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In need of a new job, but not sure where to look
blakfeld
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Okay, so as I've mentioned in a few posts, I'm currently employed by Best Buy as a Geek Squad Agent. Kind of. I had a great job where I fixed computers, hung out with friends, and sold repair services. The catch was as it turns out I'm a fantastic salesmen, and at least a mediocre leader. I was slated for a senior spot as a tech, but the position got eliminated company wide. Fun. So instead they've decided to toss me on the sales floor and try to get me to rally our computers team together, and ultimately become a slightly overpaid salesmen. So in the past month I've gone from loving my job and looking forward to work, to fashioning a makeshift noose out of overpriced USB cables. I looked into transferring, but apparently "I'm too important of a resource to transfer." Lovely I guess.
So! I've decided to at least take a stab at moving on to something a little bit more in my career path, and try to find a IT position somewhere. At worst I figure there's no harm in tossing my resume out there and seeing what happens. The downside is I have no idea how to even begin applying for one. I've never applied for anywhere that wasn't some form of retail.
Some info on myself if it helps, I'm 21, have a year professional repair work, and roughly 2-3 years in some form of computer programming/web design. No degree, but that's in the works.
tl;dr 21 year old tech gets made into bitter salesmen, and would like to exit the retail world and apply for a few IT positions, but hasn't the slightest idea how to go about it, where to send his resume to, or even where to look.
So! I've decided to at least take a stab at moving on to something a little bit more in my career path, and try to find a IT position somewhere. At worst I figure there's no harm in tossing my resume out there and seeing what happens. The downside is I have no idea how to even begin applying for one. I've never applied for anywhere that wasn't some form of retail.
Some info on myself if it helps, I'm 21, have a year professional repair work, and roughly 2-3 years in some form of computer programming/web design. No degree, but that's in the works.
tl;dr 21 year old tech gets made into bitter salesmen, and would like to exit the retail world and apply for a few IT positions, but hasn't the slightest idea how to go about it, where to send his resume to, or even where to look.
blakfeld on
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look for software/hardware companies in your area. given your age you may be able to get your foot in the door as an intern possibly.
Steam
XBOX
It's an IT (only) job website for seekers and recruiters. I've not had good luck with Monster, so I never recommend it. In addition, the market seems to be ripe with the kind of job you are looking for, as long as you are willing to relocate to where the opportunity is. Even more so if you're willing to do contract work.
As far as how to get started, look for technical staffing/temp firms/consulting agencies. I have been in IT for 12 years now, and every job that I've had started with a consulting company that placed me somewhere on a temp-to-perm basis, where the client would "try me out" for about a year before hiring me on with them. It has worked out pretty well every time. There is always a bump in pay and benefits when you get hired on, and it is a nice feeling to know that you have "passed the test" and are now "part of the team".
Right now, I do desktop support for a large hospital system. The people are generally nice (doctors, nurses, etc) and the work is fine, not very challenging though. The only downside is since it is a hospital, when things break you have to jump and fix them RIGHT NOW. Also, I have to be on call for a week about every three months or so (rotates between the techs).
Otherwise, it's a pretty stable and decent paying job. I would advise you to look into healthcare IT. It's not going away anytime soon and will most likely only grow as hospitals upgrade and become more computer dependent.
Health care is a great suggestion. There are strict requirements regarding IT operations in a health care environment that aren't going away any time soon and money is poured into the implementation and management of the IT infrastructure that supports those requirements at quite a high rate. Also, three additional industries to look into are banking, insurance, and federal government. Very strict requirements that aren't going away. I've been doing INFOSEC work going on 14 years now and have only seen an increase in the amount of activity in the areas I've mentioned. There's good opportunity out there, even in the depressed economy, you just have to be smart about it and know where to look.
You won't get paid as much, but if you find one that has a mission you like it's worth it.
Depends what kind of work you want to do. Desktop support you're still talking A+ as a requirement (thought it is generally worthless in terms of knowledge gained these days), usually, and maybe some vendors specific cert/training (Microsoft, specifically, is usually spelled out).
Temp agencies are most likely going to be where you start for an IT position so don't be discouraged by that. I got laid off over a month ago and have been searching for a job myself. I recently got one through luck rather than searching. But I received numerous job interviews from postings I applied for on Craigslist. I also had a bit of luck with careerbuilder.
Monster is less than worthless.
I give this advise all the time. You can get a better, more resume useful job at a non-profit if you're willing and able to accept a salary that is lower than the for-profit world. It usually leads to a larger salary once you have cemented your experience with the non-profit.
Really, non-profits are the best experience/resume builders out there, and will lead to more income down the line.
I used to do IT at a hospital. I'm pretty sure one of our network engineers didn't have a formal degree and had basically just worked his way up through IT jobs at various employers, and I the systems analyst who I was hired to replace when she got promoted didn't have any sort of IT related degree (and possibly no degree when she started).
I'm going to sound like an utter fool, but for non-profit's and hospitals, how do I go about applying? Or even inquiring if there is a spot available? Should I just call and ask, or is that where temp agencies come into play?
Also, what kind of salary/hourly rate should I be looking for?
Depends on how the organization is hiring. Some hire all positions through a recruiting agency, some only accept resumes through their website, and some only accept hard copies of resumes sent via regular mail. Best thing to do would be to pick out the organizations you want to work for and give their HR department a call. Ask how you go about submitting a resume to be considered.
Depends on what kind of position it is, what company the job is with, where you are located, and your level of experience. There's really no way of giving a solid number unless we know all of those things. Check out some of the IT salary surveys that are floating around the web. Google shall be your guide.
I spent last night re-working my resume, now it's time to start the hunt!