You want to get a job in the Information Technology (IT) sector, but you don’t know where to begin. What kind of course can you take to cover all the learning you’ll need? What kind of training will be the best investment of your time? Which IT skills should you focus on? Over our next two blog posts we will break down everything you need to do in order to get your dream IT job.
Don’t worry about your degree
Many people assume they don’t have the training or education necessary to start a career in IT, but that is rarely the case. Whether your college degree is in communications, art, business, information systems, or even if you don’t have a college degree, you are still a good candidate to begin working in IT. Information Technology has a broad scope, and it includes everything from coding, to marketing, to finance and more.
You have two great options to get into the IT industry. First, you can start from the bottom. In other words, you can get an entry level IT job doing something in the customer service department where you would field phone calls from customers. You will be answering questions, providing account information, and directing calls to the right departments. While this job is not the most glamorous or the highest paying, it forces you to learn the “ins and outs” of the business and how customer service works. You gain an intimate understanding of how to best answer technological questions as you help customers who come to you for answers. The best customer service representatives always move up in their field.
The second option is to invest your time in learning IT. You can do this by taking online IT training courses or by joining an in-depth coding bootcamp. These courses take only a few months to work through, and you finish with all the IT skills needed to land your next great gig.
Get IT certified
This step is closely related to the previous step, but you need to get certified to work in the IT field. There are myriad certifications you can pursue, but these five are the most common IT certifications:
- Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA)
- CompTIA A+ Technician
- Network +
- Certified Information System Security Professional (CISSP)
- Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE)
There are more IT certifications you could pursue, including certifications for Apple, Linux, and more, but these first five should get you started on the right path to IT job opportunities. Some of these certifications can be quite difficult to attain, so the sooner you begin working on them, the faster you will be able to get a great IT job.
Transform your resume
As you work on your IT certifications and complete your learning, you begin to transform your resume. You have to convince someone to hire you and it won’t be possible without an updated resume.
Since you want to begin a career in IT, your resume should reflect that. There are a lot of resume templates you could choose from, and they are sufficient to get the job done in most cases. However, if you really want to “wow” your next boss, try creating your own resume from scratch. You can use multiple different Microsoft or Adobe applications to create a stellar resume that screams “IT professional” in your next interview. Just look up a few different IT resume templates and pull inspiration from them to create a personalized version you love.
As you create your resume, keep in mind that you will need to leave space for your resume to grow. Your resume should be a dynamic document that is always changing. Every time you complete a new IT certification, you should add it to your resume. It would also be wise to make slight changes to your resume each time you apply for a different IT job. The changes don’t need to be drastic, but it would be wise to change the color scheme to match the color scheme of the company where you are applying. These small changes go a long way for hiring managers and you will stick out from the crowd of IT professionals vying for the same position.
Start learning with us!
Here at Ascend Education, our passion is to help IT professionals grow into the position of their dreams. We offer many IT certifications through our online learning platform where you can access IT courses from your own home.
We hate that many organizations force you to learn at THEIR pace. That’s why our industry-built curriculum can be taken at your own pace without the old textbooks and insanely high prices. Plus, our virtual labs allow you to actually apply the things you are learning before taking the certification exams, so you can go into the exam with all the confidence of an IT professional.
If you are ready to launch your career in IT, click the link below to check out our classes and get certified today.
