Need Advice

[thatotherdude24]

Hopefully this is the right spot for this....

I am a college student, well now former college student, graduated in May. I have 3 Associates degrees all in different areas of IT. Finding a job has been extremely difficult, everybody wants experience but nobody is willing to give it. Anyways, the college I attended was all Windows and that's what I was taught to use and administrate and so on. One thing I have found on many job postings especially anything education is they want somebody who has experience using Macs, last time I used one was in High School. Would it be worth it to get one and learn to use it?

I've been searching online to see how much Mac is used in business but so far I have only come up with one article where CBS switched to all Macs. Does anybody have any links or any info that would show how/if Macs are used in business?

I know Windows is still primary and just about always will be. But I'm curious if learning to use Mac will help my 'employability', I am a iPhone and iPad user. Or if not Mac can you recommend something that might help like Linux or if it's not worth learning Mac.

Thank you for the help.

 

[Just_Me_D]

In summary, the more experience you have, the better the opportunities. When I worked at City Hall, I saw Mac used 'primarily' in departments that dealt with publishing (both print & video).

 

[cardfan]

That's not exactly a new thing. Employers want experience, lots of graduates don't have any.

You're asking the wrong questions though. Buying a Mac isn't going to help you much. What would you do? Put "I bought a Mac" on your resume?

1. You could start your own business. There's hundreds of small businesses that need IT support. You'll have to sell yourself.

2. You could go back to school and get a Bachelors degree. And seek out internships. Networking should be one of your top priorities while you're a student. Yes, this means working for free sometimes to get experience and contacts. I majored in accounting (CPA/MBA) but I know CIS was an option too in business school. Plus you could always concentrate in technology even if you got an accounting degree. I've got a brother in-law that's done nothing but work for free for his school newspaper covering sports as he got his journalism degree. His name is out there now. Another brother, a lawyer, clerked for judges for free during his time at college. It's just what you do. I did two internships myself getting college credit but I also spent a lot of time in an academic fraternity for accountants, volunteering, etc, all for the purpose of being able to visit various accounting firms especially what was the Big 6 firms at the time. It paid off.

3. Or you'll just have to be more aggressive right now if the above two don't appeal. Send out letters and resumes to companies regardless of whether they've got a help wanted ad posted. Sell yourself. Find the gatekeepers or the right contacts at a company. Be creative with your resume (don't exaggerate or lie) but make sure it sells you. Do you provide support for anyone right now? Then you're a business (you may have little to no income from it, but you're a business). Create a name or use your own. Tell what you can do.

 

[Peligro911]

I know the feeling .. IT field is difficult to get in with.
They way I look at it the more you know on diff OS then the better chance you have.


Sent from my iPhone 5 from a galaxy far far away (in the USA ) using Tapatalk !

 

[Dryland]

One mistake I made when getting into IT was trying to be a "Jack of all Trades" which I ended up being a Master of None. Find your interest and pursue that avenue. When I started out, I learned on windows, most business, especially small businesses, use windows machines. Macs are employed in fields regarding arts.

Buying a Mac won't improve your resume. What will improve your resume is Certifications. Certifications hold more weight than degrees in the real world. You can hold a degree but without certs, some companies won't consider you at all. A+ Network+ CCNA are starters if you want to continue being a "Jack of All Trades."

 

[thatotherdude24]

That's not exactly a new thing. Employers want experience, lots of graduates don't have any.

You're asking the wrong questions though. Buying a Mac isn't going to help you much. What would you do? Put "I bought a Mac" on your resume?

1. You could start your own business. There's hundreds of small businesses that need IT support. You'll have to sell yourself.

2. You could go back to school and get a Bachelors degree. And seek out internships. Networking should be one of your top priorities while you're a student. Yes, this means working for free sometimes to get experience and contacts. I majored in accounting (CPA/MBA) but I know CIS was an option too in business school. Plus you could always concentrate in technology even if you got an accounting degree. I've got a brother in-law that's done nothing but work for free for his school newspaper covering sports as he got his journalism degree. His name is out there now. Another brother, a lawyer, clerked for judges for free during his time at college. It's just what you do. I did two internships myself getting college credit but I also spent a lot of time in an academic fraternity for accountants, volunteering, etc, all for the purpose of being able to visit various accounting firms especially what was the Big 6 firms at the time. It paid off.

3. Or you'll just have to be more aggressive right now if the above two don't appeal. Send out letters and resumes to companies regardless of whether they've got a help wanted ad posted. Sell yourself. Find the gatekeepers or the right contacts at a company. Be creative with your resume (don't exaggerate or lie) but make sure it sells you. Do you provide support for anyone right now? Then you're a business (you may have little to no income from it, but you're a business). Create a name or use your own. Tell what you can do.

