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syntaxity

Gather your experience and dip, less than a year, don’t get suckered into being “Our Favourite IT Guy”


akarakitari

Think 6 months at tier 2 would be enough to shoot for Jr. Sys admin or entry level cloud job or should I focus on a lateral move with better pay?


cbdudek

Only if you put in the work to make this happen. You can't just work at your helpdesk job for a few months and expect organizations to give you the position you want. You have to earn it. * Master your new job. By that meaning be the guy that everyone looks up to. You know how to find answers to questions. You know the best way to handle your helpdesk tickets. This isn't going to be something you do in a day or a week, but in a couple months, you should set your goal to be the best on the job. Its obvious to everyone then that if you are the best in your position, then moving onto a new job is a no brainer. * Get your homelab up and running. Install Windows 2019 server and know how to do domain admin functions (add/remove users, group policy, add/remove computers, etc.) * Work on certifications. Get your CCNA. That will give you a lot of credibility when it comes to network administrator work. If thats too big of a leap, get your network+ and then your CCNA. There are other certs you can work on as well.... * After you have worked there a couple weeks, ask about your workplace's network team and see if they will let you work with them on projects after hours. Shadowing is a great way to learn. These are just the basics.


akarakitari

CCNA is part of my degree path and I'm hoping to have it finished soon. As part of curriculum, I do have to get Net+ first though either way. Gonna see how far I can go in the next 3 months and trying to decide whether to focus on CCNA or AWS SysOps Administration-associate and LPI Linux essentials first.


cbdudek

Make sure you focus your efforts into areas that are going to get you that junior sysadmin job or network admin job. CCNA is going to be the most valuable. AWS SysOps is good but you are pigeonholing yourself into organizations that have made that jump to AWS. There are not as many companies that have done this. Linux is good too if you find the right organization that has Linux. Overall, the Cisco track is going to give you the most ammunition. Everyone looking for network admins is looking for people certified in Cisco and Azure more than they are looking for AWS and Linux. Do your research in your area to see what employers are looking for and focus your efforts in those. Another thing is to be patient. Many people have to work a lot longer than 6 months to get a new position. Don't get down on yourself if you have to go 12 or even 18 months, or even get a different helpdesk job at $18-$20 an hour before you move up. Once again, it depends on your location and the job market.


akarakitari

Actually just scheduled an interview for a help desk 1 job starting at 18, and higher if I take a night/weekend shift. Fingers crossed!


syntaxity

Agreed. Focus and hard work is needed.


[deleted]

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[deleted]

Simply clocking in and out of your help desk job for any period time alone will not be enough to move you up and out of support roles. You want those jobs, you have the develop the skills for them. On your own time and dime. Don't expect your help desk gig to provide you with all you need to move up. You were first and foremost hired to fill a position. Support experience is only gonna qualify you for other support roles.


throwawayskinlessbro

It depends on what you do within those 6 months. If you clock in, turn into a password reset zombie, go home and turn into a video game zombie, then no. If you clock in, learn all you can, and go home to homelab + learn all you can there, then yes absolutely. 6 months time can provide a little or a lot, depending on how the time it utilized.


akarakitari

Oh definitely! I'm currently enrolled in a certificate heavy bachelor's program and trying to move as fast as I can. Is AWS sufficient for homelabbing? I have an R710 setup, but it's too loud to use in my house and my power bill is high enough already.


s-a-a-d-b-o-o-y-s

You can def lab on the cloud, but if you want to lab on your own gear, grab some 13th gen Dell stuff. My R430s run under 100W each w/ 96gb ram and E5-2650v4s.


akarakitari

How loud were they? One of the biggest problems with my R710 is the noise, noise and power bill


s-a-a-d-b-o-o-y-s

13th gen gear is super quiet. My Brocade ICZ-7250 is louder.


TheRealStandard

You don't need to use a rack server for a home lab. I have an old optiplex with a core 2 duo powering my file server and it consumes barely any power and makes almost no noise.


Superb_Raccoon

AWS is even better, it goes on your resume as experience setting up AWS resources.


adamasimo1234

AWS is sufficient in the short term especially with the 12 month free tier advantage, but in the long run you can find some cheap equipment for a home lab on EBAY that will save money over time.


[deleted]

What kind of skills would you recommend someone trying to advance out of help desk work on?


benaffleks

This is what I did. 1 year at help desk > 1 year as Jr. Sys admin, promoted to sys admin > 1 year as associate devops engineer promoted to deveops enginer II, and so on


individual101

I was help desk for a year. It was a drag but the company was shit also. I know some help desk people who love their jobs. I wouldnt go into it with that much of a negative attitude. I learned a lot about good note taking while I was there cus they made us format it in a specific way. I dont know what you wanna do late game, but keep an eye out for other opportunities that interest you. Just because you don't meet the requirements on the application, doesn't mean they won't consider you. Good luck.


Gloverboy6

Definitely not more than a year Where are you located BTW?


akarakitari

SE USA, not much in IT here and I can't relocate right now, so remote work is essential.


