Wanting to get certified for computer repair and networking

[nirrtix]

I am currently studying for A+ certification. I guess I am wanting to know if it is worth it and if not what other good ways to get into the field are. I currently consider my knowledge to be advanced, but not good enough to pass the test (though I have never taken it.)

I am currently reading Mike Meyers A + Certification book All-in-one Other than talking about registries so far it is pretty simple and straight forward (about half way through.) It does get into a lot of stuff I never use on my PC like groups. While I am familiar with how the registry works I have bad luck doing registry tweaks in the past and kind of avoid them.

In general I have no problem fixing my computer myself, I also have built it myself and well if it is something I cannot fix most issues I have fixed either using some trial and error or using google.

I guess I am wanting to know if I am working on the best way to get into the field. I am curious if there are other avenues as well. I am not looking for a get rich quick job. I jsut want something that leads to a stable pay vs working minimum wage jobs, and this seems like a good route as I have been fairly good at working on computers.

 

[jimmysmitty]

Well honestly you learn a lot more when doing vs what they teach you in A+ or Net+ but those two are the best certs to start for. Then if you really want to get down to brass tax you need to go into a more specific field. A lot of things have their own certs, like Cisco or Dell Sonicwall.

Funny thing is that in one of the A+ guide books used by colleges for teaching there is a picture of my hard drives. At the college I went to the IT Admin and network/hardware teacher did some work with the author to make sure the information was up to date and correct and I happen to buy a SATA HDD before anyone else did and he took pictures and they put them in the book. Was pretty cool.

 

[nirrtix]

cool, well I agree that hands on experience is best, but how do you get into the field to be able to do that? MY conundrum is I am on disability I can earn so much a month, I want to get off of it... Some people say A+ helps you get entry level help desk jobs, I am not sure what those pay, but I want to find something that pays my bills and gets me the experience I need to progress. If they pay enough to dump the disability that would be beneficial. Fortunately I can take a leap of faith on that as it lets me keep my medicare for a few years, but I need something to help jumpstart my career.

As to getting a entry level job without a certification the only ones I have ever seen are the over the phone help desk jobs. They are typically entry level. I see no reason not to get the A+ certification, but it seems like it is not very well prized here. I do also plan to get network and more, but again it is better to have experience.

 

[jimmysmitty]

Most entry level desktop support jobs will pay between $10/hr to $20/hr depending on who it is through and what you can do.

There is no 100% though. Best I ever got was $15/hr. Now I make the equivalent of $30/hr but I do a lot more than just desktop support. I also do networking and field work.

Getting the beginning certs is a good way and applying at PC repair shops for experience is also a good way to go.