There's a lot more to it than just being able to put down 'I bought a Mac'. There's a big difference between 'buying a Mac' and learning to use and support Macs. That's what I want to do, learn to use and support.

2. Going back to school isn't an option. The reason I don't already have a Bachelors is because of funds, it only took 3 years for all 3 associates. I have no problem working for free, I've don't internships. The places I did them at don't have spots for me. I volunteer at the company I work part time for now doing work and that's all it is.

3. I do tons of computer work for people in the area and family. It doesn't pay hardly anything at all. Most of the stuff I do is break and fix, some setting up networks. Most of the computers are Windows 7 and 8. A few Macs are starting to pop up more so that's why I'm asking if it would be helpful to learn them. Is their popularity in business growing?

 

[thatotherdude24]

One mistake I made when getting into IT was trying to be a "Jack of all Trades" which I ended up being a Master of None. Find your interest and pursue that avenue. When I started out, I learned on windows, most business, especially small businesses, use windows machines. Macs are employed in fields regarding arts.

Buying a Mac won't improve your resume. What will improve your resume is Certifications. Certifications hold more weight than degrees in the real world. You can hold a degree but without certs, some companies won't consider you at all. A+ Network+ CCNA are starters if you want to continue being a "Jack of All Trades."

A voice of reason.

I'm currently pursuing the A+ cert. One thing I think would be helpful but I am yet to find evidence is, is Mac usage in business growing?

 

[Dryland]

A voice of reason.

I'm currently pursuing the A+ cert. One thing I think would be helpful but I am yet to find evidence is, is Mac usage in business growing?

Mac usage is growing in business but will never surpass windows. Microsoft products have become the foundation of most businesses. Active directory, SQL, exchange, cannot be replaced by Mac. Focusing on servers is the best route as desktops will only land you a technical support position at best.

Again, find a focus. I cannot stress that enough.

 

[KaterinaM]

To be honest, I don't really get te question about Mac use in business. Do you, thatotherdude24, mean the technologies, soft or tasks performed on Mac?
Another thing I would like to say is that it is not so hard to enter IT sphere. There are really lots of startup (you may even make yours), lots of comapnies which hire IT specialist with good patential. Those who are looking for a job, they will find it. Just don't give up!

 

[sting7k]

One mistake I made when getting into IT was trying to be a "Jack of all Trades" which I ended up being a Master of None. Find your interest and pursue that avenue. When I started out, I learned on windows, most business, especially small businesses, use windows machines. Macs are employed in fields regarding arts.

Buying a Mac won't improve your resume. What will improve your resume is Certifications. Certifications hold more weight than degrees in the real world. You can hold a degree but without certs, some companies won't consider you at all. A+ Network+ CCNA are starters if you want to continue being a "Jack of All Trades."

Do this and you'll be fine. Taylor your resume to each job. Do not just send out the same one. Find a specific job that you have the skills to do right now. Get your foot in the door. Once you are on the job you can learn other skills like working with Macs. Don't start too big.

 

[anon(4698833)]

You're shooting yourself in the foot with these associates degrees...just FYI. People with solid under-graduate degrees (predominantly Bachelor's) are being passed over left and right for people who have completed graduate programs.

Will having experience with Macs and OSX help you some how? Sure, it could help anyone really. But it's not going to land you a job. It's not impossible to find work in the field with a scatter shot of degrees, but given the competition out there these days, you may want to put some focus into one of your fields and go back to school (if that is an option for you).

*edit - I just saw your comment about having no plans to go back to school because of the financial piece of it...all i can say is good luck to you, not to demoralize you or anything, but an associates degree is looked at with just a hair more legitimacy than a high school diploma these days. You're going to have to network like crazy and spend a few years developing relationships before a legitimate career offer is placed in your path I'm afraid.

 

[Dryland]

To be honest, I don't really get te question about Mac use in business. Do you, thatotherdude24, mean the technologies, soft or tasks performed on Mac?
Another thing I would like to say is that it is not so hard to enter IT sphere. There are really lots of startup (you may even make yours), lots of comapnies which hire IT specialist with good patential. Those who are looking for a job, they will find it. Just don't give up!

Actually, the IT industry is heavily saturated right now. Lots of individuals are looking for work only to find they have to take less pay because it's an employers market. More people are entering the IT arena, while processes are becoming more efficient, negating the need for additional labor, and often times making the existing labor unnecessary.

This is where being a Jack of all trades comes on handy. Makes you more rounded and valuable to an employer. A lot of getting your foot in the door depends on who you know also. Attend "geek meetings" sponsored by tech companies. This is a great way to meet friends and peers in the industry.

