16 year old looking for tips on how to start career in IT early...

[ItsTrenMan]

I am a sixteen year old with a extreme passion for anything IT... I have been trying to get advice for where to start, I have a significant skill set, I am a fast learner. I am looking for a way to get into the field early... I am not sure how, I have tried doing research and nothing pops up... (Or very little pops up) If anyone could give me advice that would be greatly appreciated... If not that is absoutely fine as well...

 

Thank you in advance

[seban]

6 minutes ago, ItsTrenMan said:

I am a sixteen year old with a extreme passion for anything IT... I have been trying to get advice for where to start, I have a significant skill set, I am a fast learner. I am looking for a way to get into the field early... I am not sure how, I have tried doing research and nothing pops up... (Or very little pops up) If anyone could give me advice that would be greatly appreciated... If not that is absoutely fine as well...

 

Thank you in advance

how are you so mentally balanced

[rcmaehl]

Any Generic Call Center/Customer Service Position -> IT Call Center -> IT Support Rep for a Specific Company -> Desktop Support Rep / Focused Support Rep

 

Alternatively

 

CompTIA A+ -> IT Call Center -> IT Support Rep for a Specific Company -> Desktop Support Rep / Focused Support Rep

[ajaxburger]

When I was your age (not too long ago, a few years) I did a lot of IT for friends and family and put myself in a good position for it with my school. Additionally, I was looking for low-level IT-related jobs at the time as well -- nothing crazy in-depth, just repair jobs, things of that nature.

 

A lot of it depends on where you want to go and how you want to get there. I had always planned on going to uni for computer science and I did for some time but between COVID and money issues I dropped out after my first year. From there I worked about a year and a half with a repair provider called uBreakiFix. This position gave me management experience on top of the certifications from Google, Samsung, Apple and WISE. If you find a company like UBIF, I'd recommend taking the chance. Professional, hands-on repair experience looks great on a resume and could help you figure out what you want to do as a career.

 

Currently, I've moved to a remote help desk position that pays considerably more and it just took some time and finding the right opportunities. You can also take courses through Google for $40/month (with the first month free) that give you various IT certs. I'd also look into A++, Network+ certs, things like that to get your path planned out. Feel free to ask me any questions if you'd like. Good luck!

[SpookyCitrus]

A lot of computer repair/ IT support shops do internships however most are unpaid. Otherwise continue your education, get the necessary certifications and finish school. 

[dkoudijs]

You can start to look for volunteer positions. This is a good way to get some experiance, while learning more than just IT skills. (Soft skills are just as important as hard skills).

I don't know your area (which is safe/fine) but an easy search online for volunteers noramlly brings up a large amount of hits.

Also pick a project you can do at home (make a webpage, do some iot coding, database design/use) or try to copy an existing easy project so you can compare a real product to yours. Helps to make something and see the outcome.

[rcmaehl]

Alternatively, if you live an a big city, look for Government sponsored projects. Here's an example:

 

https://www.techlouisville.org/

 

 

[MageTank]

31 minutes ago, rcmaehl said:

Any Generic Call Center/Customer Service Position -> IT Call Center -> IT Support Rep for a Specific Company -> Desktop Support Rep / Focused Support Rep

 

Alternatively

 

CompTIA A+ -> IT Call Center -> IT Support Rep for a Specific Company -> Desktop Support Rep / Focused Support Rep

This is exactly how I did it. Started off in a tech support call center then worked my way up to product & support engineer for my company. Sadly, finding a call center job at the age of 16 won't be easy as none of the ones I know about hire anyone under 18.

 

40 minutes ago, ItsTrenMan said:

I am a sixteen year old with a extreme passion for anything IT... I have been trying to get advice for where to start, I have a significant skill set, I am a fast learner. I am looking for a way to get into the field early... I am not sure how, I have tried doing research and nothing pops up... (Or very little pops up) If anyone could give me advice that would be greatly appreciated... If not that is absoutely fine as well...

 

Thank you in advance

Best advice I can give you is focus less on proving your tech knowledge and more on developing your social skills and relationships. When you get your foot in the door of a company, make yourself invaluable. Offer yourself for overtime, show up to work early as often as you can and do not compromise on the quality of work you offer. Eventually, people will take notice of your work ethic and opportunities will open up to you.

 

I've found that it doesn't matter how knowledgeable you are, no amount of knowledge or skill will make you desirable as an employee if you are insufferable to be around and have poor time management/are unreliable. I personally would rather hire someone in my department with little to no tech skill and teach them myself if they show a strong work ethic and desire to learn. 

 

One other big piece of advice is if you do receive an offer and it happens to be a job within the same field that you may not like, do not simply refuse it on principle. That is how you burn bridges and it's ignorant to do so in general. Give the opportunity a chance and see if it grows on you. At the very least, you gain a perspective for that role and a new found sense of respect for those that perform in that capacity. At best, you learn that you actually enjoy it, or that it leads to the position you actually desire in the company.

 

You are at an advantage by being passionate about the industry. Whatever you do, try to hold on to that for as long as you can. When you lose passion for what you do in life, you quickly become jaded and start to poison the well, so to speak. Part of what gets me through some of the more mundane and tedious tasks in my role is that I am genuinely passionate about the tech I get my hands on and in spite of the issues I face with the hardware I work with, I enjoy it at the end of the day. 

 

As for working at the age of 16, it's respectable, but I'd also advise enjoying your youth and lack of responsibility while you can. I've held a job in some form since the age of 12 and regret that to some extent. Plenty of summers I could have spent doing something far more entertaining. That, and the hours are terrible when you're under 18 anyways. There will be plenty of time to seek employment when you come of age. Unless you are looking for some pocket change or spending money (or your parents really want you out of the house), focus on honing your skills and developing your passion then hit the industry with full strength when its time.