[olug] Finally, geek for a living

[shaughn at emosai.net]

It will be harder to get a job without schooling, but not impossible, the
last 3 jobs I have had have been well paid (for around here, and for a
18-22 year range) and dealing with the more hands on side of computers. I
didn't start at a help desk position, because the one I applied for is
only open to high school students going into the tech field.

I believe if you have enough real-world experience that the more
'friendly' places aren't going to mind if you have a degree or not.

or maybe i have no idea what i'm talking about... I just know what's in
grand island.

>
> On 1969-12-31 at 18:00:00 [-0600], you wrote:
>>
>> Sounds like you've got plenty of hands on for the basics.  I don't
>> really
>>
>>I'm not going to BS you though, without a diploma, or a certification it
>> will be much tougher for you to get a job.  No one hires someone at the
>> admin/engineer level without them having some sort of a proven track
>> record, whether that be job experience, school, or combination thereof.
>> Schooling is not there for the little piece of paper, it's there to give
>> you a boost when you go looking for a job by demonstrating to people
>> that
>> this person has at least had the opportunity to develop the basics of
>> the
>>
> Yes, I know I need some schooling, it's just not something I've been able
> to
> do recently, and I will expect certain things from any institution which
> were not met in my prior attempt. There are gaps I need to fill in that I
> either don't realise or need to spend time going over with an experienced
> person to learn them best. A lot of what they would hopefully pass-on to
> me
> is not in any dry old textbook anyway, but a product of the time they've
> spent working with and around these systems and others who do too.
>
> Instead of gas and textbooks, I invested my money in equipment and
> technical
> manuals. I have bought a wide range of hardware and set myself down and
> studied it and the system(s) that run on it. If I happened to get a
> machine
> that did not work properly, I considered that my next lesson and repaired
> it. I spent quite a while studying the differences in how they work, then
> started learning how to make them work together as best I could. I still
> have plenty to learn, but in this field I proabably always will!
>>
>> As much as they suck, everyone starts at the helpdesk.  That's where you
>> "earn your spurs" so to speak, and it weeds out the people with the real
>> aptitude for the job from the people who just think it'd be kind of neat
>> to
>> work with computers and make a lot of money.
>>
> I've got no problem with that, doing it on a partime basis already,
> although
> without the critical "I'm on the phone and need it fixed 10 minutes ago!"
> factor. Besides, who needs money!! 8^P
>
> Cale Lewis
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