Maximum PC

I am taking a Network Administration course at Stark State for 2 years, I start this August. I am wondering if anyone knows ball park what kind of salary range I might get with just the associate degree. I can transfer to other area colleges and finish for a bachelors. However I am just curious as to what salary I could expect with a 2 year degree. Here is the link to the courses if that would help any

CISCO Network Admin. Option

Available courses

It sounds like it just prepares me for CCNA which sucks, b/c I thought it got me certified for it. What do you guys think of the course...

DoEs aNyOnE eVeR cOmE tO tHiS sEcTiOn?? LoL

With a 2 year AS/CNS degree, expect to get a job at the Geek Squad at best. If you're lucky, $25-30K a year. And expect a lot of competition for said jobs.

Also, you're REALLY going to want to study above and beyond the simple curriculum in the AS program. The AS degree is mostly to get you familiar with the very basics of the IT/IS field. A lot of the real "skills" are things you're either going to have to pick up yourself, or on the job.

When I went through my AS, quite literally, I only cracked the textbooks long enough to skim the curriculum. After that, I spend a lot of time doing my own thing and breezing by on the tests.

Note, I did this because I already started at level well above the degree's curriculum. If you're starting off from "Well, I know how to start it up...", you're probably going to want to may MUCH closer attention. Even so, take the initiative and do some learning of things OUTSIDE of school too.

When they're teaching the fundamentals of programming, look into trying to pick up a programming language besides the RAD (Rapid Application Development..see 'Visual Basic') stuff they stick to in lots of places.

When they're teaching you networking and routing, look into Cisco IOS, various firewall solutions, etc.

I probably could have CLEP'ed out of a lot more classes than I did. But I used the time I "wasted" in those classes to research other things. Stuff I can actually use in the real world.

But always ALWAYS ALWAYS get the best possible grades you can in these classes.

Thanks for the reply, so if it was you would you go after a bachelors or get a so-so job, pick up some certs and learn on the side. I know pretty much right now, but I know most about how the hardware works and basic troubleshooting than networking. I read Mike M. A+ cert and understood it all. I know I could get A+ certified but I just dont wanna waste the money. All in all would you recommend bachelors or AS + certs probably CISCO certs but willing to get whatever I need for decent $$. I know some jobs will pay for all or part of your certs. Again thx for the reply I appreciate your input.

Get as much schooling as you can. If you can afford it, get certs too.

Just remember. Certs are temporary. Degrees are forever.

Start with your Associate's Degree. See if you can pick up an entry-level job in-field. If you like the field, continue on to your Bachelor's and look around for a better job.

One thing, no matter HOW much you hate a job, don't just up and quit. Always do the two-weeks notice thing. Also, if you can help it, avoid quitting one job before getting another.

Also, try to avoid frequent job-hopping, as it'll negatively impact your employability. If a reviewer sees you've jumped jobs 5 times in the last 4 years, it'd going to look funny at best.

I'm not saying stay in a job you hate. Just don't make a habit of dropping a job just because you don't happen to like it this week.

Also, save every penny you can!

View the next couple years as enforced hermitage so that you can enjoy yourself later on. I've seen too many people "party hearty" during their school days, and then struggle to pay off loans and have a life afterwards.

If you can save $1000/year over the next three to four years (about the time it'll take you to get your Bachelor's), that'll give you $4000 to begin making loan repayments when you get out of school (or can pay down some of the loan amounts before you get out). And before you say that that sounds like a lot of money, remember, you'll probably get that back when filing for income-tax alone. Also remember that school loan repayments are factored into your income tax breaks as well.

Done right, you could go from having a 20-year loan repayment schedule to having a 10-15 year schedule. And if you go crazy, a 5-10 year repayment schedule.

