I am currently a designer looking to change careers, you guessed it a “paper cert” How else can one get their foot in the door?
My certification track is A+, Network+ and CCNA. The classes I am taking are intense with plenty of lab time. Of course, I have no practical experience, just as I had none before becoming a designer, just as you had none before your first job. The extent of my networking knowledge is linking 3 home PCs together with a cheap router and switch.
“I would never let a paper cert. near my router.” Hey, fine with me. I’m not looking to start as a Sr. Network Associate and I am more than prepared to take a pay cut to start out. I swabbed decks and painted the side of a Naval Frigate for almost two years before I had enough seniority to assign someone else the job, hell it comes with the territory.
If I am assigned PC support, answering calls
…..Ring…Ring…<me>”PC support” <employee>“I can’t log on to the network.” <me>“Is your caps lock off?” <employee>“yes.” <me>“I will be right up.” <me>”hey numbskull, your freakin’ caps lock IS ON!” Then so be it.
Sorry about the ranting, but there are some, not all, that I guess are just “GODS” and have forgotten when they started out.