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Getting a career in IT

Rat

Not bored. Never bored.,
Rat
Joined
May 19, 2003
Messages
10,629
Location
Leicester, UK
So I was just talking to someone (the chap behind the counter in Bargain Booze), and he was asking about getting a job in IT, because he has no relevant qualifications, and he had heard me say that I was in IT with no qualifications.

Now, I can't recommend the route I took. Although I was born to work with computers, I had an unrelated job when somebody in the IT department left, and I had already proved within the company that I was IT literate. I would never have got my current job if I didn't already work there.

I realize that for some avenues within IT, qualifications are a necessity; even when the people doing the employing know full well how worthless they can be to judge someone's IT skills, they at least show that the candidate has the commitment to follow such things through. But what routes are there into the industry that don't require heavy (i.e. Microsoft or Cisco) qualifications, which the average person just can't afford to take? As far as I'm aware, his expertise would be generally in computer hardware and software, rather than something more specialized like programming, but from chatting, he does seem genuinely like someone who could do it, rather than an interested hobbyist.

The only thing I can think of is doing some work in PC retail, like (ugh!) PC World or similar, just to give a bit of related experience. That sort of thing would be easy to fluff out on a CV later, but it pays poorly and I would personally find it quite soul-destroying.

Any ideas?
 
volunteering for a school can provide some experience. Like you I was shadow tech support for a company, I wasn't the official tech support (there wasn't any) but I was the person everyone came to for help. I ended up upgrading that office to a network, adding servers, etc... I turned that unofficial position into a real position at another company.

Although I really dislike certifications, they can be useful in obtaining an entry-level position (HR people like them). A lot of cert work is rote memorization but the concepts are good to know.
 
Entry level jobs are never fun and don't pay well. But another that is often easy to get into with minimal qualifications is help desk. I've known plenty of people who have moved from there to a variety of other IT jobs.

Cheers,
Ben
 
It depends on the help desk. Many of the call centers just want people that can follow a script, thinking on your own is highly discouraged. I would avoid these type of help desks.
 
I gotta give another vote for the helpdesk route. I've gotten myself and many other started with that. If he's an internet junkie he might try seeing if there's an ISP running a helpdesk near him.
 
I think helpdesk and similar do seem to be the easiest route. It may just follow scripts and need no real expertise, but you don't have to state that on your CV later; you can just put it down as "general IT support at company X" or whatever.

Another route, of course, would be to get a bank loan and set up in a support business on one's own. Apart from the obvious risk of bankruptcy, though, I think this sort of thing would be better done when one's done a few years in a similar role, because it would teach you the diagnosis process (that is 'blame the user') till you have it so it comes naturally. Perhaps something worth suggesting, though.

Cheers for suggestions so far.
 
Having done the helpdesk route I'd say that if someone has a knack for it and a willingness to learn the processes* then they'll get promoted to second and third tier - that's where the fun stuff happens :)

* Just before the company went bankrupt they were hiring for telephone manner as "IT skills can be learned", they wanted the flowchart muppets. None of them could tell me, when it came up (often), why trying to run a restore wouldn't work on a system that wouldn't POST. Knowing the process of booting would have saved time and customer frustration
 
In fact, being able to know more than the script, while frustrating at first level because you wind up arguing with supervisors, is still an advantage over one's peers. A smart company will realize you don't need to be forced back onto the script--you need a job where you're allowed to use your knowledge.
 
Rat said:
But what routes are there into the industry that don't require heavy (i.e. Microsoft or Cisco) qualifications, which the average person just can't afford to take? As far as I'm aware, his expertise would be generally in computer hardware and software, rather than something more specialized like programming, but from chatting, he does seem genuinely like someone who could do it, rather than an interested hobbyist.
Click to expand...

If one has passion for the field, then the paths of entry are many. If not -- if it is just going to be a job -- then perhaps he should look outside of IT.

If he wants to be a sysadmin, for example, then he should get intimately familiar with building PCs from scratch, installing and configuring operating systems and software, setting up secure networks, troubleshooting problems and becoming proficient in a number of scripting languages.

A person with those skills who can demonstrate both a breadth and depth of knowledge and experience will command the better jobs and salaries.
 
