high demand IT fields currently?

[BlahBlahYouToo]

Holy shit.

$15k is nothing to companies that spend in the millions annually on just support contracts.

 

[alfa147x]

Professional services/consulting is where the money is at if you can become a true expert in one of these fields. We can't find strong candidates in the networking or VMware area and as such those experts demand a very pretty penny.

I'v always found the idea of becoming a consultant pretty intriguing. I'v even set it as a goal career wise.

I guess you become an expert via certifications and experience?

 

[Jimmah]

Very interesting thread, giving me some hope to find work once school is finished. Currently have 1 and a bit years left, focuses on Linux and Cisco admin. with a next semester being all Server 2008 and AD until we graduate. Already picked up my CCNA after first semester and might go for the MCITP line once this is wrapped up and I have time to study (moving to Chile, will have nothing better to do for 3 years once I'm there, you can't work with a Dip. passport).

Thanks to the OP and everyone else who've posted here, gives us lowly guys in school a little bit of relief.

 

[Aharami]

so how would someone who has no experience in these technologies go about getting a job in any of these fields? certifications? classes? I'm in software development but I'm working with mainframe technology for a big insurer. Im getting sick of this stuff and looking to branch out into more lucrative fields.

 

[wheresmybacon]

I'v always found the idea of becoming a consultant pretty intriguing. I'v even set it as a goal career wise.

I guess you become an expert via certifications and experience?

Yeah although more of the latter. No one is going to hire you to oversee an Exchange migration @ $300/hr because you've got an Exchange 2010 cert. They'll hire you because you've got some Groupwise to Exchange migrations under your belt and have client's who will vouch for your abilities.

 

[yllus]

Interesting to see people recommend SharePoint or Exchange - I just ended five and a half years of employment at a major Exchange and SharePoint hosting company, went to Microsoft TechEd 2010 and interfaced with people in the industry all day - I just didn't see much enthusiasm out there for SharePoint. Exchange gets a lot more attention, but I see that becoming an outsourced platform as well (bodes well for my former employer and for big outsource sinks like IBM).

In my developer-centric view, mobile (Objective C and Java) and "agile" languages like Ruby on Rails, Python Django and perhaps PHP with some framework are the greatest growth areas. I also see experience with non-relational databases like CouchDB and MongoDB becoming useful bullet points on one's resume in the near future.

 

[alfa147x]

Yeah although more of the latter. No one is going to hire you to oversee an Exchange migration @ $300/hr because you've got an Exchange 2010 cert. They'll hire you because you've got some Groupwise to Exchange migrations under your belt and have client's who will vouch for your abilities.

So one must gain experience doing many different things. Can you do that by holding the same position for many years? The IT guys I work with have been here for 5+ years but it seems like they just do the same thing.

How long do normally hold a job?

Sorry for my stupid questions but thanks for answering them!

 

[Texashiker]

So question:

Right now I'm an Information Systems major with an ERP emphasis
I plan on getting some sort of SAP Certification before I graduate + the terp10 certification

From 1986 - 2000 I worked in the welding field. My area was fabrication of ASME certified heat exchangers and pressure vessels.

In 1996 I started night classes at the local college. My major was Computer Information Systems with a focus on Microsoft - it was either novell, cisco or microsoft.

In 1999 the welding shop where I worked almost went under and laid off about 75% of its work force - and I was one of them. From there I went to work for a high speed internet service provider in Houston, it was my first "IT" related job.

Fast forward 10 years - sometimes I wish I had NEVER gone into the IT field. As I get older, having to learn new stuff gets more frustrating and IT is all about change. In the 1990s IT was easy. But now, its like something new is coming out every week.

If I lost my job this very second, I would go back into the welding field.

Even though working with steel is bad on my health, I think IT is having a worse effect - due to the lack of physical labor. At least when I was working in those welding shops, I was able to maintain a level of physical fitness and a maintain a healthy weight.

When I hear of someone wanting to go into IT, I try to talk them out of it. There are better ways to make money then IT.

At least with this job there is no overtime, so I get to spend weekends with my kids. In the welding field we worked a lot of overtime (50 - 80 hours a week), but I also made 2X - 4X what I'am making right now.

