newcomputer20
New Member
I don't have any formal qualifications but I'm pretty sure i could fix any hardware problem on a pc. are there any job opportunities for someone in my position? is there any money in it ?
jobs in the computer industry?
- Thread starter newcomputer20
- Start date
Maybe a local computer shop would hire you. But a lot of places in the business industry look for credentials such as certifications and college degrees.
What kind of job are you looking for? You need to specify that first....
Simply being able to fix a computer may not be sufficient as you'd be competing with other candidates who may be more than capable of handling hardware fixes but also understand the computers inside out.
If you graduate with computer science or engineering degrees, there are lots of opportunities in QA, Engineer, Software Engineer, etc.... try internship to make good networks.
Simply being able to fix a computer may not be sufficient as you'd be competing with other candidates who may be more than capable of handling hardware fixes but also understand the computers inside out.
If you graduate with computer science or engineering degrees, there are lots of opportunities in QA, Engineer, Software Engineer, etc.... try internship to make good networks.
newcomputer20
New Member
I had no job in mind, its just something i do as a hobby I guess. I wondered if there was a way into the industry through experience over a degree really. But local computer shops are a good place to start I guess.
Do you think a degree in physics would help at all? Thats what i was planning on studying. The jobs you mentioned all sound software heavy. Ive tried those entry level programming things with codeacademy and didnt much like it. and engineer? do you mean producing new graphic cards etc? Theres no way you could do that without a degree.
Do you think a degree in physics would help at all? Thats what i was planning on studying. The jobs you mentioned all sound software heavy. Ive tried those entry level programming things with codeacademy and didnt much like it. and engineer? do you mean producing new graphic cards etc? Theres no way you could do that without a degree.
There is no real way into the industry without certifications or degrees. It's all about credentials these days.
linkin
VIP Member
Question: what is your age? It doesn't really mean much but employers will look for maturity, responsibility, and communication skills over technical ability, in a corporate environment. That, and never underestimate being showered, clean shaven and suited up for an interview.
As for what's bold in the quote, don't get cocky. There is ALWAYS something you will not know how to do/fix. I've been working full time for five months and this has proved true in my experience. That and I've learnt a whole lot more about computers and how the industry works.
Think you know a lot about computers?
How about rolling out software via group policy?
How about managing user accounts/email with active directory and exchange server?
How about using ftp clients to retrieve files for people?
How about remotely imaging machines via PXE and windows deployment services?
How about providing support over remote desktop and ultra vnc?
How about fixing a machine that won't accept your domain credentials and won't let you logon with a local account remotely?
How about using UNC paths to access a remote computer's hard drive?
How do you match up computer names to user logons?
What about performing an audit of software assets over the company network?
Think you have communication skills?
How do you tell someone face to face that their computer has an issue that you have no idea how to fix, and that you'll have to ask someone for help?
How do you respond to "My computer is slow, fix it!" ?
What do you do if you are troubleshooting a piece of hardware (say, a wide format plotter/scanner) that you know nothing about?
All these are things you might have to deal with on a daily basis. I thought my job would be easy, but it's not. On the flip side, I also get to do amazing things for work, play with new hardware and choose specs for upgrades, learn how to use new systems, and so on.
Your first job should be about learning and starting a career, not about getting off your arse playing games/getting out of home and earning some money. A prospective employer will not like hearing that. They are interested in what you know, what you can provide the business with, and how much you want in return. The salary/pay part is a touchy subject. Don't be greedy, but don't sell yourself short. And don't go in there with no expectation of what you want to be paid.
What you need to do before applying for a job/getting an interview:
Research the role you want based on your skills
Find out what someone with skillset will be paid
Read between the lines of job ads.
"Good communication skills with excellent spoken english" means you will most likely have to deal with ill-tempered end users and get them off your back without offending them or making yourself look like an idiot.
What a prospective employer wants to see:
Solid basic technical knowledge
An ability to learn and an interest in doing so
Communication skills that won't offend people
A can-do attitude. At the end of the day, supporting users in a timely manner is most important.
