Spherion IT Courses.

[Big Dog]

Hi all,
Could those who are already involved in IT please give me some opinion about Spherion as a training provider.

I like the sound of one of their diploma courses but don't want to plump $12,000 to find it is a sh@$ course.

I am interested in a Diploma of information technology (network engineering). All the usual MS, Redhat , and Comp TIA.

[Big Dog]

Please don't vote unless you are in or have been in IT.

[duckman]

Jesus - $12,000 thats alot of money to learn how to "CTLR+ALT+DELETE" :killingme

Seriously tho', Spherion does have a good reputation, but I'd be thinking very carefully about what it is specifically that you want to be doing when you complete the course.

So many folk do these courses and then expect to get a $70,000 job. When they get posted to the helpdesk because they have no work experience they spew.

Are you working in the industry currently ??

[Big Dog]

Are you working in the industry currently ??
No. But then The only qualifications I have are a certificate in road transport skills and a Liquor license.

The only job you start at the top is digging holes.

I fully expect to end up making coffee for the first year :lol:
but I like fixing things and whant more enjoyment out of my job. If it were just the money there would be no reason to even consider going elsewhere from where I am.

[Ghost Lemur]

I can only comment on their Christchurch operation, as I've had no dealings with the other branches.

They rock. I did a cet in IT last year and starting next Friday I'm doing the Software Development course with them. The tutors know their stuff, the self-paced aspect is brilliant as if you neither feel rushed nor held back. They do work hard to keep their job placement success rate up.

Alround they're the best private IT training provider I've been able to come across.

[Wonko]

I looked at doing some traing at Spherion, software development, last year. I decided not to do it there as at the time they where useing VB6 and not .NET

Things to be awere of when using private instatutes is that the credits that you earn can be hard to transfer to polytec/uni courses.

nzherald today (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/employment/employmentstorydisplay.cfm?storyID=3560358&thesection=employment&thesubsection=itRecruitment)

Goodluck

[Big Dog]

nzherald today (http://www.nzherald.co.nz/employment/employmentstorydisplay.cfm?storyID=3560358&thesection=employment&thesubsection=itRecruitment)


Certainly food for thought, thanks.

[matthewt]

I don't know much about the PTE's.

I did a national cert in Business Computing at ChCh Poly when I was 16. Did the some of the advanced cert the following year part time and have worked in IT ever since.

I'd say it only really matters for the first few years where you did your training, the whole "getting your foot in the door" thing. Once you have a few years experience people tend to go on you recent experience and how you conduct yourself. I've probably interviewed 20+ people and I never paid much attention to where they studied (although all those positions required at least 5 years previous experience).

[matthewt]

Jesus - $12,000 thats alot of money to learn how to "CTLR+ALT+DELETE" :killingme

Lucky I did my study the year before fee's skyrocketed. Whole year cost $480. Left school after the 6th form to go to Polytech at just the right time, all my friends stayed for the 7th form (and UE) and then caught 3 years of high fees.

[Zed]

Hi all,
Could those who are already involved in IT please give me some opinion about Spherion as a training provider.

I like the sound of one of their diploma courses but don't want to plump $12,000 to find it is a sh@$ course.

I am interested in a Diploma of information technology (network engineering). All the usual MS, Redhat , and Comp TIA.
I'm currently doing a Dip. Systems Technology with Spherion. I work full time and study part time on Tuesday & Thursday evenings. :wacko:

You should find the course excellent if you study consistently and stick at it! The learning format has been well thought out. I generally agree with Ghost Lemur's comments.


Zed

[Devil]

I did the Diploma of Business Programming back when it was Interim Technology, had just turned 18. Bout $15k worth. My brother and a mate did it at the same time.
I thought it was excellent. They helped get the first job, started on $35k about 4 years ago (was 19 by then). 10 months there sounded much better to me than 4 years of uni!

