IT Technician Certifications

[Caleb]

I'll second the earlier opinion that A+ and Network+ are worthless and a waste of time unless you're applying for the absolute low-end job someplace you probably wouldn't want to work. Context: I'm the IT manager for a large manufacturing company -- I hire and manage the exact positions in question. Every IT manager (by whatever title) is different and I'm sure there are a few who care about A+ and Network+... but I've never met one. Maybe if you're trying to get Kelly temp work or something. For *me*, it's actually a turn-off. Anyone with any higher-end skills probably wouldn't list those on their resume, or would at least bury them under the skills and experience that actually matter.

So what you are saying is, if I have a A+, network+, and ccna... You would skip over my resume for somebody who only has his ccna?

 

[iChokePeople]

So what you are saying is, if I have a A+, network+, and ccna... You would skip over my resume for somebody who only has his ccna?

Well, not exactly, but as I understand it, you don't already have them. What I'm saying is if you have to invest even 5 more minutes to get them, it's wasted time. Now back to the way you're trying to point the question, they would have absolutely ZERO positive impact for me. If I started to read that section of your resume and you led off with A+, Network+, you would immediately lose my interest and would very likely go into the BIG pile (that goes to HR for "Thanks for your interest, but...")

 

[PistolBob]

So what you are saying is, if I have a A+, network+, and ccna... You would skip over my resume for somebody who only has his ccna?

CompTIA certs are like elementary school.

CCNA, MCSE, MCP is more like High School.

If you have both, do you mention what grade school you went to?

The CCNA trumps the CompTIA certs. If I see you are a CCNA, I don't care if you have CompTIA certs....especially if I am looking for a entry level Cisco admin.

 

[Caleb]

So quit going to school for A+ and network+...then self study for ccna and above?

 

[williamsjr22]

I've been an IT guy for over 10 years. I am now doing almost nothing but VMware for servers and desktops. I have found that experience is what people are looking for not certifications. The only certification that I have is my PMP which was really hard to get and by far the most desirable in the IT world.

 

[iChokePeople]

So quit going to school for A+ and network+...then self study for ccna and above?

I hate to give strangers advice on the internet, and you have to make your own decisions. If I were having this conversation with my son, I would say yes, stop wasting your time on CompTIA certs and move on to something else. Frankly, I've also advised my sons not to pursue a career in IT. It's been very good to me, but times have changed and are continuing to change, and I don't think it's a great choice for a young person today. If my sons really wanted to do the computer thing, I'd direct them toward other avenues in the industry.

 

[williamsjr22]

PistolBob is correct in his analysis of the Certs.

 

[iChokePeople]

I've been an IT guy for over 10 years. I am now doing almost nothing but VMware for servers and desktops. I have found that experience is what people are looking for not certifications. The only certification that I have is my PMP which was really hard to get and by far the most desirable in the IT world.

I'm 50% with this ^^. VMWare is currently a very hot skill (either by cert or by demonstrated experience) and the end is currently not in sight. There will be one, and VMWare guys will eventually have to learn something new, but the horizon is beyond MY field of view. I'm definitely not there on the idea that PMP is anywhere near the most desirable cert/skill in the IT world. At all. It's not really even an IT skill...

 

[indytechnerd]

About 10 years ago, I got my A+ (note: I also have a BS in Computer Science) in hopes of helping my career along. I wish I had spent that $300 on a gun.

Now, for constructive content. You might aim for some DB certs. Oracle costs a decent chunk of change, but you'd make that back PDQ as an Oracle DBA. I prefer MySQL myself, but haven't dropped the cash.

 

[williamsjr22]

VMware and storage is where I would spend my time. Netapp offers free classes and seminars from time to time. I admin a Netapp, but damn is that stuff boring.

 

[iChokePeople]

About 10 years ago, I got my A+ (note: I also have a BS in Computer Science) in hopes of helping my career along. I wish I had spent that $300 on a gun.

Now, for constructive content. You might aim for some DB certs. Oracle costs a decent chunk of change, but you'd make that back PDQ as an Oracle DBA. I prefer MySQL myself, but haven't dropped the cash.

+1 to all of this. DBA skills are hot and will remain so for... well, a while.

