Msc Networking and Security

nellocon

Hi guys,
Ive recently got my degree in Business Information Systems. And was looking forward to getting a job and hitting the big world. Except my bubble has been well and truly burst.
Let me explain:
Firstly, from my degree, i seem to have learned a little about alot. In other words, I have knowledge about many things (programming, db etc) except i cant say im really good at any.
Secondly, i think im really interested in networking and security. I was always planning on starting into ccna sooner or later.
Now i'm finished college and in a *Crap* helpdesk job. I am really considering going on and doing a masters in networking and security.
I guess im just afraid that it will be another year wasted. I mean would i be better off just self studying ccna or something.

I'm lost as to what to do. Can anyone help?:)

thegoth

Do you have details about the course ? I know that alot of MSc security courses are VERY programming and Maths orientated. This does not sound like what you are after

_CreeD_

Want to head into management/policy making head for the Masters (and do a CISSP in parallel)....want to actually get into the nuts and bolts do the Sec+ and follow it up with any number of security certs (SANS, Cisco CCSP/CCIE etc.).

thegoth

Strange advise without knowing the content of the MSc. Most MSc like the above are VERY technical with little or no management subjects

Barrypr

Any more info on the course you did think I did same one, which is a mixed bag everthing from vb to law...you no bits of everthing so now you want to get some IT courses behind you, its good that you have a degree we were currently hiring the big thing for us was MCSA/E cisco vmware courses on the CV as well as experience, don't knock the helpdesk its a start, beef it up on your CV.

Get a foundation understading of networks before you start into security, network+ and cisco was my pick, understand how a network works then head down the security track, thats my opinion for what its worth.

_CreeD_

thegoth wrote: »

Strange advise without knowing the content of the MSc. Most MSc like the above are VERY technical with little or no management subjects

Not so strange, based in experience with the different folks I have met in the business. The management aspect here is not specifically because of managerial course content but because of what is generally looked for in candidates for those positions.

AARRRGH

I specialised in computer security in my masters.

The maths is difficult (mainly because it's impossible to find well written maths books) and the programming would be at the more complex end of the scale.

However, colleges will do nearly anything these days to help you pass so you should be ok, but you will need to work your ass off.

jank

thegoth wrote: »

Do you have details about the course ? I know that alot of MSc security courses are VERY programming and Maths orientated. This does not sound like what you are after

Well thats the reality of security especially in universities.
I would advise the OP getting this CCNA first and then security + see what he likes about it before commiting himself further.

NullZer0

Yup take a look at CCNA and then maybe CCNA security and Security+. You really can't go wrong and if you are going to put in a hell of alot of study then why not try to work towards something like CCIE Security instead?

The decision is yours, but I know which one I'd pick

nellocon

Thanks for all the replies guy,

Alot were really helpful. Most suggest doing ccna and then sec+ before i commit to the masters.
I think this is prob the most feasible answer. The reason i was going to pick a masters in Networking and security was because i think it will make me alot more employable.

Right now, im not working in a networking role at all. Even though i would like to be there just is none around. My plan was to do the masters and maybe this time next year something would turn up.

If i ditch the masters and just do a ccna cert, then how employable am i really?

Time is running out and im still not sure what to do.

Thanks for the help

NullZer0

nellocon wrote: »

If i ditch the masters and just do a ccna cert, then how employable am i really?

CCNA cert = Not employable
CCNA knowledge and certified = Employable (the only people that seem to be getting interviews in the current climate - those and Java developers IMO).

I think if you have a CCNA and a good understanding of BGP and perhaps MPLS your good to go

After that its up to you how far you want to go up the certification ladder

magicwand

nellocon wrote: »

Hi guys,
Ive recently got my degree in Business Information Systems. And was looking forward to getting a job and hitting the big world. Except my bubble has been well and truly burst.
Let me explain:
Firstly, from my degree, i seem to have learned a little about alot. In other words, I have knowledge about many things (programming, db etc) except i cant say im really good at any.
Secondly, i think im really interested in networking and security. I was always planning on starting into ccna sooner or later.
Now i'm finished college and in a *Crap* helpdesk job. I am really considering going on and doing a masters in networking and security.
I guess im just afraid that it will be another year wasted. I mean would i be better off just self studying ccna or something.

I'm lost as to what to do. Can anyone help?:)

Can i ask where the MSc is nellocon?

nellocon

Yeah the course i am talking about is Msc in Networking and Security at CIT (in Cork).

Heres a link to the course:
http://www.cit.ie/courses/courselisting/networkingandsecuritymasters/

Seems to me like a good course that would be worth doing.

iRock - Can I ask what is BGP and MPLS?

I'm stuck as to what to do. Should I quit this stupid helpdesk job that im going nowhere in and go and do the masters or should i just try and get a really good understanding of CCNA?

Advice is really appreciated,

Thanks

magicwand

I think the MSc would be the better option...you could always do the ccna after you finish or in between if doing the MSc part time...what sort of position are you hoping to get after the MSc?

nellocon

Hi Magicwand,

Well im not 100% certain yet but i would be prob hoping to go into a network engineering role. The nuts and bolt stuff and then after getting a bit of experience under my belt maybe then move onto security side of things.

I just think seeing as the economic climate is still so bad then i want to use the next year to put myself in the best possible position for getting a networkinging role.

magicwand

nellocon wrote: »

Hi Magicwand,

Well im not 100% certain yet but i would be prob hoping to go into a network engineering role. The nuts and bolt stuff and then after getting a bit of experience under my belt maybe then move onto security side of things.

I just think seeing as the economic climate is still so bad then i want to use the next year to put myself in the best possible position for getting a networkinging role.

Ya i know what ur saying,nothing wrong with having an MSc anyway but having 0 yrs experience and the MSc will still make it very hard to got a job in a networking role...im in the same boat as urself and as u prob well know geting something above helpdesk is very hard...the ccna would compliment ur MSc if anything i think, but thats up to urself...im going to do an MSc myself

nellocon

Yeah I know what your saying experience really is the key here. I'm contemplating all kinds of mental ideas like setting my room up with aload of routers and stuff and really getting to grips with ccna so i know the stuff backwards...

I'm just not sure if this Msc is going to give me a whole lot more...Alot of people from my last class are going on to do masters so i think i just dont want to get left behind either.

As far as i see it though, there are ZERO jobs in IT other than crappy helpdesk ones, and even they are hard to come by.

At the moment my heart is telling me to: Quit my job, do the Masters degree and fit a CCNA cert in between..Then a year a year will be gone by so se what happens.
My mind is telling me otherwise though

Oh decisions decisions decisions....

Col_Loki

Would you think about a part time masters? I know the helpdesk job is crap but as the guys have said you need experience and unless it is a very basic one i would imagine you should still be learning.

Also in the current climate i would think long and hard before giving up a job. Is it possible to get promoted to callout/level 2?

jank

What is the company you are with? I might know them

SSeanSS

Hi nellocon, so what did you end up doing? I was looking to apply to this course and find myself in the same situation you were a few years ago.. any info would be great, thanks

SSeanSS

so i did the course anyway. Managed to get a new job halfway through the course with a big leap in salary. Course itself was only okay, I probably didn't take that much away from it as it cost so much but it's great to add to the cv. I was stuck in a dead end job in an IT Helpdesk and this helped me get out of it. So if you're looking to advance your career i'd say go for it but if you're just doing it for educational purposes I wouldn't bother.