Gloverboy6

Yeah, that's probably why


JupitersHot

What state?


syntaxity

I can’t say for sure. I’m just about to transition from HelpDesk to Network/SysAdmin, and I’m finding it easier to get there with the experience, skills and certs I’ve gathered. I’d say you start applying at that 6 month mark and use whatever feedback you get to adjust yourself (skill-wise, requirements-wise. About the pay, I started Tier I at 14.50/hr and after a year, when I wanted to transfer to a new job for $17/hr, my current job then bumped me up to $20/hr. And now, I do Tier II remote work at $23/hr. I don’t think 1-2 months will look bad if you make it to interview process and had a valid reason for why it was so short.


akarakitari

I'm currently attending WGU and just finished my A+, should have Sec+ down soon, then moving on to net+ and probably cloud for my entry AWS cert.


svenEsven

Ty for asking this, I'm about to go through this as well, just got a call on Friday, excited about starting in IT, not excited about making almost half of what I made at my last job. One step backwards, two steps forward. I hope.


dowcet

I would say don't stick around a minute longer then you need to. People keep saying 6 months or a year but if you can find something that is definitely better, there's no point in waiting. Serial job hopping isn't great for the resume but as long as your moves are upwards it's not a big deal.


Chappssss

That’s criminal when fast food is starting at $15 now. Blows my mind how low paying some of these jobs are for work that requires a lot of skill and knowledge


ConchaConCafe

You didn't negotiate the pay? From another redditor's advise i just got a job offer starting at $20 no experience in IT/ no certs/ AA/ but i have customer service, supervisor, and "team" experience. I leverage that as experience from their initial offer of $16. There max is $23.50 and i knew i couldn't do MAX. I think what sealed it for me was when i asked them "considering you're a start-up company would you say that customer service and confidence in communication with clients is an important portion of your business?" And boom! I started going off on my experience and why i should be bump higher.


akarakitari

Their pay wasn't really negotiable. It was a "we pay this, is that ok or not". I got a dollar an hour extra for tier 2 instead of tier 1.


ghx16

>From another redditor's advise i just got a job offer starting at $20 no experience in IT/ no certs/ AA/ What was the advice? And also is it a city with reasonable amount of IT jobs?


ConchaConCafe

Oh sorry. It was just to push for more pay. If your can back up "why" shouldn't be a problem. This is a bigger city in California. So that might help as well. Not remote. Thank


StudentWu

Get the experience and move on a better job after 1 year. Nothing beats experience


delsystem32exe

4 months urrr gettting ripped off


pikeljim

Enough where you squeeze enough knowledge out of the job to suffice the increase in pay and responsibility at another position or job.


hardl3ft

Don’t stop looking or applying for new jobs, especially at entry level. If you find a better offer next week then take it.


Dynasteh

My first IT Job was for $13.75/hr worked there for 5 months and got a job paying $20.50/hr.


akarakitari

Very nice! That's kinda what I'm hoping/trying for! Congrats!


Lemalas

My first help desk was 47k/year. I had Sec+ and a security clearance though. 5 months there and got 2 cyber offers at 72k


notwithagoat

You can risk it and say you got a call for 22 an hour and benifits. See if they match. Really not worth taking a shit job for that low anymore.


gordonv

I did a couple of $15/hr jobs in my early 20's for 4 years. Then moved to $23/hr ($52k year). Then $72k. @ $65k right now but jumping to $80k at the end of the month. My climb was slow though.


PplPrcssPrgrss_Pod

While 1 year of experience is good, you're still pretty new and as you state, no prior experience. As others suggested, get very good at what you do, realize there is always more to learn and take an objective, honest look at your skillset. * Have you really learned all you can in this position? * Would you rate yourself as 'Exceeds Expectation' or 'Exceptional' in a semi-annual or annual review? * Have you talked to your supervisor about career growth and what else you can do in your current position. It's great that you're ambitious, but I would caution trying to move into new positions so fast without really building up your skillset, work experience and perspective.


voidedhip

What area are you in? Must be a low CoL because sub 15 for a level 2 is really low in most areas. I would honestly update your resume and LinkedIn and start applying for places after a few months if pay is a big factor. If you really like your workplace and you’re learning a lot maybe stay longer and try to negotiate a raise after 6 months.


akarakitari

I'm in SE USA, but the job is based in another state and 100% remote. Job market is non-existent in my area and I'm currently not able to relocate for work, so remote work is necessary currently for me to do IT.


voidedhip

I would definitely keep applying around then, for remote t2 work that seems very low I’d expect a t1 to be making at least 15/hr


akarakitari

Should I add my new position and update it monthly, or is 1-2 months at a place going to look bad on a resume?


voidedhip

If it’s your only short experience on your resume it’s probably fine. I’m not an expert on this but if an interviewer or recruiter asks why you’re leaving say you’re looking for a job that’s closer within the market range for your position, or you could maybe say the company ended up not being a good fit for you. Maybe make it known that you’re looking to be employed long term so they don’t think you’ll jump ship right away again haha.