Associates along with A+, Net+ and Cisco or Microsoft is a good place to start! All the above plus experience in IT, landed me a mighty fine paying job...great shift and I am very happy. Right now I'm making 60k+ with overtime, oncall and shift diff


Anilat3r said: "I know I could get A+ certified but I just dont wanna waste the money. "

Well prove it!!! What's the big deal??? Only 125 bucks....
haha your employer is not going to want to waste the money hiring you if you can't prove that you are qualified for the job.

Seriouly sit down and evaluate your "net worth" before job hunting and settling for the first offer. Go over your resume thoroughly b/c the competition in the IT industry is very tough so you need to get all the education, certification and experience you can under your belt before you take the next leap.
Start investing in your future now, even if it requires passing an exam you know you can pass. I've seen HR toss resumes aside, if person A has certs and Person B does NOT!
You need to bring to the table more knowledge and experience than your competition or you will quickly find yourself unemployed.
If you are starting out with education alone and NO experience whatsoever then yes it will be difficult to earn over 40,000/yr. Take an entry level job even if its not the dream job you always wanted. The key is to break the "no experience" barrier by taking what you can get at first.
Then when you feel you are getting to the next level, (don't get too comfortable) move on. The right job will come when its meant to be but never stop looking. Keep a fresh book of contacts.
BTW,
Do not listen to the nay-sayers that claim your earning potential is limited to only 30k starting out. They're either not searching hard enough or have settled way too early and they're just happy collecting a small paycheck.

You and only you can control your starting salary through negotiation during your interview and how you can sell your skills to your employer. If you can convince your employer that you would truly be the most valuable employee on the team then 50k+ is possible.

By working hard towards certs, education and most importantly practical experience you can achieve success fairly easily in the IT field!!!
If you do have over 5 yrs of experience plus a college degree along with a compilation of IT certs from some of the popluar vendors like MS, Cisco and CompTIA you can really WOW your prospective employer.
That's when you can negotiate salaries anywhere from 60-80k but don't even attempt negotiation without experience.

If you enjoy learning and if you welcome a challenge then IT can be very rewarding. If on the other hand you are constantly late, lazy and no desire to learn then you will go nowhere.

The question should not be "what kind of salary will this get me?" because its not about the money, seems to be the only reason everyone under the sun wants a career in IT nowdays, your question should be rephrased to say-

"How can I achieve success in finding a rewarding job in the IT industry?

You would get more responses with the above b/c that topic headline you chose is rather drab and is totally missing the hook. The "hook" is part of another set of personal skills that you learn by becoming an effective communicator. That's a whole diferrent topic.

If you can quickly make a name for yourself and if you do your job well along with upholding the image of the company at the highest standard then you will surely get the recognition you deserve. That said, (wow long post) your pay will reflect.

wow thats already 2 threads in a row that it pro totally pwns and explains to a t....good friggen job, that was awesome. i do have an additional question though. Nurses and doctors dont use resumes, they use a Cv....what is the standard for IT? regular resume? is there a certain optimal format? how would you list a lot of the little side jobs/build ups/repair done on the side for such a document?

On top of what's been said already -

Experience trumps everything. If you're trying to jump into an extremely competitive field, like Networking, you'd be best served getting excellent grades and finding a method to put notches on the belt. Even looking to intern in the field a few hours a week (for free if necessary) gives you experience and almost as important... a credible professional reference (if you don't screw it up!)
We don't pay interns here. With the exception of one dumbass, every intern I've had has requested (and received, first earned) an excellent reference.

The hell they don't! The documentation of their skills and former employers may not be a quickie one-page resume like a lot of job shops would like. But that doesn't mean it's not a resume.

We have lots of doctors running around here. We accept resumes or CV's interchangeably for the most part.

A top notch resume is important, no more / no less than 2 pages is sufficient...just don't put any of the below

a) "Studying for CCIE" -when you're really playing BF2, no need to lie
b) anything that sounds g4y:Installed XP on my friend's computer
c) better left unsaid: Proficient in Hacking

CV's ummm NO not for IT so just stick with a good resume.