 

[wheresmybacon]

so how would someone who has no experience in these technologies go about getting a job in any of these fields? certifications? classes? I'm in software development but I'm working with mainframe technology for a big insurer. Im getting sick of this stuff and looking to branch out into more lucrative fields.

Certifications and a 4-year are a good starting point. While I'm contracting now, most of the full time jobs I'm interviewing for have minimum qualifications that include a 4-year degree in CS and ~5+ years of experience. Although really they don't care what your 4-year is in as long as you have one. Mine is in Economics, and I've been working in IT for almost 14 years.

If I were still in school I would be hunting out internships like mad. This is one thing I regret from my college days. I was lazy about finding and landing internships. DO NOT DO THIS! The best thing you can do aside from completing your 4-year is to get your hands on something that's out there in the read world.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

Interesting to see people recommend SharePoint or Exchange - I just ended five and a half years of employment at a major Exchange and SharePoint hosting company, went to Microsoft TechEd 2010 and interfaced with people in the industry all day - I just didn't see much enthusiasm out there for SharePoint. Exchange gets a lot more attention, but I see that becoming an outsourced platform as well (bodes well for my former employer and for big outsource sinks like IBM).

I guess I see it from a couple of different angles. On one hand, people who have some product familiarity with Sharepoint seem to really like it and want to push it for a variety of solutions. On the other hand, many or perhaps most people may not know about Sharepoint specifically, but they have defined needs and objectives and in a large number of cases, Sharepoint seems to fit the bill.

 

[alfa147x]

Certifications and a 4-year are a good starting point. While I'm contracting now, most of the full time jobs I'm interviewing for have minimum qualifications that include a 4-year degree in CS and ~5+ years of experience. Although really they don't care what your 4-year is in as long as you have one. Mine is in Economics, and I've been working in IT for almost 14 years.

If I were still in school I would be hunting out internships like mad. This is one thing I regret from my college days. I was lazy about finding and landing internships. DO NOT DO THIS! The best thing you can do aside from completing your 4-year is to get your hands on something that's out there in the read world.

A good family friend works for IBM as a database architect. He has a degree in EE and a MBA. He's been working at IBM for 20+ years

Apparently that's common.

I'm on my first internship now. Im designing a new time management application and coding it ASP.NET and having it tie into MS SQL. It SEEMS like they are going to hire me to finish it out.

Would you rather graduate late but have 2 internships or graduate on time?

 

[IndyColtsFan]

So one must gain experience doing many different things. Can you do that by holding the same position for many years? The IT guys I work with have been here for 5+ years but it seems like they just do the same thing.

It really depends on a lot of factors. I agree 100% that experience trumps certifications every time, but don't let that discourage you from getting certifications. At a minimum, you can learn a lot just by getting them.

As far as acquiring the experience, you may find it necessary to jump around to different companies. If you work in a small shop, you may not get exposure to cutting-edge technology but you might be exposed to a wider variety of topics (hence the statement "A jack of all trades, but master of none.") Once you get the exposure and you determine which field you enjoy, my recommendation would be to jump to a larger company to expand your depth in a given area.

 

[Texashiker]

Would you rather graduate late but have 2 internships or graduate on time?

Are you talking about taking less classes per semester, or getting out of college for a little while? If you miss more then 1 semester of college, chances are they will make you re-take all of your core classes.

I went through a bad divorce, dropped out for 1 semester, went back, and was told none of my core credits now applied to the current degree plan. I was going to have to take another 32 hours - which equaled out to about 2 years of night classes.

I say you graduate on time and get it over with. Once you graduate, then you can move forward and onto bigger and better stuff.

 

[alfa147x]

Are you talking about taking less classes per semester, or getting out of college for a little while? If you miss more then 1 semester of college, chances are they will make you re-take all of your core classes.

I went through a bad divorce, dropped out for 1 semester, went back, and was told none of my core credits now applied to the current degree plan. I was going to have to take another 32 hours - which equaled out to about 2 years of night classes.

I say you graduate on time and get it over with. Once you graduate, then you can move forward and onto bigger and better stuff.

Right now this internship means that Im still a full time student that is enrolled in non academic hours. I also still get paid. I'v been working 40 - 45 hours a week.

