along with some other (even better and more fun imho) things :)

And again as said, do not just go and do a certification like CCNA because people tell you to, do whatever is relevant to the area you want to go into.
 
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