what should i do with my life?

[jackvdbuk]

i seem to be stuck in a rut about what to do with my future.

i have just finished college with a BTEC national Certificate in Systems Support and have aquired Cisco IT essentials and OCR Customer Support as well. thats as far as good qualifications (if you can call them that!) go for me at the moment.

i currently work at Vue Cinemas and and kinda gettin bored of it (been there since OCT 08) (well i want to move on to IT...) the pay is bad, the only good thing about it are the people i work with and some of the customers...

i have no idea what i should do to get into the IT technical support sector, ive had a look on monster/reed e.t.c but they all seem to have high standards about who they apply and all want experince which i just dont have!

i have no server, web or database knowledge as i just havent had the oppurtinity to use such things... most of what i know was from home and the problem is most of these jobs also want server and server OS knowledge.

now... what is it you believe i should do.
- do another IT course, perhaps Cisco, MCSE, MCP?
- carry on searching, one job might give me the chance?
- work at vue till next october atleast, i believe its good to stay in one job for atleats one year
- forget IT altogether... keep it as a hobby
- i was also toying with the idea of teaching... but how easy would it be to get the job i need? teachers dont come and go every few months...
- volunteer (IT Jobs), i dont know where to volunteer tbh these volunteer websites seem kinda fishy aswell.
- i was also thinking of doing a photography course in college mainly as a hobby though.

now i find my self as having the knowledge but without the certificates, specially for Technical Support computer based (not servers/routers e.t.c)

it feels as though if you do not know somebody in the industry theres no chance...


if anyone wants to have a look at my CV just send me a message.
this thread is probably a weird one i kno... but any help would be nice!
(thanks tiggerai for the CV help aswell)

[staffsMike]

Well with every other bugga (including myself) running round with a degree in some sort of IT you find yourself in a tricky spot.

You will be able to find tech support roles in schools maybe, supporting someone who can teach you more of the stuff you don't know yet, web etc..

Teaching is something I'm applying for currently.. not in I.T though. Degree's are preferable for it I think, though not necessarily essential, there are ways in but you spend quite some time doing various different courses, at which point you might as well just do a degree and then a PGCE. 4 years of your life though..

The nature of volounteer works suggests it's not too difficult to find. Just approach a local company you think suits and ask them if they mind you volunteering, whats the worst that could happen?

[Guy]

Nearly all I.T support related jobs out there say in the adverts 1+ years experience required. This is not necessarily the case, if you dont have experience apply anyway, and put something along the lines of, I have no hands on experience, but ive just finished doing (insert qualifications here) and I am very eager to learn, if theres a sallary mentioned, if appropriate you could always mention that you would work for less, and you just want to gain experience/get a foot in the door. Its pretty much what I did!

Qualifications wise, well Ive got an MCDST, A+, Network +, and have gone through the CCNA course, and just need to do one more MCP to get my MCSA. I suggest you do some entry level microsoft stuff, that should round yours qualifications off, so you can appeal as a sort of all-rounder.

Post your C.v on Monster, Jobserve, CWJobs etc, and trust me it may take a few weeks or but you will get agencies calling! Also being a techie in a school would give you valuable experience, only thing is you may have to wait until Sept until they start looking, as the school year is pretty much over.

[lodore]

i will be in a simliar situatuon when i finish my btec national diploma.
so i will be watching this thread.

[Betty_Swallocks]

TBH IT is vastly overpopulated these days. It used to be very lucrative but my hourly rate as a support contractor has dropped by 50% since 2000. I had an agency call me the other day asking if I was interested in a contract at £7 an hour. In 2000 I was earning £30 an hour. It's not as interesting either. The bean counters are pretty much running it these days and forcing rates down, and a lot of work is heading over to Bangalore.
I'm getting out of it. I have another line of work to go into that is much more interesting and potentially much more financially rewarding.
I've been in IT for 20 years and I honestly think I've seen the best times and it's all going downhill from here.
It will still be my hobby but unless you have a good degree in Computing Science AND you're lucky enough to find the right opportunity it's a struggle to get anywhere.

