IT Certifications and Careers (Official Discussion Thread)

[Mr Rager]

I'm just about to leave after a year and some change, keep the faith

If your current help desk gig aint giving you an avenue to work in something better...get the fukk out and find something that will at least let you *work* on something besides rote tier 1 call taking.

I understand paying your dues and getting experience, but how long should a breh stay at an entry level help desk gig before trying to jump into security or something higher paying?

 

[Julius Skrrvin]

I understand paying your dues and getting experience, but how long should a breh stay at an entry level help desk gig before trying to jump into security or something higher paying?

Real shyt... at least a year. maybe even 2-3 years depending on your work ethic. It makes more sense for newbies to shoot for positions at NOCs or junior sysadmin type jobs after cutting it up on the desk

I'm about to make the transition into Security and if you actually want to make it there, it is a relatively advanced discipline. People usually make the transition after a couple years in network engineering, sysadmin, etc. It requires a very good understanding of systems (windows, linux, and even Mac along with mobile equivalents), networking, and software engineering. If you aren't willing to come home from a shytty day and spend a couple hours practicing scripting, learning Linux architecture, hacking vulns, learning how to read a pcap don't bother. That is putting aside boring rote learning re PCI, SOX, NIST etc compliance and all that other red tape. This field is saturated with people looking to make a quick buck or who think it's glamorous without any genuine passion for the work. And yes that applies even to people who are going to work semi entry level SOC analyst jobs.

@Ice_MF_Mike could probably tell you better

 

[Dat Migo]

This field is so hard to break in through. So many interviews for entry level and nada.

 

[Apollo Creed]

This field is so hard to break in through. So many interviews for entry level and nada.

Once you get your first gig you are good though

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

Once you get your first gig you are good though

It's frustrating how tough it is to get that far though. I'm quickly losing hope of starting with a decent company.

 

[Apollo Creed]

It's frustrating how tough it is to get that far though. I'm quickly losing hope of starting with a decent company.

I worked in sales for a yr when i graduated, i mainly did it because it paid waaaaaay more than an entry level IT gig but i knew i didnt want to get stuck since inhad a garbage manager and transitioned into a gig related to my degree. That said looking for a job on avg takes 3-6 months if you have experience and can take a yr plus if you dont.

 

[TRFG]

This field is so hard to break in through. So many interviews for entry level and nada.

Going through the same even with experience all I get is nada, the most recent response I got was this

We appreciate the time you took to apply and we were excited to receive your materials.

We have finalized our selection process and reviewed your application. Though your qualifications are impressive, the selection process was highly competitive and we have decided to move forward with a candidate whose qualifications better meet our needs at this time.

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

I worked in sales for a yr when i graduated, i mainly did it because it paid waaaaaay more than an entry level IT gig but i knew i didnt want to get stuck since inhad a garbage manager and transitioned into a gig related to my degree. That said looking for a job on avg takes 3-6 months if you have experience and can take a yr plus if you dont.

This part is what makes me think that somebody on the employer side is lying big time. They say there's an overabundance of jobs out there, which somewhat seems to be the case, but then they want to say they're having a hard time finding people who are qualified. They have the nerve to ask for 3+ years of professional experience for a fukking entry level position. What kind of shyt are they trying to pull?

I basically spent the weekend applying to SDE 1 and 2 positions. I can understand not being selected for the SDE 2 spots, but if the description for SDE 1 is looking for 0-1 year of experience, and I have a fairly solid portfolio, I should be getting called up. It seems really counterintuitive to me that hiring managers are spending less than 10 seconds per resume if they're truly trying to find someone who has the right experience.

I'll just be bitter until I can land an interview

 

[Obreh Winfrey]

Going through the same even with experience all I get is nada, the most recent response I got was this

I got basically the same response from Snapchat this morning I knew that one was a bit of a stretch though

 

[Dat Migo]

Once you get your first gig you are good though

Yeah but time and money is all but ran out. A 4 year degree, 25k down the hole and nothing to show for it.

Going through the same even with experience all I get is nada, the most recent response I got was this

At least you get a response. They don't even bother hitting me up with the rejection letters.

 

[Apollo Creed]

This part is what makes me think that somebody on the employer side is lying big time. They say there's an overabundance of jobs out there, which somewhat seems to be the case, but then they want to say they're having a hard time finding people who are qualified. They have the nerve to ask for 3+ years of professional experience for a fukking entry level position. What kind of shyt are they trying to pull?

I basically spent the weekend applying to SDE 1 and 2 positions. I can understand not being selected for the SDE 2 spots, but if the description for SDE 1 is looking for 0-1 year of experience, and I have a fairly solid portfolio, I should be getting called up. It seems really counterintuitive to me that hiring managers are spending less than 10 seconds per resume if they're truly trying to find someone who has the right experience.

I'll just be bitter until I can land an interview

Man there aint no damn jobs lol. Most the johs college kids would be doing get outsourced or automated nowadays, thats just the sad truth.

 

[AyBrehHam Linkin]

I got an interview with an Active Directory Help Desk role soon and havent messed with AD in a year...what can I expect in the interview brehs .


Gonna have to hope I can find my old hard drive and look over old school work as well.

 

[Tr0yTV]

I got an interview with an Active Directory Help Desk role soon and havent messed with AD in a year...what can I expect in the interview brehs .


Gonna have to hope I can find my old hard drive and look over old school work as well.

1. Know your resume.
2. Study what they list in the job description.

If you need a quick overview of AD then look at Eli the computer guys' videos on AD. You should also get Mastering Windows Server 2012 R2 by Sybex. You can find a .pdf on google. Read that until the interview and drop some terms that you learned from the book. That will impress them. You can also tell them you're studying for the MCSA to prove that you're a self starter. Ask them at least 3 questions at the end of the interview.

Look up the STAR interview method. That will help with the behavioral portion of the interview.

Always exude confidence.

 

[Mr Rager]

I'm looking into going BACK to school for Information Systems or Comp Sci, not sure which yet (leaning towards CIS). Already got a Bachelors so I should be able to just do major specific classes and get the degree in 2-3 yrs...
But to be honest all this terminology in this thread has me like

I've always been interested in programming/design and cyber threat, but before committing to this path I gotta make sure this field is right for me. I like working with computers, creating things, and doing analysis but tbh this shyt kinda intimidating

 

[Mr Rager]

Why don't you figure out what you want to do first. There's no point in getting your foot in the door if you don't know which door it is.

Got any good resources discussing the different career paths?