That particular style of learning was perfect for me. Id go back again to upskill but money is an issue :(

[Big Dog]

It is starting to sound like the only problem might be justifying spending 12k to earn less than I do now :(

Especially now when I am almost rid of my student loan after 9 years, 19k (on a 3.5k loan).

The hard part to me would be paying $520 a month to study F/T or $320p/t.... :crazy:

It is very disheartening to look at the financial picture. :disapint:

It's not out of the question just a huge commitment (same as my bike payments and they are almos up).

[Zed]

It is starting to sound like the only problem might be justifying spending 12k to earn less than I do now :(
If that is your sincere attitude then you might as well forget about it! :(

A diploma won't necessarily get you the big dollars immediately but it should ensure that you get in the door...it's what you do with the knowledge/learning gained from the diploma that counts- you may end up contracting yourself out and earning what YOU choose! :msn-wink:

Qualifications are fairly neccessary nowadays in IT, but also how you negotiate YOURSELF is just as important! Some people make it in the business world without going through the normal employment procedures- they take the opportunities when they see them and are experts at marketing THEMSELVES. Spherion trys to teach it's students this too!


Zed

[Big Dog]

If that is your sincere attitude then you might as well forget about it! :(

I would not mind the drop in pay..... that's not the issue.
I fully see that long term IT has better prospects.
Its complicated but with child support taken into account as long as I earn $30k I get the same take home until I earn over $60k. Ergo it aint the drop in salary.

I just aint a hundred percent that it's worth $12K for a qualification. Nor am I sure wether a Spherion diploma is worth anything (not already being in the industry, hence my purpose in posting this poll, to get some opinion from those in the know).

12k is not much if it is a good qualification. If it is a worthless qualification they are asking me to :moon: and :buggerd:

I don't want to know if I should do a IT course. I want to know if this course is worth the stump.

[jrandom]

I don't directly work in IT so I can't comment on Spherion. All I'll say is... don't discount the possibility of doing a 'real' degree. I'd venture to suggest that just about any polytech qualification won't be past being on par with the one you're considering, but imagine your options if you had a BE (Auckland Uni do a 'computer systems' major with electronics and CS papers kinda mixed in together - an excellent starting point if you want a techy career).

Of course it would mean QUITE a lifestyle change as a fulltime student... that might be straight-up impossible for you. I dunno. But I'd put myself on the line to say that ten years from now, you'll be happiest if you go 'student' and do the whole hog. You've probably already checked it out, but with a bit of sweet-talking you could probably get in at Auck Uni engineering school as a 'mature student' if you're missing the standard UE stuff, etc.

[fritter]

I definitely agree Spherion is a good way to get in the door fast. I don't think they are the best by any stretch of the imagination, but they give you what you need, and that's a piece of paper that shows you can learn stuff.

Certifications are pretty much there to impress HR people and managers, not actual IT staff.

If you just want the certs like RHCE, MSCE, A+ etc (rather than a "cert prog. tech.", or a "diploma in bus. programming"), go buy a book on the subject, and fiddle with the particular system on a pc (more than one preferably) at home. Much cheaper than a course and to be honest, you'd probably learn more than what Spherion will teach you...

Although unless you already know some people in the industry (your best bet), an MCSE etc won't look that good (if you have a cert like this and no experience, it tends to lose a lot of credibility - read "paper" MCSE etc), where a Spherion cert/diploma is a good start for someone entering the IT market, because it covers quite a wide range of IT areas. Once you've got a year or two under your belt, THEN the specialised industry certs start having some sway...

My 2c anyway. Good luck anyway :niceone:

[fpsware]

Hi all,
Could those who are already involved in IT please give me some opinion about Spherion as a training provider.

I like the sound of one of their diploma courses but don't want to plump $12,000 to find it is a sh@$ course.