Get used to arriving on time, not taking your full lunch break and leaving work well beyond your finishing time. Expect that these things will happen and it will not be a shock. Also expect to be put in charge of a task or project you have no idea how to complete. Communication skills are important because you will be relying on others as well as yourself. If you don't know what to do, you can't be afraid to ask your team for help.
I'm writing this because this is what I have learnt at my first job in a corporate environment. Be prepared and be realistic with your expectations. And always, always, always expect the worst thing to happen at the wrong moment.
As for work at a local pc repair place, I've done that as well. Technical knowledge is more important, as well as explaining things to customers. Such as why backing up data from a 10 year old hard disk is a good idea and saving $50 on a new hard drive is not worth losing all your data...
Holy crap Linkin! Nice response 
I'm saving that for future use!
I'm saving that for future use!
Geoff
VIP Member
Linkin said it very well, so I won't repeat what he said, but here's my opinion.
The days of the computer repair shop are nearing an end. Computers aren't thousands of dollars anymore and people tend to think of them as consumables, if there computer crashes or a hardware component fails, instead of spending hundreds of dollars to get it fixed at a shop they look to buy a new one, as new ones can be found for a few hundred bucks. Generally the people who come into computer repair shops are older folks, who either don't know how cheap computers are anymore or they are stuck in the old ways of getting them repaired rather than replaced (think of the old TV repairman)
What about data recovery? While it's still a big part of business for repair shops, with more and more people going to the cloud for storage (iCloud, Dropbox, SkyDrive, etc.) and with the newer versions of Mac and Windows having cloud storage integrated, there will be fewer and fewer people who need data recovered off a physical drive.
What about virus removal, certainly that's still a major business, right? I'd say yes as of now, since lots of people are still running old OS's which have very little to no built in protection from viruses and malware. However, operating systems have been improving greatly with the measures they take to warn users about unsafe files and websites, they now include built-in malware protection, and warn you if your antivirus software is out of date. This combined with what I said above also leads people who have a computer a few years old that get a virus, to simply buy a new machine rather than spending the money to get the virus removed.
My point here is that when you're a kid you think that because you build your own computer and know how they work, you can get an awesome job fixing and building computers. This simply is not the case. If you are looking at advancing your career, you really need to look into the networking/programming/security side of IT, and the more credentials and certifications you get the better.
The days of the computer repair shop are nearing an end. Computers aren't thousands of dollars anymore and people tend to think of them as consumables, if there computer crashes or a hardware component fails, instead of spending hundreds of dollars to get it fixed at a shop they look to buy a new one, as new ones can be found for a few hundred bucks. Generally the people who come into computer repair shops are older folks, who either don't know how cheap computers are anymore or they are stuck in the old ways of getting them repaired rather than replaced (think of the old TV repairman)
What about data recovery? While it's still a big part of business for repair shops, with more and more people going to the cloud for storage (iCloud, Dropbox, SkyDrive, etc.) and with the newer versions of Mac and Windows having cloud storage integrated, there will be fewer and fewer people who need data recovered off a physical drive.
What about virus removal, certainly that's still a major business, right? I'd say yes as of now, since lots of people are still running old OS's which have very little to no built in protection from viruses and malware. However, operating systems have been improving greatly with the measures they take to warn users about unsafe files and websites, they now include built-in malware protection, and warn you if your antivirus software is out of date. This combined with what I said above also leads people who have a computer a few years old that get a virus, to simply buy a new machine rather than spending the money to get the virus removed.
My point here is that when you're a kid you think that because you build your own computer and know how they work, you can get an awesome job fixing and building computers. This simply is not the case. If you are looking at advancing your career, you really need to look into the networking/programming/security side of IT, and the more credentials and certifications you get the better.
newcomputer20
New Member
Thank you for all your input! Especially linkin. Internet high five. Its exactly what I needed to hear. I'm still not sure which direction to go in but thanks all.