How to get a job in IT

Gavin "shels"

I'm just finishing off an Ordinary Degree in Computing (have a repeat in Janaury) and have 3 years retail experience behind me. Now if I don't wish to go for the Honours Degree I'll be looking for an IT related job in order to get some much needed experience.

I've searched endless sites, etc... and most seem to want an Honours Degree with a 2:1 or higher and/or experience.

My main aspect was Programming in college (was ill advised when we chose our modules in 2nd Year) and tbh I depise C++, Java, etc... but can cope with the basics, I'm more leaning towards Web Design/Development or some Support/Maintenance role.

Any suggestions were to start? I have a few connections I hope to use to get a week or two of unpaid work experience for my CV but if I'm going down the proper job work does anyone have any pointers.

Cheers in advance.

yore

Gavin shels wrote: »

I'm just finishing off an Ordinary Degree in Computing (have a repeat in Janaury) and have 3 years retail experience behind me. Now if I don't wish to go for the Honours Degree I'll be looking for an IT related job in order to get some much needed experience.

I've searched endless sites, etc... and most seem to want an Honours Degree with a 2:1 or higher and/or experience.

My main aspect was Programming in college (was ill advised when we chose our modules in 2nd Year) and tbh I depise C++, Java, etc... but can cope with the basics, I'm more leaning towards Web Design/Development or some Support/Maintenance role.

Any suggestions were to start? I have a few connections I hope to use to get a week or two of unpaid work experience for my CV but if I'm going down the proper job work does anyone have any pointers.

Cheers in advance.

I'm being serious when I say I don't envy your chances of landing a serious programming job when you don't like it and can only cope with basics. There are loads of 16 and 17 year old kids that have been coding for years because they love it.

You might get a start at a Tech-support/Maintenance job though, or even be able to bluff your way into webdesign. It probably depends on your own personal contacts though. You'll learn virtually nothing in two weeks. IT is a job where you are learning all the time. Not one were you learn the basics and stop learning and just keep producing at that level.

EDIT: I'll just add, go back and do the fourth year if you can. Along with your normal studies, try to fit in one of the many basic professional certifications.

Mr. Loverman

Please don't become a programmer if you dislike it. Not only will you hate your job and be unhappy, but you will be producing bad code which will make your colleagues lives more difficult.

The first thing you need to do is to figure out which area you want to work in.

T-K-O

Stay on and get the hons degree. Can you swap some of the modules from java to something like networking. Also look at the I.T certs out there, they might give you a clear idea of what you want to do

Gavin "shels"

yore wrote: »

I'm being serious when I say I don't envy your chances of landing a serious programming job when you don't like it and can only cope with basics. There are loads of 16 and 17 year old kids that have been coding for years because they love it.

You might get a start at a Tech-support/Maintenance job though, or even be able to bluff your way into webdesign. It probably depends on your own personal contacts though. You'll learn virtually nothing in two weeks. IT is a job where you are learning all the time. Not one were you learn the basics and stop learning and just keep producing at that level.

EDIT: I'll just add, go back and do the fourth year if you can. Along with your normal studies, try to fit in one of the many basic professional certifications.

I ave no intention of going for a programming job, I depise it as I said.

I've tried for 3 years to grasp Java/C++ and it just doesn't stick, hence why I'm just left with the basics, have had help, etc...

I was looking into CompTIA A+or possibly a course in IBAT in Advance Web Development and/or Cloud Computing? Would any of those be benefitical in your opinion?

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

Please don't become a programmer if you dislike it. Not only will you hate your job and be unhappy, but you will be producing bad code which will make your colleagues lives more difficult.

The first thing you need to do is to figure out which area you want to work in.

No intention of getting into programming with the exception of Web Design/Dev as I like it and I'm good at it, it's Java/C++ I don't understand much.

I'm looking at Maintenance/Support or Web Design/Dev, I've worked in all 3 areas for a small time a few years back and they're what I enjoyed and interested in.

T-K-O wrote: »

Stay on and get the hons degree. Can you swap some of the modules from java to something like networking. Also look at the I.T certs out there, they might give you a clear idea of what you want to do

Yup I can swap over to doing the other part of the course which focuses on Networking/Cloud Computing, etc...

Any suggestions for the IT Certs? I've looked and not found much.

T-K-O

It really depends on what you want to do?

My degree was a variety of modules and like yourself I wasn't mad about the programming and preferred systems / networking. What modules can you take in year 4?

If you have an interest in networking obviously the CCNA is the way to go. I know that some College / I.T's more or less follow the Cisco curriculum so completing the modules with some extra study could very well enable you to pass that exam.

Personally I wouldn't go down the specialized cloud route, cloud is the latest 'fad'. It's been around for donkeys.

If your heart is set on web development I would suggest taking another course at the same time. I.E the Cisco or Microsoft cert. From what I can see every Tom Dick and Harry has their eye on web development

shanec1928

Comptia is for computer technician. You will still need java and the likes for web design. So it will follow you where ever you go.If you enjoy networking get a ccna cert. we do ours in college for free just have to pay for the final exam. Ye might have the same

Mr. Loverman

Gavin shels wrote: »

No intention of getting into programming with the exception of Web Design/Dev as I like it and I'm good at it, it's Java/C++ I don't understand much.

Programming is programming, so if you can't grasp Java/C++ you should probably stay away from Web Development. For example, a lot of PHP work now uses frameworks, and they use pretty advanced object oriented techniques. Even I struggle with them, and I have a lot of development experience! (Making websites for 17 years).

Based on what you're said, it sounds like you would be more suitable for a networking/system administrator role.

