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I recently graduated with a Bachelors degree in Internetworking and Telecommunications. Although it sounds as though my studies were with networks, they were actually quite broad. I took classes in information security (I am going to pursue a Masters degree in that domain), Windows Server, web development, and instructional technology, and few other areas of IT. I tried to study a multitude of topics to keep my options open during my job search.
Now that I have finished, there seems to be the awful fact that a good portion of what I learned has escaped me. This probably happens to every college graduate who had to struggle through several unrelated subjects in order to get a degree. I suppose the old saying “If you don’t use it, you lose it” can be attributed to this.
How do I prepare for a job when a lot of the important knowledge has been lost to studying “required” subjects that have no bearing on my career? Yes, I feel well rounded by taking History, English, and Sciences, but not prepared enough for my goal of working in IT.

@VMware

12 Spice ups
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Sam, where are you based?

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In Gainesville, Florida.

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I would recommend you to focus on some specific products like Vmware, Windows server or Citrix and study for it a bit. In a same time look for a job once you start working all your knowledge will come back to you. Good luck.

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You will be surprised at how quickly everything comes back to you- and half of what you learned in school was actually not the specific material, but the ability to learn similar material. When you go to learn vmware, SQL, etc- it will be easier now than it would have been prior to your bachelor’s degree.

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do you have any certs? you could selfstudy\pay study for some certs to help you focus in on one area and have some thing to show to employers that you know more in that area than your peers. trainsignal or CBTnuggets are some relatively inexpensive ways to try to online training geared towards certifications. or you can buy the books and hammer it out that way.

either way your most valuable practice tool is virtual environments. like VMware or others. lets you really try things out make mistakes and learn with out crashing companies.

in IT its not really about walking around knowing everything, its about having done it at all and it will return when you need it.

grats’ on graduating though!

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As long as you learned how to learn stuff fast you will be fine. Google + Spiceworks is going to help quite a bit also. If you are going for a masters degree in security though are you looking for more the sys admin/HD job or heading towards the more engineering/programming side. I have been to a presentation from an FBI cyberspook that had a PHD in artificial intelligence and was doing advanced anti viral stuff and hunting pedos online. Sounded fun but I have no idea his career chain to get into that area.

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btw there is a free webinar tomorrow on VMware products, a bit more advanced i believe than beginner level but if you have time around 12-1pm you should watch it.

http://community.spiceworks.com/topic/363793-register-for-our-webcast-tomorrow-at-10-am-pt

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Thanks for the replies.

I have decided to brush up on Windows Server using courses at TrainSignal. Perhaps I may need to get a cert or two. But, I feel with all of the IT training I had in the past four years, I shouldn’t really need certs. Or, do I?

@Cody–I am looking more towards the sys admin jobs. Actually, there is a masters program in MIS that I am looking into with a concentration in cybersecurity/forensics.

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Certs get you past HR, you do have a degree so perhaps you do not need a Cert to get into interviews, but look at it like this, Taking the Cert now means you have the “upgrade path” (if microsoft cert) to the next version. and this is a very safe and effective way to stay current and continually improve yourself over the years.

if you are going to do administration type you should look into MCSA\E and possibly Cisco certs and what not. there is also the Certified Ethical Hacking CHE cert that i am interested in doing myself in a year or so.

again like i said Certs are papers to get into doors, but they also keep those doors open by keeping you current, other wise you end up with a degree for 15years ago and no certs or anything to prove you are still current where you then end up doing a class on certs or doing certs on your own later. do it now while its fresh!

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Seems no-one else has said it so… Congratulations.

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@Perez–Thanks. I keep humming that tune by Alice Cooper, “no more teachers…”

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what the… was that an accident and then removed… or has SpiceWorks developed Schizophrenia??

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That was me. I clicked on the wrong spot. Just a newbie error.

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My best recommendation is going to be for you to grab an internship. Hands-on experience will trump any formal education you can find. Even if it’s a helpdesk job, it can be a great way to get your foot in the door and your hands dirty. The fundamentals that you learn from working a job like the helpdesk can take you a long way.

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A degree looks good on the CV but without experience…

Yes certs would be a good idea, your degree is on “general” “academic” topics, certs are more “real world” product / area specific, if you’ve studied networking/communications to a high level you should find this area fairly easy to get certified on.

Congratulations and good luck!

(It’s interesting, in the UK degrees are generally much more specialised - you study just your core subject, here we often look at the US model of a more rounded expansive education and wonder if it’s a better way. )

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I am going to study for some carts. And yes, the US educational system does focus on a well rounded curriculum. It may have worked in the past, but I don’t know if it will be of much support in today’s job market. Many universities are now exploring programs centered around the STEM subjects. Unfortunately, those graduating in the next year or two will miss out on this new initiative.