 

[williamsjr22]

The PMP is very desirable because the pay scale only goes so high for an admin. The PMP takes you to a higher range pay. I am in management but project managers pay is usually equal or more that management.

 

[Caleb]

I thought the IT field was a good field to get into... What happened?

 

[iChokePeople]

The PMP is very desirable because the pay scale only goes so high for an admin. The PMP takes you to a higher range pay. I am in management but project managers pay is usually equal or more that management.

PMP, or PM skills, in general, are hard to sell as an entry-level guy or without experience. Unless I was hiring for one of my top-level "analyst" or "project leader" positions, I wouldn't care about PM experience and would tend to view time spent pursuing PMP certification negatively. If it was a mid-level admin position (or around there) and the applicant listed PMP first in his skills, the resume would go in the BIG pile because I would have the impression that he was more interested in PM than in doing IT work. Again, every "hiring person" is different and some would love it -- particularly other PMPs. Might be great to add later, but not what I would suggest the OP do NOW.

 

[indytechnerd]

I thought the IT field was a good field to get into... What happened?

Everyone else thought the same thing.

It's the reason I changed majors when I went back to school. IT was the shiznit and there were high paying jobs out the wazoo, then the dot com crash happened and people started outsourcing. I veered away from the programming/IT part and headed to hardware, getting in with (at the time) Compaq. I was working at a small shop that manufactured and configured PCs for Compaq. I had guys who had been system admins for 10+ years working for me as testers making $9-12 an hour.

That has progressed and mutated into me being a project manager for engineering and IT. I've never programmed professionally a day in my career. I've done some PHP work on the side, but "programmer" has never been on my resume or job description.

 

[iChokePeople]

I thought the IT field was a good field to get into... What happened?

Times change. There are plenty who would argue with me, and it's definitely better than some other choices... but outsourcing, for one. Another that someone mentioned is the tendency to be viewed as a cost, as a necessary evil, rather than as a profit center (unless you're in something like consulting where you're generating revenue, of course...), the hours/expectations, the constant pressure to adapt and learn the NEW hot skill because the last one is dead/dying/outsourced... Learning something new can be really cool and exciting, but it's not for everyone.

 

[kiddchaos]

Yep, VMware Certified Professional, Network storage, some experience.

 

[iChokePeople]

Yep, VMware Certified Professional, Network storage, some experience.

If you could demonstrate those skills ^^, today, you would not be unemployed for more than a week.

 

[Caleb]

Well, I'm not afraid...I like to learn new things especially when it comes to computers as I've always been into computers. I'm considering dropping Harrison College as I'm really only fetching a A+ and Network+ plus some other thing I can't remember.

I still want to get my CCNA and beyond as I've always been intrigued by networks and Cisco products and maybe add Microsoft certifications pertaining to sever installation and maintenance. It sounds like this industry may not be what it was, however I doubt this industry will actually die off.

(aside from working for Google, another goal I've had was to admin my own datacenter)

I'm going to stick with it, but I have another question. Would you or other people hire somebody with an CCNA without prior working experience(note that I said working, not actual personal experience)? If yes, that's great! If no, how would you get your foot into the door?

 

[iChokePeople]

I'm going to stick with it, but I have another question. Would you or other people hire somebody with an CCNA without prior working experience(note that I said working, not actual personal experience)? If yes, that's great! If no, how would you get your foot into the door?

Yes, I hire people without experience. With me, your resume has to show me something to get you an interview. Could be nearly anything, but you have to find a way to get from the HUGE pile (incoming resumes) to the very small pile (telephone screening), and then do well enough on the phone to get through the next cut (on-site interview). For entry-level, it could be nearly anything that gets you to the telephone pile. Good grades in school -- even better if you were working, supporting a family, doing other things, anything that gives me the impression that you can do more than one thing and that you didn't get good grades just because daddy paid for it all and you could concentrate 100% on your studies. It could be some shared interest, it could be anything. For entry level, I don't really care about certs OR experience, just the willingness and ability to learn and do the job and fit in with the rest of the group. For more senior positions, if we happen to have to hire one from outside for some reason, experience first, certs a distant second, but still it's really just to get to the interview phase. At that point, you're going to sink or swim based on what you actually know (or convince me that you know, anyway...)

And again the caveat, every hiring person is different.