Set up a network at home using a few old, cheap PCs. You'll learn a lot.

balkieb2002

I'd say as your starting off look for Level 1/2 support and work out what you want to do from there. Use these roles to build up your exp and knowledge of the IT world and then move onto a networking/system administrator role.

I would say something like CompTIA A+, CCNA or an ITIL certificate would be an advantage for you going down that route.
Its a tough market out there so something like that on your CV along with the Ordinary degree in IT may stand you out from the crowd.

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

Please don't become a programmer if you dislike it. Not only will you hate your job and be unhappy, but you will be producing bad code which will make your colleagues lives more difficult.

The first thing you need to do is to figure out which area you want to work in.

I've worked in IT for around 5 years now and I still haven't decided on the area I want to work in so I don't see the need to rush into one area or the other as it's something I will be doing for quite a few more years. OP should get a sample of different areas and then decide on what suits best.

Gavin "shels"

Cheers for the replies.

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

Programming is programming, so if you can't grasp Java/C++ you should probably stay away from Web Development. For example, a lot of PHP work now uses frameworks, and they use pretty advanced object oriented techniques. Even I struggle with them, and I have a lot of development experience! (Making websites for 17 years).

Based on what you're said, it sounds like you would be more suitable for a networking/system administrator role.

Set up a network at home using a few old, cheap PCs. You'll learn a lot.

It's actually odd, I find using PHP, HTML, CSS, Javascript, etc... easy enough but once I have to sit down to do Java or C++ I just can't get it together.

Mr. Loverman

Gavin shels wrote: »

It's actually odd, I find using PHP, HTML, CSS, Javascript, etc... easy enough but once I have to sit down to do Java or C++ I just can't get it together.

Are you writing object oriented PHP code? I suspect you're not...

Be aware most PHP jobs now require OO skills, so all those things you hated about Java and C++ are now a part of PHP.

I'm not trying to scare you off PHP... just be aware if you cannot get your head around the OO stuff you will struggle working as a PHP developer. If you don't believe have a look at the code Zend and Symphony use... horrible "clever" OO PHP code...

yore

Gavin shels wrote: »

I ave no intention of going for a programming job, I depise it as I said.

I've tried for 3 years to grasp Java/C++ and it just doesn't stick, hence why I'm just left with the basics, have had help, etc...

I was looking into CompTIA A+or possibly a course in IBAT in Advance Web Development and/or Cloud Computing? Would any of those be benefitical in your opinion?

i wouldn't be a good person to advise on those courses as I know nothing about them. I can code in C/C++, Perl, various *nix scripts etc. I can get by with various flavours of SQL and associated APIs. But I haven't taken any certification in them. As regards web-development; yeah I could throw together a functional site with validating (X)Html, either static or dynamic via CSS and Php/CGI but I'm no guru. Again, I have no formal training or experience so I don't know about certifications.

Gavin shels wrote: »

It's actually odd, I find using PHP, HTML, CSS, Javascript, etc... easy enough but once I have to sit down to do Java or C++ I just can't get it together.

Can I ask, when you are using these languages, are you writing them yourself of using some kind of special WYSIWYG editor. I don't know much about the likes of dreamweaver etc. Anything I've ever done has been with a plain text editor. There are people that make good livings from knowing how to use those WYSIWYG tools properly. They can make "fancy" and "flashy" websites without knowing too much about what's going on under the hood or knowing what a DTD even stands for. They would be more "artisitic" then "technological" people. I'm just asking because the reason you might be ok with working with those codes might be the fact that you might be just using some kind of "drag and drop" kind of generator without having to actually fully write or debug it yourself. There used to be a W3CSchools website that had some decent introductory material for web development that you could look at. As I said, it's not my work so there are plenty of people far more qualified than me to advise you. They are just a few things i picked up over the years for my own self interest. Maybe you don't need to know what's going on underneath in an average web development job. I'm sure there are web developers who will read this and can answer that for you.

brucebanner

Hey guys thought I'd throw my query in here too.
Similiar position to OP here,finished my degree but not too keen programming.
I was thinking of a 9 month internship in IT Administration maybe.
It seems one important aspect is windows server something which I'm not entirely knowledgeable on,at a guess would it something simliar to an internal network which runs within a business where the users are split into different groups and each group has different privileges/rights?
Now thats probably only a small part of but it does say training will be provided,also I thinking of trying to attain additional IT cert,maybe the MCSA?
Any direction appreciated

T-K-O

Hey bruce

I took an internship to gain that experience. My advice, apply for jobs and internships. If you get the internship you can gain experience while looking for full time work. It's win win if you are unemployed or looking to get into. I.T

brucebanner

Ya I'm just a bit worried even applying for it as the emphasis seems alot on windows server,sql server and sharepoint server where weren't really a focus of my course.
Even though it says training will provided and I reckon I pick things up pretty fast I'd still like to know as much as possible about the above before I apply.
Actually would anyone be able to recommend some sites on them?

Mr. Loverman

I've never used Sharepoint, but Windows Server and SQL Server are very easy to use. Don't get stressed about them.

BailMeOut

There is a whole industry of jobs where a computer science degree would be very beneficial but where you would need only basic programming skills in the traditional languages. I am thinking about the big ERP/CRM companies and integrators, e.g. SAP, Peoplsoft (Oracle), SalesForce, Microsoft Dymanics, etc... where you get to build these applications around customer needs. From an IT perspective you get a bit pigeon holed since each one is unique and proprietary but you get a great insight into how businesses work.

brucebanner

Mr. Loverman wrote: »

I've never used Sharepoint, but Windows Server and SQL Server are very easy to use. Don't get stressed about them.

Well thats a relief thanks.
Also if any1 knows maybe a good video series(on youtube or something maybe?) on the any of the above I'd be much obliged.
I'm just reading up on them on a few different websites at the minute