Career Advice

[stockdn]

Hello everyone,

I'm not too sure if this is the best place to post this, so correct me if I'm in the wrong spot. However, I was wondering if any of you guys would have some advice for me. For context, I live in the US, in a small town in rural Ohio, so there isn't much going on here. Currently, I have a bachelors degree in Networking and Systems Administration and a bachelors degree in Cyber Security and I am currently pursuing my masters degree in Cyber Security online. I worked full time in IT at my university while I was going to school there, and I now have an IT job at a local company, so I have about 5-6 years of IT experience and I'm 23. I'm doing pretty well, however, not quite well enough to really live too comfortably in the current US economy and take risks. Where I'm struggling is finding something to focus on. I have been watching LTT for years and they're the reason I have made it as far as I have. However, because of this, everything interests me and I could see myself doing anything computer science related, so I casted my net really wide with my degrees so I have knowledge and experience in a wide variety of topics. So, now I'm struggling to really find what path to go down for a career. I could do cloud networking, hardware networking, something in cyber security, anything really. There aren't a whole lot of job opportunities where I live, so I can't really get anything too focused as there are no big companies around me, if I could find anything at all. It's pretty risky for me to move anywhere considering how expensive housing and even apartments are now. However, I can feel my interest and passion slowly slipping from me while I'm sitting and doing basic help desk tasks like updating documentation and troubleshooting printers and I want to leave basic IT before my passion and energy is just drained. I was just wondering if anyone would be willing to offer some advice.

Thank you.

[BillBill]

21 minutes ago, stockdn said:

Hello everyone,

I'm not too sure if this is the best place to post this, so correct me if I'm in the wrong spot. However, I was wondering if any of you guys would have some advice for me. For context, I live in the US, in a small town in rural Ohio, so there isn't much going on here. Currently, I have a bachelors degree in Networking and Systems Administration and a bachelors degree in Cyber Security and I am currently pursuing my masters degree in Cyber Security online. I worked full time in IT at my university while I was going to school there, and I now have an IT job at a local company, so I have about 5-6 years of IT experience and I'm 23. I'm doing pretty well, however, not quite well enough to really live too comfortably in the current US economy and take risks. Where I'm struggling is finding something to focus on. I have been watching LTT for years and they're the reason I have made it as far as I have. However, because of this, everything interests me and I could see myself doing anything computer science related, so I casted my net really wide with my degrees so I have knowledge and experience in a wide variety of topics. So, now I'm struggling to really find what path to go down for a career. I could do cloud networking, hardware networking, something in cyber security, anything really. There aren't a whole lot of job opportunities where I live, so I can't really get anything too focused as there are no big companies around me, if I could find anything at all. It's pretty risky for me to move anywhere considering how expensive housing and even apartments are now. However, I can feel my interest and passion slowly slipping from me while I'm sitting and doing basic help desk tasks like updating documentation and troubleshooting printers and I want to leave basic IT before my passion and energy is just drained. I was just wondering if anyone would be willing to offer some advice.

Thank you.

Build up more time at your current job. Your current job working in IT. That is very good for your resume and can provide a good job reference. Living in a small town less jobs less expenses. Big cities more pay more expenses. Finish your masters before anything. Having that on your resume would be impressive to your next employer. 

[SpookyCitrus]

I work in IT as well. In all honesty smaller cities and towns are harder for opportunities. If you want good opportunities you'd need to either move to where those companies or opportunities are or you can try to apply online, get the job before you move out there(some companies see it as a good thing if you're willing to relocate for the job).

 

What I've seen in the field. Experience is what matters, you're going to have to start lower and work up, even with most degrees and certificates. If you don't have actual experience outside of school, most people will still see you as fresh. Hands on, in the field experience is what people like to see. I've seen a few times where a company has hired someone based solely on experience, guys that really only have their certs and a high school diploma but have been in the field hands on for several years, get a job over someone with degrees who went to college for that same amount of time, but have limited on the job experience. As @BillBill said, since you're doing schooling finish it, get more experience and time down at your current job, if it's really not for you find something that is and stick with it, try to find a company you can move up in, or with multiple IT fields they handle. Employers like to see people who are loyal, the longer you work somewhere the better, job swapping typically looks poor to an employer. 

[voyager_]

I can understand interest for it is slipping but while you have 5-6 years it still only the basics and I hate to say it but at your age you are going to have a hard time getting what you want especially in the area you described. You may need to look at moving to a busier area or if you can find somewhere with an acceptable commute even if it will be a long drive. Your location will have a huge impact on what's available and for what you want to pursue those sort of companies tend to be in busier areas. It is FANTASTIC that you are still pursuing further education, you have me beat I was going for a computer science degree but the school merged and my financial aid got messed up in the process and I had to stop for a few years and when I could go back I looked at getting an associates in IT but found I could switch to drafting and finish significantly sooner. (In the end this worked out so much better) 

 

Don't be discouraged, it will take time to get where you want and if you are determined enough I'm sure you will get there. Keep doing what you're doing but start looking farther away and consider your options. I know moving is difficult, my wife and I moved halfway across the state when she found a new job that she liked and she has now been there for over 7 years and moved up. 

 

To stay interested maybe look into setting up a homelab and exploring your interests more, this will give you not only more experience but also it may help you decide what path you want to pursue. For being only 23 you are doing great, any field you start at the bottom and have to work up and sometimes the only way to do that is by switching jobs. Keep in mind if you switch too often it will look bad, it's something that we consider. One short job is easy to explain but several starts to look bad.

 

Good luck! find personal projects to keep you interested.

[wasab]

whatever you do, you probably wont find many opportunities at your rural town. tech hubs are all at the west coast, east coast, and the southern border states. 

[Donut417]

On 9/24/2024 at 12:27 PM, stockdn said:

I was just wondering if anyone would be willing to offer some advice.

You need to move or be willing to travel. Check out USAJobs.gov, it's where the government hires people and Cyber Security is a growing concern. I know people who work for Uncle Sam, just not in IT. But according to one of them there are lots of cyber security positions open. 

[aggie113]

Some of my most interesting jobs have been working for IT service companies that sourced me (and others) out as system administrators (and other more basic stuff) for SMBs around town.  The variety involved from one company to the next can expose you to a bunch of stuff you might otherwise not see and learn about.  Also, specialization is usually not something you should worry about at the start of your IT career.

[irishbeast]

AI all the way. Maybe machine learning? 

 

The industry is changing at a rapid rate right now. I am going to re-enter the job market soon and will not be returning to Project Management as I am pretty sure AI agents will make PMs redundant soon in the same way it has to developers.

 

How about doing something yourself on youtube? Choose a topic you enjoy and stick at it. Youtube is a tough nut to crack but if you can think of some original content that will resonate. 

 

Maybe a channel about how people can save money? Instead of paying for chatGPT you have options like Gemini 2 and Deepseek the new chinese offering which are just as good as ChatGPT for the vast majority of tasks.