I am interested in a Diploma of information technology (network engineering). All the usual MS, Redhat , and Comp TIA.
Being someone who has worked in the IT industry for nearly 15 year, and more relavent to this thread, someone who employs IT staff. I personally would not hire a Spherion / Polytech / other tertiary ed student as a technician. Maybe as an office run around or parttime when the workload gets extreamely heavy. I don't believe they have the industry skills to perform the jobs required in todays real world corporate computing.

I possibly have a different point of view than others because I work in the corporate IT market, maybe if I worked the home / mum dad market I might think differently, but I know of too many IT companies who will not hire one of these students until they have industry expierence. Its a real catch 22.

[fritter]

I personally would not hire a Spherion / Polytech / other tertiary ed student as a technician.....
I don't believe they have the industry skills to perform the jobs required in todays real world corporate computing....
If you are talking about an actual technician role (systems engineer or network architect for example) sure, I would agree. But we are talking about an entry level position.


I possibly have a different point of view than others because I work in the corporate IT market, maybe if I worked the home / mum dad market I might think differently.
I have no idea how the home/mum/dad market works (fpsware are you talking about the Dick Smith or PC Shop kind of thing here? A PC webstore maybe? Or are you talking about an actual IT company - maybe a small programming house?), but even there you wouldn't expect to start in a highly technical role - if one even existed in that company.

The corporate IT market has entry level positions too...


... I know of too many IT companies who will not hire one of these students until they have industry expierence. Its a real catch 22.
Agree, the easiest way around this is through networking (people, not pc's ;) ).


Anyway, normally you would come out of Spherion looking for an entry level helpdesk role, or something along those lines (junior programmer etc). You'd be doing pretty well to go straight to a technician (that is a very broad term though)role with nothing but a certificate... again, this is where experience counts.

There are plenty of large corporates out there who are happy to hire entry level guys, and have been doing so for years. The obvious point here is that the pay is entry level too - although I know a few who started on fairly decent rates, they tend to be the exception rather than the rule. Not an issue, because as long as you have some drive, you'll move up fast.

I always looked at the whole certification/cv thing as a chance to get an interview. That's where you have to show that you are a worthy addition to the company hiring you etc...

Now don't get me wrong here - I'm not trying to defend Spherion - personally I was not at all impressed by them (CPTG when I was there), and their reputation hasn't improved any, but they and all the companies like them are still the easiest way to get started if you don't know someone in the industry (and in a position to hire) already.

Totally agree with matthewt below anyway...

[Big Dog]

Being someone who has worked in the IT industry for nearly 15 year, and more relavent to this thread, someone who employs IT staff. I personally would not hire a Spherion / Polytech / other tertiary ed student as a technician. Maybe as an office run around or parttime when the workload gets extreamely heavy. I don't believe they have the industry skills to perform the jobs required in todays real world corporate computing.

I make really good coffee :msn-wink:

[Drunken Monkey]

"I.T." (hate that term - doesn't mean anything) is a pretty broad category. Are you interested in financial software consultation? Programming? Project/Team Management? Or, heaven forbid, Network Engineering?

There are LOTS of people trying to jump on the IT bandwagon at the moment...hearing more and more stories of double degreed, double certs having trouble finding hell-desk roles... Not that I'm trying to spout doom'n'gloom - I run my own network 'engineering' (hate that term too - I think it demeans real engineers) business, and contract out work as I see fit. My certifcation expired years ago and I've never bothered to renew, and my degree definately isn't in computers.

You might find it more effective to split your roles - this will also give you a chance to back out if you don't like where you're headed. ie you have a transport background, so maybe work in the 'back office' area of a truck leasing firm or something, in a role that's very hands on with their financial or operating computer systems. Tell them you've got an interest in computers and try and get them to nominate you as the 'contact' for their IT contractors. Get as much exposure with these people as you can, and try and learn everything they do.
Theses are the people I have the most contact with - they make the PC help requests to me directly. It's their role to have an above average understanding of computer systems so they know what can be assigned to the code monkeys, what needs to go to the screw-driver-heads.
From this role, you can either:
1. learn more about the financial systems, reporting writing and coding = you can move into software from here...
2. learn more about the PCs themeselves, how to map drives, manage active directory, etc... = you can move into networking from here.