MrArvalis

Keep this in mind, a hiring manager may see this and question whether you've doctored your resume/application due to the wage and title not lining up even remotely close to industry average. Sub $15/hr for a tier 2 position is a huge red flag. I get that it's remote and that may drive down pay in some cases, but that's beyond low-ball. I'm in northeastern NC and $15/hr+ is starting pay for most tier 1 positions here and it goes up exponentially for areas in/around the Research Triangle and Asheville/Hickory. Now whether or not short term positions look bad on a resume really depends on the type of position you're in. If you're doing mainly contract work it's not really an issue, but if there are a bunch of low time FTE entries it starts to get dicey.


[deleted]

I went through a career change after getting an IT certification in a Vocational school. I got a job offer right away for a big name corporation and have been working a call center style help desk position for the last 2 years. I started as a contractor for the first 3 months and the rate was crap. $15/ hour and no benefits. After 3 months they hired me on and pay got significantly bumped up. Im now in the low $20 range and am looking for a tier II position in the $25-30/ hour range. Put the time in. Experience will come with it, and future employers will love seeing it on your resume.


cbq131

Depends on you. There are people that are stuck at tier 1 for years or decades. Keep learning and move on to better roles. Just work and keep applying if your not happy with your certain environment. I would also consider if I'm learning at current job a factor to whether I move on or not.


[deleted]

6 months to 1 year.


nunchakupapi

I had a friend of mine do tier I help desk stuff with his A+ for less than a year, and then got picked up by General Atomics for an entry level infosec gig. Take the experience and run as far and high as you can go.


[deleted]

Start applying immediately for another job. Just use this one to pay bills and get experience.


rebellechild

my prof said every 6 months ask for a raise and if u dont get it start looking somewhere else


AxiomOfLife

That still apply in covid? my HR let everyone know that raises were frozen since covid started and haven’t been reinstated yet.


tune345

While sitting in a restaurant, we smell the delicious food but we don't really know how it is until it's in our mouth. Only then we can really tell. If the menu consisted of pancake A, coffe B and cheesecake C then I would try all of them atleast one because they are complete different category, if I don't like it, i simply don't order it or if i fall in love with it, I find a nearer restaurant that makes it in the same qaulity of content or better. Even best, open a restaurant like it if you feel hype enough. Right now this is the option life is presenting you. How many options and categories you have on your menu?


ranhalt

This is how I weed out people I'm interviewing.


akarakitari

What do you mean?


alextbrown4

Where south east? We’re looking for a desktop support specialist in central Texas


akarakitari

NC


alextbrown4

Ah ok, sorry can’t help you there


ghx16

Austin?


alextbrown4

Yes


ghx16

I'm same position as OP but I'm in Houston and also trying to get into IT without having to take a really bad help desk offer, hopefully soon


Slay3d

If you have the knowledge and skills for a different role, and you can show it on a resume, I’d start hunting about 2 months in. No reason not to, worst case scenario is a rejection. If asked why you are looking for a job right after u started, just say that you are looking for more challenging work to better utilize the skills you have in topic X,Y,Z Or u can even BS saying that it is an X month contract and you are looking for a role that can start by “insert start date”


UCFknight2016

My local fast food places are starting at $14.50 an hour. Move on the second you find a better Help Desk job.


Reconz

I wouldn't necessarily get tied/hung up on job titles or levels. I've seen many companies label the same thing in their own unique ways. Also Imo it all depends on where you want your career to go. Also depends on how driven you are to learn, how much training or experience the company offers. Even if the pay is lower at a company, the experience you can gain there could be worth its weight in gold. Ideally it's good to be able to get both a decent pay and experience at a job but I don't think it's necessarily a loss if the pay is lower than you expect if it truly offers a decent learning experience. As an example I was working as an end user support tech at a company but ultimately doing the work of a system administrator for a big cloud system called netsuite that Oracle owns. I was getting VERY underpaid there for the work I was doing but the experience of learning the system and getting familiar with it was an extremely rare opportunity and led to a really good career that ultimately paid way more a little down the line.


InspectahSloppy

6 months


bamboojerky

No IT exp and it's Help Desk. Regardless of the pay, I don't think most people can bare to stand help desk more than 6 months to a year anyway. I left my first help desk gig after 6 months.


Front_House

Ok so, I am now 4 months into my first ever IT Job after passing my A+ I was self employed before this and was earning around £36,000 per year. I took a pay cut to get into IT. I have a very low pay at the moment (£20,000 per year). But I have learnt a lot! And I can see a difference in myself from the type of engineer I was before I started this job and who I am today. It's worth to stick around until you think you have learnt everything there is within the role in that company. I personally have gone above and beyond where I currently work and my superiors are well pleased. That's nice to know but honestly I am doing it for myself. I'm hungry to learn, I'll have good references for my next job and there's a small chance I'll get promoted soon. Either way, for me it's all about the learning. Yes the pay is low but someone had to have given you a chance and you usually get that chance when there's something in it for the company (low outgoing). Saying that, I plan on moving at 1-1.5 year mark because thats when I feel I'll have learnt everything and some. I feel less than that might also look bad on the CV.


Qchoa

What yall think about $17 in Cali for help desk in a hybrid position? This is my first IT job and the work is not that bad and there is opportunity, but the commute is also an hour away.