Making It in IT: Keep Your Current Job!

IT training and certification expert Ed Tittel advises a reader to hold tight to his current job while furthering his IT career and education.

Hello Ed,

I'll start by giving a basic background and explaining the situation that I'm in. I know for a fact I want to work in the IT industry, mostly towards network security. So I decided to go back to school not too long ago. I started taking classes, little by little, fitting in as many classes as I could. I was still working full-time so I ended up taking the extra-long path, the two classes a semester sort of plan. So now I'm one quarter away and I'll have my CCNA cert and a A.S. for Computer Network Technician. I am still working full-time as a desktop support for an Internet and telephony company. I think it's important to add that I'm also turning 29 in October.

I know I'm pretty late getting into the game, but I feel it's never too late to earn an education.

But now the big question I present to you is: Should I try to break into the industry with a CCNA and A.S. only? Of course, try to get further in the CCNA tree and other Certs (CCNA Security, Telephony etc.). Or would it be recommended to actually take some time off work, or at least go part-time, to fully pursue a B.S. degree in Information Technology or Computer Science?

If you do suggest pursuing a B.S. would you recommend going to a traditional UC/CSU; or would you recommend going to a technical school like ITT or DeVry? What are the pros and cons between these two available paths?

So overall, what would you suggest for someone who's already 29, and working full-time trying to break into the IT industry?

Joe

Dear Joe:

Thanks for your e-mail, and for taking the time to explain your situation and your inclinations to me. At 29 you're still plenty young enough to make a great career in IT. I didn't really even get started with computing until I was 27 myself, and didn't start working in the field full-time until 29-30 years of age (that will be 30-31 years ago later this summer on my 60th birthday). Some people just like to take the long way around, and others change careers even later in life.

If you like the work, and enjoy the rhythm and lifestyle in IT, in fact it's never too late!

If you're already working in desktop support for Internet/telephony, you've also already broken into the IT industry as well -- albeit at a very typical first rung for an IT career ladder. The AS degree and CCNA should help you start climbing to higher rungs: So my advice is to look for work and see what you can find.

You can always keep up your low-key two courses per semester approach, keep your current job, and keep looking for another one while you're earning more education and certification credits or credentials along the way. So, you should start looking for something when you finish the cert and the degree, keep studying, and if nothing happens, just keep going and keep trying until you get a foot up onto the next rung of your IT career progression.

If you decide to go for a bachelor's, the technical schools like ITT or DeVry tend to be more expensive than a traditional public college or university. I'd look for something with a combination of lower cost, good support for continuing education/employed students, and good name recognition (especially in your area). As to the actual degree, there's not really a huge difference in employer's eyes and estimations between computer science and IT plans (unless you plan to go for more advanced degrees and do research, it really doesn't matter much to anybody else, either) so you should pick the program with the faculty and course offerings you like best or find most interesting.

You have the luxury of holding a job already, so I'd suggest you keep holding it. After you finish your AS and CCNA, look around and see what kind of other opportunities are available to you. If you don't like what you find, keep studying for more certs and possibly also a bachelor's degree. But hang onto that job in the meantime, because it's always easier to find another job when you're working full-time than it is to find one when you're unemployed.

Thanks again for writing. Best wishes on your career planning and development!

Ed

Ed Tittel is a 30-year-plus veteran of the computing industry, who’s worked as a programmer, a technical manager, a classroom instructor, a network consultant and a technical evangelist for companies that include Burroughs, Schlumberger, Novell, IBM/Tivoli and NetQoS. He has written and blogged for numerous publications, including Tom's Hardware, and is the author of over 140 computing books with a special emphasis on information security, Web markup languages and development tools, and Windows operating systems.

E-mail Ed at etittel@tomsitpro.com with your request for IT certification or career info, or your ideas for future blogs. If your e-mail leads him to a blog topic, he’ll have the Tom’s staff send you your very own Tom’s IT Pro t-shirt! Be the envy of your friends and colleagues, and help him help you with your IT career! If you do have a request for Ed, please read his How to Help Me Help You blog posting, and answer as many of the questions this post contains as are applicable to your situation and inquiry. Thanks in advance for helping make his job easier that way!

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(Shutterstock cover image credit: Young Man Studying)