Is MCSE and Cisco Networking the way to go In the States?
I took a fast track course in MCSE and Cisco networking in another land. I dont have a certificate in them yet, should I continue to pursue
something in it in Texas?
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For a network administrator or engineer they definitely will help you. You can get in the field without them but if you want to really move up you are going to need them. I do not hire senior level techs without them.
From what I’ve seen it seems that the MCSE is the most desirable of the two certifications you mention that are used by those companies that lack managers competent of evaluating talent. I’ve interviewed far too many certified idiots to take any certification seriously, I only consider their work experience and education before interviewing them.
jeepndd, well said. I started out in my tech career going down the cert path and got my MCSE only to find out that most the people going after the certs were morons and good at finding the answers to the test questions. They called them “paper MCSE’s”.
Anyone can study and pass a test. This is definitely not indicative of their aptitude behind a keyboard or console, or even more importantly not indicative of how they handle the common stressful/outage situations that frequently occur in the IT networking world.
It bothers me when people only look for certs when hiring. I will look at a candidate with experience and job history before a cert any day of the week.
Having said all that, if you don’t have any experience, a good place to start is by studying materials relative to your chosen field – such as the MSCE or CCNA type materials AND getting a low level job that will give you a chance to learn the stuff hands on.
Even better is if you can find a mentor who is good at teaching and has been there that will lead you through…
I started as a desktop support guy, went from that into NT Admin, from that into Cisco Switching admin, from that into Cisco Routing, from that into Cisco Security, and 15 years later I know them all well.
I definitely think going for IT Networking, be it the Microsoft/Server track or the Cisco/Network Engineering track are both great areas to go into, just don’t weigh the certs too heavily.