An Introduction to Entry Level I.T.

Is this the right path for me?

Information Technology is for everyone, whether you’re a career changer, coming out of high school or college, you’re a tech enthusiast, you’re a single parent, young, old, maybe you’re someone who thrives in an evolving landscape, you love a challenge, you love money. ANYONE can learn the skills that it takes to become an I.T. professional, and that is the most important piece of information to know going into this.

To be even more clear, You don't have to be a nerd or a geek to become an IT PRO and if you're a career changer the I.T. field desperately seeks your past professional experience, even if that past professional experience is in a field that is completely UNRELATED to IT.

Technical skills can be trained and learned and as an IT professional this is something that you will continue to do throughout your career. There are so many different technologies in this world that it's impossible for anyone to become an expert in EVERYTHING. This should be reassuring to you, this means as someone entering the field of information technology you won't be expected to know everything, because it's impossible to know everything.

A lot of people seem to think you need to be a complete nerd and know everything about computers and tech to work in this field, that's simply not true. Having things like great soft skills, communication skills, troubleshooting skills, organization skills, the ability to think outside the box are all qualities we look for when hiring IT professionals. There's more to working in IT than just understanding the technology.

To really drive this home and sum up this section again: Anyone and everyone can work in the information technology field.

What is an entry-level I.T. role?  

It is the beginning of the world of information technology. Entry-level roles get you in the door. It’s your first step into the world of Information Technology. Entry-level roles have many components tied to them.  Information technology encompasses many things as a whole; computers, servers, networks, switches, mobile devices like your phones, tablets, smart devices, the internet of things (IOT), projectors, and printers... this list could go on and on. These are a few of the notable technologies that you will be introduced to in an entry level I.T. role. 

 Basically, If it plugs into something, you play.  Anything that is somewhat technology-related in any way, if it plugs in for power if it connects to the internet in some way. You will in some way support this in your career at some point.

The true meaning of entry-level I.T. role. No experience required. 

  Pro-Tip #1 - Many businesses ’ and organization’s job descriptions ask for overall job experience in IT or experience in specific applications and software. However, job descriptions are just wish lists. They are never going to find someone who meets every single one of those job descriptions or job requirements, there's about a 1% chance they find their perfect unicorn. 

Keep this in mind. Whether you meet these specific job description requirements or not, please apply for these jobs any way. You will often find that some of your skills or past experience will help you or give you an advantage towards getting an entry-level I.T. job. IGNORE THE ENTRY-LEVEL JOB DESCRIPTIONS THAT YOU SEE. APPLY FOR THOSE JOBS!!

What will you do in an entry-level I.T. role? 

Anything and/or everything. You will get a lot of different technology and issues thrown your way in an entry-level I.T. role. That’s why they are so valuable at getting your foot in the door in information technology. You will learn a lot about the IT field in an entry-level role, not just the different technologies but how organizations work, you'll learn about proper policies and procedures, you'll start to understand workflows of not only your job but others in your department as well(Pay attention to what the System Administrators and Network Administrators are doing). This creates a solid footing for you when you're looking at advancing your career, there's no better way to learn about some of the fundamentals of the different technologies you support than by getting hands-on with them any chance you can get.

Common Duties:

End-User Support – You will often find that you are answering phones, responding to e-mails, or responding to tickets within a ticketing system. You will do remote support; where you remote into somebody’s computer at another location and assist them. There is often on-site support where you travel to a different location or throughout the building and assist somebody one-on-one with issues they are having that can range from helping them with their email, fixing a broken application, resetting their passwords, etc.

Trouble Shooting Common Issues – This is a broad definition. There are many common issues within it that you will run across, i.e., hardware troubleshooting, software troubleshooting, printer troubleshooting, supporting enterprise-specific applications (specific applications built for the type of the business that you are in or maybe that specific business), e-mail support, web browsers troubleshooting, internet and LAN connectively troubleshooting, resetting passwords (active directory), supporting all operating systems and updates, a lot of support may be around Microsoft Office Suite, Google Suite. These are common duties in a nutshell and some of the duties you will run across in a day-to-day role in an entry-level I.T. role, but this can be very different from business to business. Some entry-level roles may be very project-specific. For instance, you may find a lot of job openings looking for help migrating systems/software/operating systems.

Who should work in entry-level I.T.?

This is a great question.  Do I actually need to get an entry-level I.T. role?

If you are looking to go down any of the I.T. professional routes.  An entry-level I.T. role can always be the right choice for you. Why? EXPERIENCE! Experience is king in the information technology field. Getting into an entry-level I.T. role is the easiest step in getting into an I.T. career. If you can step foot into an entry-level I.T. role and get experience that is going to be greatly beneficial toward you moving to the rights steps in achieving the goals that you want in this field. Entry-level I.T. experience is one of the most valuable assets you can have in I.T. 

With that in mind, You should not stay in an entry-level role for longer than 2-4 years, because you will stagnate. Entry-level I.T. is there to introduce you to how enterprise and business environments work. It's merely a stepping stone to the future in this field you want to have.

Can I skip entry-level I.T. roles?

Yes. There are a lot of dedicated and talented people out there who will blow people away and land jobs that are past entry-level. This requires a lot of work and dedication on your end to learn the skills of the job you want to have.

There are also amazing programs out there like NexGenT that offer real-world skill-based training that focuses on training people through project-based learning. For instance, the Network Engineer program at NexGenT takes students through a real-world project of standing up two entire networks from start to finish. Students will actually walk you through setting up an entire network stack from understanding the business's needs, considering business growth, and implement an entire strategy for your organization's needs, it's actually quite impressive. Students who go through NexGenT programs are more likely to land jobs past entry-level than any other program that's out there. Check out this link for more information: https://www.nexgent.com/it-career-questions-affiliate/?afmc=zachhill&utm_campaign=zachhill&utm_source=leaddyno&utm_medium=affiliate

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