 

[CVSiN]

We just did a humongous Sharepoint 2010 roll-out here.
Rebuilt the entire intranet with it.

Every Corp MS shop I've ever been to ran some form of Sharepoint.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

We just did a humongous Sharepoint 2010 roll-out here.
Rebuilt the entire intranet with it.

I'm in the process of architecting our new SP 2010 server farm and I hope to place the hardware order by the end of the week.

 

[wheresmybacon]

So one must gain experience doing many different things. Can you do that by holding the same position for many years? The IT guys I work with have been here for 5+ years but it seems like they just do the same thing.

How long do normally hold a job?

Sorry for my stupid questions but thanks for answering them!

These are good questions; no need to apologize.

If you're just starting out and have that new desktop tech support job - which is where a lot of people start - try and get a shoe-in on a duty or technology that may be a little bit outside the scope of your responsibilities. Try to identify where you can contribute and then let your superiors know you've got something to offer.

For example, while I was a desktop tech, I was constantly in my boss's ear about Exchange and security projects. "Any chance you guys need some help @ central with the Exchange roll out? Or that new SSL VPN project?" Eventually they did need help with the SSL VPN project and I was selected to spend a year working directly with the Security group designing enterprise firewall policies and configuring the VPN portal. I wouldn't have got that chance if I just sat on my ass doing the same things all day. Every project you do like that is ammo you can use; it goes right on your resume.

I certainly haven't "arrived" by any means and I'm not making $300/hr. However, for a former soccer player who barely studied in college and didn't even major in CS, I'm doing pretty well now as a systems engineer. In short, make the most of your opportunities. I started out as a temp doing low level hard drive wipes in 1997. I proved I was good at that (lol) and it just took off from there.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

So one must gain experience doing many different things. Can you do that by holding the same position for many years? The IT guys I work with have been here for 5+ years but it seems like they just do the same thing.

How long do normally hold a job?

Sorry for my stupid questions but thanks for answering them!

there's not a lot of indian girls in IT.
well, there's not many girls in IT period but iirc, you were specifically into indian girls which means if you need eye candy to get you through a workday, you're better off in finance or accounting.

 

[wheresmybacon]

A good family friend works for IBM as a database architect. He has a degree in EE and a MBA. He's been working at IBM for 20+ years

Apparently that's common.

I'm on my first internship now. Im designing a new time management application and coding it ASP.NET and having it tie into MS SQL. It SEEMS like they are going to hire me to finish it out.

Would you rather graduate late but have 2 internships or graduate on time?

As long as you aren't stretching yourself too thin and can do everything well, I would graduate late. But that's just my opinion. The fact that you've already got your hands on real world stuff puts you ahead of the pack already.

 

[yllus]

I guess I see it from a couple of different angles. On one hand, people who have some product familiarity with Sharepoint seem to really like it and want to push it for a variety of solutions. On the other hand, many or perhaps most people may not know about Sharepoint specifically, but they have defined needs and objectives and in a large number of cases, Sharepoint seems to fit the bill.

Eh, I suppose - I've been watching job sites pretty closely and of all of the postings I've seen I can't recall a single one being for a SharePoint developer. but maybe it's a position that gets filled on the inside or something like that.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

I'm in the process of architecting our new SP 2010 server farm and I hope to place the hardware order by the end of the week.

how are you guys liking 2010 over 2007?

 

[alfa147x]

These are good questions; no need to apologize.

If you're just starting out and have that new desktop tech support job - which is where a lot of people start - try and get a shoe-in on a duty or technology that may be a little bit outside the scope of your responsibilities. Try to identify where you can contribute and then let your superiors know you've got something to offer.

For example, while I was a desktop tech, I was constantly in my boss's ear about Exchange and security projects. "Any chance you guys need some help @ central with the Exchange roll out? Or that new SSL VPN project?" Eventually they did need help with the SSL VPN project and I was selected to spend a year working directly with the Security group designing enterprise firewall policies and configuring the VPN portal. I wouldn't have got that chance if I just sat on my ass doing the same things all day. Every project you do like that is ammo you can use; it goes right on your resume.

