Please give me two cents :-P

[jfstarr]

Please, I need advice! (or donations :-)

I am currently a 32 year old Junior at the University of Pittsburgh (Yep, 32). I am stuck between my old career, which is not IT related at all, and what I would like to do.

I started taking CS/IT courses about two years ago. Unfortunatly I can only attend part-time and won't graduate until 2004 at this rate. I read texts on coding and other IT topics constantly but my job offers no opportunities to put any of my new skills to work.

My wife's company is in danger of going bankrupt and she is the big money earner right now. So, I cannot quit my current, boring, dead end job until her situation stabilizes.

What should I be doing right now to make myself look better to employers? I have considered volunteer work (designing web sites for local charities) and internships and will pursue these two avenues as soon as my wife finds a new job. Any other suggestions?

I know I still have a lot to cover in school (Algorithms and Software Engineering) but I feel there are several entry level positions where I could make a real contribution. Also, I will certainly get better with age!

Suggestions?

Thanks for any input.

[joyous monkey]

Hi, jfstarr, and welcome.

Are you looking to be in the world of programming or IT in general?

If you're looking at programming you can obtain qualifications in Java (for example) :

http://suned.sun.com/US/certification/

Java has the advantage of being free to download (although it is a large download). Alternatively, you may like to purchase one of the self-study guides that comes with the Java programming language on CD. I've recently bought "Learning Java" by Niedermeyer & Knudsen , O'Reilly Books.

Java is also a good language to learn as it is object-oriented, client and server capable, and opens up the learning path to databases and SQL.Also, if you want to look at Java and need assistance, you've already come to the right site

If you're wanting to do web-based stuff, it may be useful to look at JavaScript and the HTML family.

If you want to explore IT in general, and maybe get qualifications in other fields, the COMPTIA site is worth a glance or two. You can take the self-study approach to get the A+, which is the entry-level qualification for pc technicians. If you're starting from scratch with it, there may be a bit of a learning curve, and I'd advise "hands-on" experience where possible. The COMPTIA site may be reached at:

http://www.comptia.org/default.asp

and a thoroughly useful tech site at:

http://forums.techguy.org/

Hope this is of some hope, and the very best of luck,
Joyous Monkey

[jfstarr]

Thanks Joyous Monkey,

I went to the Sun Java site that you recommended. It looks as though there are 3 different "entry level" certifications under the Java Sun Certified Programmer the 1.2, 1.4 and "full" certification.

The required objectives in the 1.2 exam seem familiar with the exception of threads. I understand what they are but have not actually implemented them yet. Can I take just the 1.2 certification by itself? Then I could take the later exams as I progress in school?

It looks like, by the end of this semester, I will have covered Interfaces, Abstract classes, Java Collections Framework, Threads and a few others topics.

I looked into the A+ cert last year and just couldn't wade through the book. While I was initially interested in networking, I really enjoy the challenge of coding (HTML, JavaScript, Java and VB) and think I will focus on that.

Any "entry level" coders out there? What is expected of you at work? I would be very interested in hearing some typical assignments.

Thanks again,

jfstarr

[jfstarr]

Ok,

so the Java 2 platform is anything after and including v1.2. The 1.4 exam is the newest version of the exam.

You can still take the 1.2 exam and then take an upgrade exam to the 1.4 certification or you can just take the 1.4 version first.

I took the practice exam on the site and got destroyed. Very dissapointing but I guess it just shows me what I need to work on (code tracing).