Sorry it's wordy, but I hope this helps. I don't want to see someone flitter away 10K on something to help them change their career then end up hitting a brick wall...

[Drunken Monkey]

Bugger that, I obviously failed comprehension at primary school - I see now you said you were interested in being a network engineer. Don't answer my rhetorics!
That doesn't change the rest of my dribble...

[Big Dog]

Bugger that, I obviously failed comprehension at primary school - I see now you said you were interested in being a network engineer. Don't answer my rhetorics!
That doesn't change the rest of my dribble...
R U Hiring? :soon:

[Drunken Monkey]

Well yes and no. Unfortunately for you I already have an intermediate technician who is taking up as much of my time as a junior sometimes. I've only got completely nasty Exchange server work that needs to be taken over by an exchange expert at the moment...

[Dr Bob]

From an educational point of view, I see candidates with reams of certificates from private providers, all too often they are specifically about a technology or a language. Whatever course you do, make sure that it is relevant to staircasing - what can you do after this course. In the IT industry it is not about learning the fundementals and then spending your life working, unfortuneately it is about continuual and lifelong education.

You want to do a certificate that will credit or lead into to a diploma, a diploma that will allow you to easily transition into a degree, and a degree that will mean something when you want to do you masters or mba in 15 years time.

A quick fix may get you into the door, but I am faced with many people who hit a ceiling because they don't have an undergraduate qualification, or a postgrad qual, and it is often the case they have to go back over what they have already done because they didn't formalise the learning with something that was transferable.

You said that you didn't mind a drop in salary in the short term, if you do the wrong qualification that drop will be permenant. If you want a long term solution look for the future value of the qualification.

[fritter]

That is why (even though I hate to give them any credit) the Interim/Spherion/CPTG/Whatever they call themselves next was a pretty decent option to get you in the door of a helpdesk if you have no previous experience (or know noone, or have no certs etc).

The Spherion courses basically prove that you can pick things up quickly, and that is quite an important thing...

As I have said, the best bet (and hardest) is to know someone who is willing to give you a chance to prove you are competent.

Then you can specialize once you find the area you like (Networks for you?). Note there is a difference though between 'systems' engineers (microsoft/linux etc) who work with pc/server operating systems and hardware, and 'network' engineers (cisco/juniper etc) who work with routers/switches operating systems and hardware. Quite often people seem to mix the two around (which is fine when the 'engineer' in question knows both :) )

Build yourself a pc or two then have a play before you do any courses - you'll learn far more that way, then you can breeze through a course like the Spherion one...

Good luck anyway

[Big Dog]

(Networks for you?).
I think so... Hardware fascinates me (standalone), software is just mildly interesting (it is the outcome I give a hoot about with software). I just like pulling things that don't work apart, and love putting themn back together functional. Especially when I don't know what it was or how it worked before I started.

[fritter]

I think so... Hardware fascinates me (standalone), software is just mildly interesting (it is the outcome I give a hoot about with software). I just like pulling things that don't work apart, and love putting themn back together functional. Especially when I don't know what it was or how it worked before I started.

If it's just hardware you are interested in, then you might want to try and get your foot in the door of any pc shop that builds systems (or at least repairs them). Some helpdesks do this (ours does) too. Normally you would have fairly decent knowledge of hardware before you move into network or systems stuff too. The reason getting into a helpdesk rather than a shop is better (take whatever you can of course!) is that you can move into systems/networks from the helpdesk without too much hassle. Much easier to see which one you lean towards that way as well.

