IT Certifications
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Hello,
I am an IT student and really want to get CompTIA A+ certification. Since IT is a technical field, certifications do go a long way in showing your competence. Does anyone know if this is a good starting certification to get? I know it is an entry-level cert, and in the far future, I do plan to specialize in Information Security. I hope that this and having a bachelors degree in the future will help me to advanced in my career.
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I've got a few:
Comptia A+
CompTIA Network+
CompTIA Security+Cisco Certified Entry Networking Technician
Cisco Certified Networking Associate Routing and Switching
Cisco Certified Networking Associate Security
Cisco Certified Networking Associate Wireless
Cisco Certified Networking Associate Voice
Cisco Certified Networking Associate CollaborationCertified Wireless Technology Specialist
Certified Wireless Network Administrator -
Yeah, I started out with Comptia Network+ and the A+ which I did as self study courses around 16 years ago, I think I only did the exam for Network+ though. In themselves they are not what employers are looking for, some will be willing to consider taking you on apprenticeship/internship schemes and the like and possibly provide you with further training. They're also a good stepping stone into more advanced courses like the Cisco or MS Certification schemes.
As for me, I've been working in telecoms for the last 13 years (via a few helpdesk and installation engineer roles) and have gained further certification with the more specific technologies I work with.
One bit of advice I would give though is that I've found experience to be way more valuable both to you and to a potential employee. If it was a choice between studying for 200 hours or getting some hands on experience helping out in an unpaid job at a local charity or something along those lines I'd go for the latter as long as they'd be happy to give you a reference or give you a letter of recommendation when you find a paid role.
OK, I lied about one bit of advice, I've got another, getting into a paid job in the industry is the hard part, once you're in the IT industry at the bottom of the ladder it's then easier to move around and get the role you want in the IT sector… as long as you don't piss too many people off along the way as it's quite a small world.
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It's a great place to start especially if you don't have any IT credentials under your belt. Just keep in mind that the A+ and a degree could help you get a job, but it won't secure your job. For security, you'll eventually need to take the Security+ and possibly vendor-specific certifications to really "stick out" and stay relevant in the IT field. Like shez mentioned, experience, maybe in some to most circumstances, will trump education. Let's just say it's affected me more times than I would've liked:-\ Hang in there, you can do it ;)!
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Okay, thanks everyone for your feedback! I actually need the CompTIA A+ certification in order to gain access to some entry-level IT jobs/internships. My college doesn't have any support in obtaining the certifications (except from my current IT studies), so I basically have to study for the exam on my spare time and take it in a few months. I've already obtained an old computer system that I can dissect and learn from, hopefully that will help.