[Lucio]

You should also look at small offices, they often don't have anyone who looks after the IT requirements inside the company, often leaving it to the owner to sort things out. Many company owners appreciate someone who'se keen and knowledgable and leaves you a chance to get a couple of years basic support work on your CV.

Only downside is that when it comes time to move on, your job title might not accurately reflect all that you did.

[schmunk]

a lot of work is heading over to Bangalore.

There are loads of jobs available over here.

[Barrichello]

if theres a sallary mentioned, if appropriate you could always mention that you would work for less, and you just want to gain experience/get a foot in the door. Its pretty much what I did!

This is a good idea to get around the initial (must have experience issue) - if you can get your "foot in the door" just except badish pay and do all the boring stuff nobody wants to do, just view it that its not your job for life, get a good year or so under your belt and then it means that next job the (must have experience issue) does not become a issue at all

Lack of Qualifications in the IT industry have not really held me back in my specialised area, but i know that for some employers MS/CISCO/UNIX certification is a must so you may have to go down this route for your chosen path.

I have found allot of what happens can be a series of lucky breaks, and timing, and who you know. Just get your cv around, and make contacts. Later on when moving between jobs, try to leave cleanly and never burn your bridges, as i have found it really is a "small world" out there sometimes

[tiggerai]

I would say that just because a job has too much experience, apply for it anyway, you never know when they just might have a junior position up for grabs too.

You're not the one who makes the decisions, so let the employers!

Just apply for blimmin' everything and something will come up.

[M0nkeyb0Y]

I would say that just because a job has too much experience, apply for it anyway, you never know when they just might have a junior position up for grabs too.

that's sounds advice - exactly what I did with a previous job, and they gave it to me anyway.

[Galant]

Would it be silly to suggest the RAF or Navy?

Yes it's a commitment, and I don't know how you are physically. But it would pay and give you experience which you currently lack. Might also broaden your viewpoints and help you discover a few new things about yourself that might point the way for the future. If you can see it as an adventure, and one which even if it isn't perfect would at least be worthwhile, it might be worth a shot.

???

[Betty_Swallocks]

Would it be silly to suggest the RAF or Navy?

Yes it's a commitment, and I don't know how you are physically. But it would pay and give you experience which you currently lack. Might also broaden your viewpoints and help you discover a few new things about yourself that might point the way for the future. If you can see it as an adventure, and one which even if it isn't perfect would at least be worthwhile, it might be worth a shot.

???

It certainly gave me a great start. The training you get in the RAF in particular is second to none and forces technical experience is respected the world over.

[santa claus]

Has anyone mentioned what an absolute waste of time having a job and a career can be?

You spend your youth in some crummy office when the sun is shining outside and all for lousy pay. The lousy pay you get will be taxed to the hilt and you'll end up churning most of it back into the system in bills for water, power, insurance, fuel, mortgages and really expensive luxuries like, uum, food.

The little bit you keep for yourself means you can treat yourself to a toy or two but your toys will rapidly lose value so you have to work harder and longer to replace them and then they lose value so, well, you get the idea.

You may put a few bob aside for a rainy day and you end up robbed because what you thought was Rock did a Roll.

Everyone has qualifications. The guy who sweeps the stairs at the local offices has a degree in microbiology; the only job he could get remotely linked to his skill was sweeping up in the local laboratory. The pay was better in the office.

House, car, mortgage, kids, school, university, work until you're 95 to pay for someone else's care in old age. Bills, ill-health, dental care, value added tax, road tax, poll tax, income tax, inheritance tax and then you're brown bread.

It's a job. It's not a life. Quick, get on benefits before it's too late.

santa is in a playful mood

[Theo]

Funnily enough, one of my relatives has a degree in Microbiology from Oxford. He's a bin man.

[santa claus]

Funnily enough, one of my relatives has a degree in Microbiology from Oxford. He's a bin man.

I've told the guy who sweeps the stairs in the office; he said when the bin man retires could he have the job on promotion please?

[schmunk]

Funnily enough, one of my relatives has a degree in Microbiology from Oxford. He's a bin man.

I've three (technically) degrees in Engineering from Cambridge. I'm something big in the City.

(St Paul's Cathedral.)



(No, not really)