If you like hardware, definitely get yourself a couple of pc's to play with at home. It sounds like this would be your thing. I'm sure you can get yourself a copy of a few MS operating systems to experiment with too... Mess around for a while and you'll be building pc's for yourself and your mates in no time. WARNING: Once your family and friends know you are competent at this kind of thing, you are likely to be constantly asked to do things for them. It's even worse than being a tradesman :crazy:

If you want to fiddle with any networking stuff, but can't get your hands on a proper router, you can fiddle with linux or something like freesco http://www.freesco.org/ ... you can run these on any old crappy pc (preferably with a few network cards in them), and get a better idea of how it works. It's not too interesting until you can play with a larger network to be honest though. I'd play with the pc's and pc/server operating systems for a while before bothering with the networking stuff if I were you anyway. Linux can be a good bridge between the two though, since it does both sides pretty well.

There are stacks of web sites that can help you with all this stuff if you just want to learn it and aren't too worried about that stupid piece of paper. Let me know if you can't find any decent ones and I'll see if I can dig up a few for you.

[avgas]

$12K, nah stuf it - go get a degree somewhere for that price from an international based firm

[MOTOXXX]

haha
ive got an interview with one of the tutors at the wellington one on monday.
they quoted me $7.5k for the diploma in systems technology and 9.5k for the diploma in information tech (network engeneering)
there qualifications are interchangable with polytechs like whiterea etc.

from what ive heard the networking one is quite difficult and its not easy to throw yourself into that course strait away.

[crazyxr250rider]

Please don't vote unless you are in or have been in IT.
Too late but honestly $12000
become an aprentice if you REALY want to do I.T.
i shure as hell dont.

[Sniper]

Why the hell did you resurrect a year old thread???????

[fritter]

In that amount of time most courses should have changed by now lol

[John]

Qualifications are fairly neccessary nowadays in IT

Sadly a qualfication without experience means diddly shit - makes sense, go do a course denied from all jobs because of no work experience end up working in a supermarket go figure :slap:.

[John]

Why the hell did you resurrect a year old thread???????
god damn it :@

Here I am thinking that it was a recent one FUCK!

[fritter]

Sadly a qualfication without experience means diddly shit - makes sense, go do a course denied from all jobs because of no work experience end up working in a supermarket go figure :slap:.

mmmm. yeah. shouldn't even try huh? :scratch:

maybe it would be best to just go to a company asking for a technical job - however entry level it may be - and tell them we don't have any experience OR any qualifications. that'll make it easier for the employer to filter cv's out anyway.

then again, at the rate things are going, people won't even be able to get a supermarket job without a phd in commerce and 10 years customer service experience


since this is such an old thread anyway - do we have an update? any joy finding work yet?

[MOTOXXX]

im currently at the wellington one. its not called spherion anymore its called compuer power
they are a good way to get into i.t as far as i have seen.

in some of the courses 100 hours training at a company and sometims you get a job at the end of it. my placement lady has more job offers than students ready to graduate.

but experience is a huge part of it.

im doing the systems tech diploma and am on work exp. im helping fix dell laptops, builds on servers etc etc. all good learning.
spose u gota start some place eh
ps can i have a job anyone lol :beer:

[fritter]

when I started there first it was CPTI - computer power training institute, then they changed to 'interim', then to spherion, then back to computer power lol.

at the time the tutors were shite and the course content wasn't that good either - incorrect content in the manuals etc, but it covered plenty of areas, which is what matters to employers - it shows you can learn, which is what counts ultimately. the careers placement thing was shit.

I got a job by myself and left about 3/4's of the way through the course - I went in during my lunchbreaks to sit the exams so I could get the cert. I had plenty of experience at home building pc's and programming etc, I'd even had a job part time as a computer operator, but none of that meant anything towards a full time job without that stoopid piece of paper, and a part time operator job is hardly considered to be experience. I learnt more by messing around at home than I ever did on any course (apart from voip - that was harder to play with at home lol).

