G+_David McKown Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Hi, everyone. Allow me to apologize beforehand for using the community for this, but I'm in the need of advice, and I can't think of a better place to ask. I've made the decision to make a career in IT. I've been tinkering with computers as a hobby for almost 15. I've been going at for the love of it, so I never thought about making a career out of it. Long story short, I now have a good opportunity to jump into the IT department for my current employer... And here's where I need the advice. I don't have any certification (again, it was just a hobby,) let alone any experience working in that field. I asked one person from the IT department and he told me that I should go to a technical school to get the CompTIA A+ certification, since the hours I accumulated in the school will count as experience hours and I'll have a better chance at getting the job. Now I don't want to doubt his advice, but I'm a little skeptical about the training hours=experience part. The cheapest CompTIA A+ certification classes was about $1,300 dollars, which is holy cow. That's a boatload of money for stuff I'm pretty sure i know about. Then i thought about just getting getting some study material and or getting a subscription to ITpro.tv, which will be a whole lot cheaper and convenient, and take the test. So my question is. Go with the technical school or get the study material? I'd appreciate any feedback you guys can provide. And thanks for reading through my blabbering ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_bil Jeschke Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Experience trumps certs and degrees, but certs do open doors. If you can get the job without it, then ship it. Experience hours might be something your company does for training, but everyone else wants years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Matthew Zier-Vogel Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Don't bother with the A+ if you can get the job without it. The A+ cert is about 2 years of it hardware repair equivalent. If you really want the A+ cert, just get the book and study then take the exam, shouldn't be difficult for someone who's been working g with co outers for 15 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Pedro Nunez (R2Detour) Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Matthew Zier-Vogel? I want to get A+ just in case. From what I hear, it's the basic of basic if you're planning on getting into IT. While it is a start. I'm looking for going all in (Network+, MS cert etc.) Reason why I thought about ITpro.tv. I could get more out of it, than spending a boatload on one single course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Pedro Nunez (R2Detour) Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Liam Powell? Hehe! I already ran into two guys who apparently I asked them for their social security number and personal information, because they shoo me like I was a fly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Cameron Moore Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Have a look at ITPro TV for training. Check out twit.TV to get a discount code. ( I have no affiliation with either company) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Dave Trautman Posted November 17, 2015 Share Posted November 17, 2015 Well, Pedro Nunez I suppose I have to take the other side of the decision. Once you have a "ticket" then doors open which you wouldn't expect. If you see yourself in one job for the rest of your career then you only need to impress that employer. If you want to expand your opportunities for future IT work, then having the certifications is a great plan. Measure the cost of the schooling against future earnings. If you're the senior IT person inside a bigger company then your income will be many times what you're currently (likely - I can only surmise) being offered. Companies are notorious for passing people over who only have experience. Also consider that the role of IT will change in the next 5 to 10 years. How will you get experience when things suddenly are different. Only once in a milenia does anyone need to know COBOL anymore (just a Y2K joke there). But all the stuff you would be picking up from your current job might not apply to the next one. Also remember companies get taken over. When they "merge" the staff it will be the certified guy who gets to stay. New managers will have no idea what you did before or how dedicated you were to your job. They will only look at the numbers and find the narrowest of criteria to decide who stays and who goes. As someone who taught in a tech school to future IT pros the cost is pretty low (as you indicated) because you would make that back in 2 weeks on your new job. Unless you're working for peanuts. It's a lot to consider. What the others have said is not wrong. But I felt the need to state that it's a bit short-sighted and you might want to consider the "long game" here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G+_Dave Trautman Posted November 18, 2015 Share Posted November 18, 2015 Wow! Thanks for the plus Jason Cleanthes. Fan of your work. I'm a former studio producer who went out into the wild. Not entirely sure I could run a TriCaster as well as you do. Keep up the great work and give my regards to Mike E. I think I was the first "fan of the day" on TNT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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