# Help Desk Jobs



## tim19889 (Jan 24, 2010)

Hi everyone, just wondering, what do you need to land a job in the technical support field? Is a two year degree necessary to get into a help desk job or is it more important that you pass and have certain certifications? Which certifications are the most important? I know you would obviously need MCDST but what else besides that? Thanks for any info you can give me


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## trpt4god (Jul 5, 2008)

Hello!

I have been doing this kind of work for 10 years and have no certifications whatsoever. I will say my entrance into this field was strange as I knew nothing about it. The guy who hired me said he thought I was funny and the field needed more funny people. I have parlayed that isto somewhat of a "career" (been laid off twice, fired once) and can get a job based on experience alone. Like everything else, the hard part is getting a job without credentials, but it's not impossible. Have a great day!


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## tim19889 (Jan 24, 2010)

Thanks for the reply. Lol...so I'll go to best buy, crack some jokes and hopefully get hired . No I'll probably go try and get my A+ and a microsoft cert and then see if I can get in the door with that hopefully...And if they really want a college degree then at least I'll have saved myself some work in school if I already have those certs right?


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## Madcatz (Apr 15, 2008)

Despends on the school really. Where I'm going to school at (for Microsoft Server 2008) the professor gives us an automatic A if we pass the certification test for that specific course, but not all will do that.

I'd suggest, go out, get an associates degree, A+. MCP or MCTS: Windows 7 (or both) and then work at best buy or a small PC repair shop while your going to school. Then after your done, you'll probably have 2 or 3 certifications, a dregree, and 2 years experience. Which will look very nice to companies for help desk or desktop support. But most of all, make sure you have a smile on your face and show a little sense of humor. If the interviewer asks if you want water, lol take it, and remember, the interviewer hates doing interviews as much as ppl hate going to them, lol.


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## Jamesrpw (Feb 6, 2010)

A+ certificate would help but usually isn't required usually employers ask for that or a AAS degree or at least some experience working with computers


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## nicksnkicks (Feb 6, 2010)

In IT field experience and skills counts a lot.They dont mind about the qualifications as long as you are able to delver the work you are expected out. But as you say you are a kind of fresher it is better to get some basic certifications to how that you have the skills.


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## tim19889 (Jan 24, 2010)

Okay, one more question. Say I get A+, Network +, and MCP. Those are three pretty good certs right? Where would you all recommend I start applying at for a first job to get experience? What kind of job should I be looking at? Best Buy maybe? Would live online tech support count as experience? (I have a good full-time job now that pays more than Best Busy would...if I could keep that and do online tech support part time at night or something that would be cool). 
Please let me know what you think, you've all been very helpful so far thank you


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## Madcatz (Apr 15, 2008)

Those are three good certs to start out with. Best Buy or any local repair shop would be good experience. I would suggest a repair shop before Best Buy though as the Geek Squad doesn't have a high reputation in the IT industry, theres alot more to troubleshooting than just putting in a disc and letting it run. But it can be decent experience, I started out there and I was the "go to" guy when the disc didn't work for the rest of the techs, and I was the only certified tech there, lol. 

Tech support would be ok, but it won't mean as much as actual hands-on repair experience, and won't teach you as much as repairing them either.


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## Win2KPro (Sep 5, 2005)

Madcatz is correct, there is no substitute for hands on experience. 

You can read all the books, get all the designations, but if you can't apply the knowledge in the field they do you little good. There is nothing like getting "down and dirty" in building or making actual repairs.

With the rapid changes taking place in technology today, sometimes it's all you can do just try to stay up to date.


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## tim19889 (Jan 24, 2010)

Well I'm buying a new laptop today at bestbuy so I'll be able to use the machine I'm on now to experiment and get dirty with as I'm studying for A+. Also whenever I hear of anyone with an old pc they're getting rid of I'm gonna try to get it from them and play around with it. That's about the only way I know to get experience unless I can find a job at a repair shop..which I'm not sure about with the economy being what it is no one's hiring :\. Btw just curious, what would you guess the average hourly pay is for someone working in a pc repair shop? Will I be able to make at least what I am now? ($9.25 an hour)


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## parttimetechie (Jan 9, 2010)

Possibly. Im a Staples Easy Tech and I get paid a mesely 8.50/hr. Best Buy Geeks get paid around 13/hr starting and it goes up from there.

A lot of tech jobs seem to top out at like 20/hr...don't expect to support a family on this kind of job..im finding that out for myself.


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## Madcatz (Apr 15, 2008)

it really depends on the shop and where thier work comes from. Geek Squad usually starts out around $10/hr around here, in-home agents are about $13-15/hr. If you get in at a small repair shop, probably $10-14/hr. Some companies, hospitals, or colleges have thier own techs and start out about $15-25/hr.

But that's around where I am, it will be different in other areas, some higher, some lower, but what I said is probably about average.


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