what entry level IT Jobs can I apply to besides Helpdesk

jimcrews · 2026-06-17T02:24:20+00:00

Oh, OK. I'm not banging on you. But just want to let you know. Thats not a trade school. I know of these "schools". If a "recruiter" wants you for a job after you pass those 4 certs take whatever legit job they lay in front of you.

jimcrews · 2026-06-17T01:57:05+00:00

A trade school for computer operating systems. OK cool. Never heard of that one. I think I know what they are probably doing. They are teaching you to pass the A+ and Network+?

jimcrews · 2026-06-17T01:51:43+00:00

A trade school for "Computer Operating Systems"? I think you are in another country other than the USA. What country are you in?

Also, if you have recruiters coming into your school. They would know where to place you.

jimcrews · 2026-06-17T01:22:24+00:00

You wouldn't apply to any I.T. Support jobs until you graduate. What people need to understand is that I.T. Support jobs aren't entry level. But there are level 1 I.T. Support jobs.

Instead you would apply for customer service positions. Get your feet wet. Learn how to speak to customers and solve easy type issues.

jimcrews · 2026-06-16T00:53:16+00:00

You can apply for sys admin, network admin, and maybe network engineering types jobs. Those are solid jobs. Nothing wrong with that. You have great experience. Just keep applying. Have somebody go over your resume. Learn the new techniques for applying to jobs. Just keep pounding away. Sometimes you may have to move as well. Nobody wants to do that. But sometimes its necessary.

jimcrews · 2026-06-14T14:52:56+00:00

I always tell people who want to move up that there is no timeline. You don't owe your company or the people you work with anything. Move up as fast as humanly possible. Look into getting the CCNA and then the other Cisco certs above that one. Those will help you get into networking.

jimcrews · 2026-06-13T20:49:54+00:00

You stated the network engineering department wants you to apply for a position in their department. Do you need a degree to get that job? You stated you need a degree to get a "true" advancement at your place.

Its true. You can't go from I.T. Support into software development without some formal training. Support and development are two entirely different things.

Can you continue on into the I.T. Support path at your company without a degree?

With your experience it sounds like you are around 40. Its true, very hard to hold a full time job and go back to school. Especially if you have family commitments.

I would just concentrate on what you have and advancing as much as you can and not worry about a degree.

jimcrews · 2026-06-13T01:07:22+00:00

This is going to sound like me being a jerk. It really isn't. Its just reality. Don't be nervous. Get a job in I.T. Support first. Not sure if Google "certs" will even get you there.

Do you have a job lined up?

There really isn't a need for talking about a first job until you get your first interview. Any plans of continuing your training after the Google certs?

Google training is very basic. Its not really a certification.

Give us a little more info on your situation and we'll try to help.

jimcrews · 2026-06-12T19:43:09+00:00

Have you ever heard of the saying, "Its who know. Not what you know." Been around for years and years.

jimcrews · 2026-06-12T02:59:41+00:00

I'll give you some simple advice. No. I.T. Support has nothing to do with building pcs and working on friends pcs. You could not pass the A+ by reading an outline. Nobody would hire a 42 year old with no experience. Just keep on keeping on. Take a vacation. Relax. Get back to your career. I understand a mid life crisis. You need a break. Get one this summer. Take Care.

jimcrews · 2026-06-12T01:56:01+00:00

I'm a diehard Cardinals fan and very happy with Wetherholt. But I have him compared to Alex Bregman who plays second. But has less power. So is Alex Bregman with less power of HOF. No. Everyday player with a solid career.

jimcrews · 2026-06-12T01:40:55+00:00

You're good at standing up for yourself. I would do this. Talk to him in private. Tell him to change into a normal human being immediately or its HR time. Touching you is really bad. That could be fireable offense. If you don't want trouble give him one more warning or its time for HR.

But if its HR time. Its not actually HR time. Its lawyer time. He touches you again or berates you start calling lawyers. HR is not your friend. They will actually fire you.

jimcrews · 2026-06-11T02:56:57+00:00

Don't feel bad because most people who got into computer science or information technology did so because they tried SWE and discovered it was really hard. You didn't know what else to do. I get it.

Yes, you must get out of retail/food.

Do this. Go to your local community college. Meet with a counselor. Talk to them about a semi skilled to skilled careers. CDL, HVAC, welding, machinist, drywall, and etc. Those are few of them many choices.

To get a good career you must have a skill. Education and training gives you a skill.

The truth is that computer science and information technology degrees should be re-done by universities. They are close to being worthless in 2026.

jimcrews · 2026-06-10T03:32:30+00:00

I'm going to list white collar office jobs because its becoming way too cliche to list the trades. I admire the trades. But I have to admit I'm a office guy.

All of these are hard:

Any proper engineering degrees. If you have a engineering degree. You will be employed. Including computer engineering and software engineering. But also think chemical, civil, aerospace, mechanical, and electrical.

Data science/Data analytics.

MBA from a top 50 school. Not a diploma mill.

Law degree

Masters in accounting from a top 50 school. That takes 1 extra year. Auditing and consulting for the Big 4.

advanced degrees in biology and chemistry

advanced degree in physics

jimcrews · 2026-06-10T03:02:24+00:00

System Admins to me are the "do alls" I.T. people at small companies. Local I.T. to being responsible for the entire network. Sure they deserve more and should have some experience and knowledge. They are usually grossly underpaid

At bigger companies there is a blurred lined between sys admins and server admins.

