For some reasom, I’ve heard a lot of people talking lately about how they want to get into IT (either Information Systems or Computer Science), and some of them have been asking where to begin. Some want to start their own comapnies, some just want to get a job.
Know what you’re talking about
Getting a degree from a reputable school in IS or CS is a good start, along with reading books on web, net, machine technologies, etc. Certifications don’t hurt either, but they’re not as powerful as they used to be, due to many people getting certified when they obviously only studied for the test…
Define your goals, and stay focused daily
I’ve been telling people that while these things are very valuable, you need to define exactly what your goals are for your career in IT, and make a daily effort to reach for them. Literally. Do something, anything, every. single. day. Even if it’s reading the blogs of Java programmers when you want to be a Java programmer: Every. Day.
How I started
With my first job out of college, I told my employer that I wanted this job to be a learning process, and that I realized that I was new to the workforce. Also, that I was confident in my ability and desire to succeed.
They put me in a low-level job, (basically a helpdesk secretary) but allocated time and money my training. I went from an IT secretary to a Jr. Net Admin in a year, + a 15% raise, using what I learned in the training. In another year I was managing our Email server and acting as a co-Sr. network admin, plus another 15%.
A year later, it was made obvious there was nowhere else to go career-wise in that organization, so I switched org’s and now run my own WAN of 400 machines, split across 3 campuses, and am continuing to fight hard for the right to educate myself. (The current job is a blend of Sr. Net Admin and Director of Technology, although the official title is an unflattering ‘Technology Coordinator’)
I’m planning on continuing this level of progress, getting my master’s degree and gunning for a CIO job before 30. And it is a daily grind, let me tell you.
Sell out your pride for massive gains in the future
If you keep fighting, and have the will to succeed, look at a low-level job as an investment in your future. I’ll be 27 in 3 weeks, and am already have my own network to command, after being in the workforce for only 3 years. To get here, I probably put in at least 5 hours per week reading tutorials online, or tinkering with admin interfaces, just to try and be more knowledgeable about every technology I might want to control some day as a CIO. The ultimate goal is that I will have had some expirience and (at least) a small amount of knowledge about any technology I might have to deal with in my role as CIO.
Summary for the ‘just get a job’ argument
Getting any old job is good just to be doing something, but have a plan/goals, and ask yourself ‘what can I do TODAY to reach for my goals?’. For example, I’m reading up on XHTML, CSS and AJAX while I wait for my master’s degree course to begin. If you don’t have a job and want to be a programmer, find a job that can lead to that. If there aren’t any, get any job, retail, whatever, and study programming at night until a good ‘entrance ramp’ job opens up.
The key is to do something, anything, but also to make sure it’s in line with your ultimate goals. Make sure it’s moving you forward, and not a waste of your time in the long run. (Sometimes it will seem like a waste of time in the short run, such as a programmer working in retail, but look 3+ years down the road…even a small paycheck can buy used programming books…)
Finally, good luck to everyone!