 

[thatotherdude24]

To be honest, I don't really get te question about Mac use in business. Do you, thatotherdude24, mean the technologies, soft or tasks performed on Mac?
Another thing I would like to say is that it is not so hard to enter IT sphere. There are really lots of startup (you may even make yours), lots of comapnies which hire IT specialist with good patential. Those who are looking for a job, they will find it. Just don't give up!

I was referring to for example in an office setting are Macs used as desktop computers for employees to do their jobs on.

My time will come, I've got a couple things in the works that have a good chance of working out that have come up within the past 2 days. I've always felt when somebody wants to learn more is a good trait to have.

 

[thatotherdude24]

You're shooting yourself in the foot with these associates degrees...just FYI. People with solid under-graduate degrees (predominantly Bachelor's) are being passed over left and right for people who have completed graduate programs.

Will having experience with Macs and OSX help you some how? Sure, it could help anyone really. But it's not going to land you a job. It's not impossible to find work in the field with a scatter shot of degrees, but given the competition out there these days, you may want to put some focus into one of your fields and go back to school (if that is an option for you).

*edit - I just saw your comment about having no plans to go back to school because of the financial piece of it...all i can say is good luck to you, not to demoralize you or anything, but an associates degree is looked at with just a hair more legitimacy than a high school diploma these days. You're going to have to network like crazy and spend a few years developing relationships before a legitimate career offer is placed in your path I'm afraid.

I am going to disagree with you here. This could have to do with where each of us is located. I have been searching for jobs like crazy, I haven't found one that requires anything more than a bachelors degree and some will even take experience instead of the degree. I have always been told you can't teach experience so that's probably where the experience instead of degree comes in.

Would a bachelors help me out more so than associates? Absolutely, but all I can do is the best I can do with the funds I have available to me. Eventually I do plan on going back for a bachelors when I can financially support it. We all have our own opinions and I respect yours but mine is different based on the research I have done and the people I have talked to.

 

[thatotherdude24]

Actually, the IT industry is heavily saturated right now. Lots of individuals are looking for work only to find they have to take less pay because it's an employers market. More people are entering the IT arena, while processes are becoming more efficient, negating the need for additional labor, and often times making the existing labor unnecessary.

This is where being a Jack of all trades comes on handy. Makes you more rounded and valuable to an employer. A lot of getting your foot in the door depends on who you know also. Attend "geek meetings" sponsored by tech companies. This is a great way to meet friends and peers in the industry.

That's why I was asking if OSX would be worth learning, to help make me more rounded. Although I have since learned by more research and making more contacts that Linux and the open source stuff is used a lot more than OSX so that would probably be a better option for me at this point.

 

[anon(4698833)]

I am going to disagree with you here. This could have to do with where each of us is located. I have been searching for jobs like crazy, I haven't found one that requires anything more than a bachelors degree and some will even take experience instead of the degree. I have always been told you can't teach experience so that's probably where the experience instead of degree comes in.

Would a bachelors help me out more so than associates? Absolutely, but all I can do is the best I can do with the funds I have available to me. Eventually I do plan on going back for a bachelors when I can financially support it. We all have our own opinions and I respect yours but mine is different based on the research I have done and the people I have talked to.

You can disagree with me all you want, I'm just giving you the reality of it. Of course people want experience, but in the job market, you have people with master's degrees fighting for the same lower end positions that (like you said) only "require" a bachelors degree. The job market in IT is so saturated that the entry level jobs are becoming a competitive realm for graduate students because they are trying to get their foot in the door and work their way up.

No offense, but looking at job requirements gives you no indication of the kinds of people who are going after such jobs. Job "requirements" are almost a moot point these days, because the market is creating low end competition. This is not an opinion my friend, this is fact...I've been out of college for almost a decade, and while that wasn't all that long ago, the times have drastically changed since then...back then, a person with a bachelors degree had the world opened up to them...it's just not the same now. I have dozens of associates with degrees in an IT field of some sort, and most of them have completed their graduate program in their field of choice...you should talk to people on that level to see how the job environment really is, and how relevant printed "requirements" really are, lol. It aint fair, but it is what it is.

You've very clearly specified that a bachelors is not an option right now for you...and that is totally understandable. Just don't confuse your inability to go after it with the degree being non-essential (which it is). The faster you learn that colleges are a business, the faster you'll realize how easy it is for them to sign you up for degree sets that they know won't get you the job you're expecting (or even slightly wanting), because it means you'll be back to further develop such degree in some way, and that means more money for the college...an Associates degree is an appetizer now.