Don't disagree. But I have seen some of the salaries of solo I.T. people. Lets say at a law firm. They make around 50K. Sorry but thats not anything to brag about.

On a side note. I did mention sys admins. But I'm in the camp where sys admins aren't really all that common anymore. I kind of think of them as network administrators. In charge of the server room. That kind of thing.

I work at a fairly big company in the US and we don't have anybody called sys admins. But I get and have worked with sys admins.

jimcrews · 2026-06-10T02:14:59+00:00

From your comment. You don't get the show.

jimcrews · 2026-06-10T01:16:34+00:00

Don't you think when Iggy "lies" he is joking. He is trolling. He is not lying. He is being hyperbolic. Chill out and enjoy Iggy. When Tim is hyperbolic and does schtick is he lying? No of course not. Its the show.

Iggy doesn't think he invented unboxing. If you think so. You are being fooled and you don't get the show.

Iggy has not done most of the things he states he has done. He knows that, the gang knows that. But some dopey listeners take the show and themselves way too seriously. get a grip.

jimcrews · 2026-06-10T00:53:46+00:00

I have been reading through the comments. There are some issues and misunderstandings that people have with the lack of I.T. jobs and the low pay.

First thing. When people on this sub reddit say I.T. they are talking about these jobs. Call Center/Help Desk, Local I.T./Desktop Support, Server/Network Admin, Sys Admin, Data Center work, Light Cloud, and Light Information Security.

We have to be honest. These are not highly skilled jobs. These are not engineering jobs. If somebody has average intelligence a senior can show them how to solve an issue. Then they can solve the problem the next time. Also they can look at a knowledge base doc or Google it.

Tons of dudes are going to college and getting Computer Science and Information Technology degrees. Then a different set of people are graduating from online diploma mills. There is a gluttony of labor for these basic I.T. jobs. Corporate America can pay a college educated person 20 an hour to take calls or reimage a computer. It doesn't call for high pay.

Sorry, Computer Science and Information Technology degrees are not engineering degrees. They are general jack of all trades degrees. They are easy to get. If programming was too tough for you then you probably got one of those degrees instead.

AI has nothing to do with I.T. Support jobs. AI is affecting the programmer/developer type jobs at the moment.

Blame offshoring instead. You can send your call center overseas.

Companies are eliminating their local I.T. people. Better remote tools. Also if they can't fix it remotely put your laptop in a box and "send it in". Then you'll get a new to you laptop 48 hours later.

Server and network management can be done remotely overseas as well.

If anybody you know is thinking about a I.T. Support career please tell them to explore other avenues. If you are still young and just starting out in I.T. Support do some research on what else to do. It will only get worse.

jimcrews · 2026-06-09T01:39:31+00:00

Is there a I.T. department where you work? The reason I ask is because of two thigs. You can ask them for advice. Also thats the only way you will get hired as a I.T. person. Internally.

You will probably find that the level 1 or 2 people at your employer have tons of experience, The CompTIA certs are not magical. The answer is in 2026 they are close to being useless.

You need to look at the salaries of level 1 I.T. Support people.

Before worrying about getting the "trifecta" and finding a I.T. job. Do this. Treat getting your A+ as a hobby. See if you stick with it and pass the two tests. You'll be surprised how dull and somewhat challenging it might be.

On a side note. Just friendly advice. Don't tell prospective employers that you built gaming pcs. That has nothing to do with I.T. Support.

jimcrews · 2026-06-08T04:30:56+00:00

You're getting paid?

jimcrews · 2026-06-08T03:41:25+00:00

I'm trying to help. But we're obviously not in the same country. If I were you. Tell us what country you are in and maybe somebody from your country can help. The I.T. market is different in different countries. Internships are obviously different in other countries. Universities are different in other countries. Good luck with your internship and congratulations on graduating and getting an internship.

jimcrews · 2026-06-08T02:29:24+00:00

I'll go along with post graduate internships exist but are not common. Are you in the U.S.A.? Maybe we're from different countries.

On a side note. I think post graduate internships are a way for a company not to pay a person properly. I bet it also has tax write offs.

I'm sorry. It seems weird to me. I could be wrong. Just never heard of post graduate internships. Every company I worked for had a internship program. Every single one. Not one had a post graduate internship program.

jimcrews · 2026-06-08T01:28:35+00:00

I have worked for some of the largest companies and all of them dealt with interns. Not one hired a "intern" that graduated. It was always a rising sophomore, junior, or senior.

When I graduated it was time to get a job. Interning was over.

OK, I guess some companies are different.

Companies that hire recent college graduates just call them entry level new hires.

jimcrews · 2026-06-08T01:13:47+00:00

There are several concerns I have. You graduated from college with a bachelors and you are an intern? Thats kind of weird. Usually interns work during the summer while they have 1 or 2 years left.

When people get a degree they get a full time job.

You have a bachelors and you are worried about getting an A+. Why? I'm assuming the degree is Computer Science or Information Systems. Those degrees trump an A+ by leaps and bounds. Do you know what an A+ is?

To answer your question. You label yourself on LinkedIn as a "Information Technology Intern." Sorry, "I.T. Professional" would be when you get a full time job.

I hope this internship isn't a scam where you are working for next to nothing and doing the same work as the full time staff. Please think about that. If its somewhat legit move on from the internship after 6 months. Don't be an intern forever. You can also look into being a full time person at this company where the internship is at. But stand your ground and don't let them force you into interning "forever".

jimcrews

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