I certainly haven't "arrived" by any means and I'm not making $300/hr. However, for a former soccer player who barely studied in college and didn't even major in CS, I'm doing pretty well now as a systems engineer. In short, make the most of your opportunities. I started out as a temp doing low level hard drive wipes in 1997. I proved I was good at that (lol) and it just took off from there.

THanks!

Already following that ladder:
At my job back at school I did "Academic Tech Support" my boss's boss started noticing that I could / would do a lot more than my peers. Our department just got restructured and I'll be in charge of approving any mobile application that is developed by us.

 

[alfa147x]

there's not a lot of indian girls in IT.
well, there's not many girls in IT period but iirc, you were specifically into indian girls which means your chances of finding eye candy in day to day operations slim to none.

I haven't dated an indian girl in a while but I have no problem with them.

 

[IndyColtsFan]

how are you guys liking 2010 over 2007?

We really only have an infrequently-used 2010 test environment. There are many developer-specific things I like about 2010, not the least of which is fully portable workflows.

We're bringing a 2010 environment up next to 2007 and then migrating our apps over one-by-one. We have a lot of initiatives which will require SP 2010, so we're hoping to get this done quickly.

 

[CVSiN]

here ya go..
any Sr. Exchange Engineers looking for work in Houston..
I just got this in my email.

100 per hour on contract.

I apologize if this came to you error but your resume came up in our database in a search as a possible fit for the below role. Not sure if youre looking but I wanted to make you aware of the below role.

COMSYS, a Manpower company is looking for an Exchange Engineer for a Long term project in North Houston (Will consider converting perm for the right person)

Candidate must be able to demonstrate the planning, design, Documentation and deployment of an Exchange 2007 solution for an Enterprise organization.

Duties and responsibilities:

Setting up and maintaining enterprise wide Exchange 2003/ 2007
Troubleshooting and resolving Exchange 2003/ 2007 problems.
Active Directory 2003 to 2008 migration experience would be very helpful.
Experience in migrations as a result of merger and acquisitions very helpful
Working with the teams to manage and support messaging services, DNS, DHCP, AD Routing in a large multi-national AD/Messaging environment.
Ensuring integrity and stability of the Messaging, Active Directory, and Enterprise wide environment including Antivirus updates, Security patches and Service packs.
Maintaining and supporting third party applications including McAfee, Quest Change Auditor for AD and Exchange, MOM/SCOM, Restore Admin
Troubleshooting and resolving Tier II and Tier III e-mail/ Exchange related issues following established protocol and procedures via the service desk.
Documentation of configurations, processes, and policies.

Qualifications Required

Minimum five years Microsoft Exchange E-mail experience.
Strong Messaging experience with expert knowledge of Exchange 2003/ 2007.
Hands on experience setting up and configuring Exchange 2003/ 2007 systems.
Expert knowledge in troubleshooting Exchange 2003/ 2007.
Experience in Enterprise wide deployment of Exchange services backbone.

Clear understanding of messaging standards and protocols including Networking, TCP/IP, DNS, WINS.
Broad and thorough knowledge of Windows 2003/ 2008 Active Directory.
Experience with Blackberry wireless, E-Fax, ISA services, and OWA.
Experience with MS MOM, SharePoint, WSUS, SMS, MIIS, and PKI.
Must be able to proactively identify problem areas and provide or recommend solutions.
Strong critical thinking and analytical skills required.
Excellent customer service and communication skills required.
Must be able to work independently or with a team/remote, under minimum supervision.
Must be able to plan, organize, and prioritize work schedule.
Willingness to work off-hours and weekends as required and be on an on-call rotation schedule.
WebSense support and experience very helpful.

This role will be 100% onsite in Houston. We will not be able to accommodate remote situations.

Open to Corp 2 Corp, sub contractors and ICs. (H1 candidates must be in the process of getting a Greencard)

Must be able to start immediately!!! Texas candidates highly preferred.

Role is 100% onsite in Houston, will not be able to consider remote situations.

This is a long term contract, client will consider converting to a full time employee for the right person.

For the right skill set and experience will pay up to $100 an hour on contract. (Not all consultants will qualify for this rate)

Please e-mail resumes in MS Word format directly to Nelson Acosta at nacosta@comsys.com with Exchange Engineer subject line and your rate requirements in the body.