Does he want a career in IT or a job in IT? Most roles in PC hw/sw support are jobs not careers. The service desk entry used to be possible but ITIL is pushing Service Desks to be more people-friendly skills and following scripts and not IT knowledge.
 
Tell your friend to settle for a nice, easy job, with less stress than in IT.

E.g., mine removal, or the bomb squad.
 
rockoon said:
Dont Do It
Click to expand...

Good advice.

In the UK? Doesn't seem worthwhile.

Abroad I was beating offers of work off with a stick. The UK, nothing, zilch, zero, nada.

Several hundred job applications (no exaggeration) and one interview where the [rule8]wit agent gave me half the job spec'.

It seems that HR and agencies use the temp to sort applications. Anything other than fitting a square peg in a square hole seems beyond them.


I'm looking at becoming a lorry driver.

.
 
Join a help desk just to get "in the field," while there, spend nights and weeks learning a few scripting languages. She can try them out at work and have others help if she gets stuck. The internet is packed with scripting 101 sites.

Other general advice: be innovative, look for deficiencies, prove your worth, find ways to add value to the company, out shine your peers. Look for growth opportunities both internally and externally.
 
H3LL said:
Good advice.

In the UK? Doesn't seem worthwhile.

Abroad I was beating offers of work off with a stick. The UK, nothing, zilch, zero, nada.
Click to expand...

Depends on your job skills and background. For instance the financial industry in London is dying to find good Perl programmers. I have no idea what their market is for network engineers, it may be horrible. Locally the Perl market is great in Los Angeles. It sucks in Orange County.

H3LL said:
Several hundred job applications (no exaggeration) and one interview where the [rule8]wit agent gave me half the job spec'.

It seems that HR and agencies use the temp to sort applications. Anything other than fitting a square peg in a square hole seems beyond them.

I'm looking at becoming a lorry driver..
Click to expand...

That's a problem with lots of larger organizations. You have to get past the HR filter. And the best way to get past the HR filter is..inside connections.

For instance suppose you wanted one of those Perl jobs that I just mentioned. Let's assume that you have some Perl skills. (If not, then you need to develop them on your own. How to do that is another topic.) Then what you need is some connections. How to get them?

The simplest and best way is to try to find user groups where you can meet Perl programmers. That's easily done, visit http://london.pm.org/. Join up, go to meetings, get to know people. Contributing to a couple of open source projects would be good but not necessary.

If you have the skills and ability, you should be able to get your foot in the door.

Cheers,
Ben

PS Note that one of the least effective job strategies is using tools like Monster. Everyone goes there because it is easy, but only a small fraction of hires are made that way. Your best odds are still from personal connections.
 
Ben Tilly said:
That's a problem with lots of larger organizations. You have to get past the HR filter. And the best way to get past the HR filter is..inside connections.
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Never a truer word spoken.

Until I returned to the UK I had not got a job from an application since I was in my late teens, over mumble years ago..

Unfortunately all my old connections are either dead, retired or in another country.

It's hard to get in from the outside.:(

.
 
No, my experience in '99 was that I got an interview for every position I sumbitted my CV for because I have a good CV. My sister-in-law is a marketing manager and helped me a lot with the layout. An ex-colleague sent me his last year - 20+ years as a DBA, MQ support, team leader, contributing author to a redbook and his CV stank and it was no wonder he was getting nothing.
Remember the first filter doesn't know how to mine your CV for relevant data. He'll be someone who thinks MSCE is a medical condition.
 
Wudang said:
No, my experience in '99 was that I got an interview for every position I sumbitted my CV for because I have a good CV. My sister-in-law is a marketing manager and helped me a lot with the layout. An ex-colleague sent me his last year - 20+ years as a DBA, MQ support, team leader, contributing author to a redbook and his CV stank and it was no wonder he was getting nothing.
Remember the first filter doesn't know how to mine your CV for relevant data. He'll be someone who thinks MSCE is a medical condition.
Click to expand...

In 1999 the dot com boom was going on. Today's market is OK but not great. While a good CV is good, I wouldn't discount the effects of the job market.

Cheers,
Ben
 
More the Y2k thing as I emphasised my mainframe skills but I take your point about the job market. But for many reasons, especially the fact that my wife is head of IT development for her company and reads a lot of CVs, I believe most people here massively underestimate the importance of well-presented CVs.
 
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