And before any :tugger: replies saying that it won't get you into a highly technical job, it won't. No one I knew who signed up at the time expected that straight away. But it gives you a better chance at getting a foot in the door, which is all you need. Then you can get industry certs like msce, ccnp etc, which WILL get you a decent job with decent pay. The only bitch is that you have to keep studying in order to keep up with technology. You don't necessarily need to keep the industry certs current though, as long as you know enough about the field you work in.

good luck motoxxx. keep us posted on how it goes anyway. we've just filled a helpdesk job, but they come up every now and then. sounds like the work experience you are doing will prolly lead to a job at the same place :niceone:

[MOTOXXX]

yea getting a realy good job strait out of anything like this is a bit rare.
ill keep you posted to how im going.

ill be finished my course in about 2 months and then i have to do a+ cert and looking to do maybe network + and poss mcsa but ill see how i go

:)

[fritter]

I wouldn't bother with network+ AND a+. One of them should do - they are both very entry level certs (I don't know of many people who have either, let alone both of them). Let your job decide which one. You might find the place that hires you will pay for you to do a+ or something to start with anyway... be good to hear how you go though.

[Ghost Lemur]

I wouldn't bother with network+ AND a+. One of them should do - they are both very entry level certs (I don't know of many people who have either, let alone both of them). Let your job decide which one. You might find the place that hires you will pay for you to do a+ or something to start with anyway... be good to hear how you go though.

Personally I'd forget about them completely. at least when I did them they said themselves that the qualifications only equal 6 months experience. Total waste of time. The CISCO quals on the other hand are a little more valueable.

Still trying to get my foot in the industry (programming, software engineering, etc). Getting a bit annoyed at the constant talk about shortages, yet it still looks like none of them are willing to take on the entry levels. Constidered getting a degree part-time, but will only do it once I've got the foot in and know it's going to be worth while.

Went to the Spherion down here in Christchurch. Had no problems with them. It's still about who you know and not what, when it comes to getting an actual job.

[fritter]

Personally I'd forget about them completely. at least when I did them they said themselves that the qualifications only equal 6 months experience. Total waste of time. The CISCO quals on the other hand are a little more valueable.

I never did A+ or Network+ either. Seemed like a waste of time to me, but a few places do seem to like them now. At least it doesn't require much time or effort to get them I suppose..

The cisco quals are to the network world what the microsoft quals are to the systems world. The MSCE lost a lot of credit years ago, but the exams are a bit harder now (nowhere near as hard as a CCIE of course, but there isn't really an MS equivalent that I am aware of), so they seem to hold a bit more sway than they used to.


Constidered getting a degree part-time, but will only do it once I've got the foot in and know it's going to be worth while.
Really? Certainly never seemed worth it to me. At least not a degree relating to anything technical. Something like law,commerce etc might be helpful to move to management though...


It's still about who you know and not what, when it comes to getting an actual job.
pretty much - lol :)

[Big Dog]

This thread is so old I have now done A+ network + and am happily employed at a major IT firm.
Only helpdesk at the moment but it is a start and an eduction. Trying to sort out some company funded MCSA / MCSE.


Don't quite know how so many negative people end up in the idustry.
Yes the politics suck but the work is good honest and fun. :headbang:

[fritter]

Glad to hear it all worked out well for you BD

Good luck getting them to pay for your mcse. If you appear keen enough most decent size places will help out :)

[Big Dog]

Glad to hear it all worked out well for you BD

Good luck getting them to pay for your mcse. If you appear keen enough most decent size places will help out :)
They paid, I start MCSA in november.
Maybe next year for mcse apparently.
looking forward to a decent mental :apumpin: instead of telling forty people a day to restart their computer.....

[MOTOXXX]

Update for MOTOXXX

well ive just finished my diploma in systems technology and am almost finished my a+ os exam. The tutors and staff have been awsome here and have helped me a lot.
the placement program they have here is awsome and for those people that think that it is a waste of time...

Since december i have had about 6 or 7 job interview and 4 job offers

i have had two job offers today, one from a network eng place and one from a top government security org. both paying 40k starting.

im absolutly stoked and start my new job on first of Feb.

Thanks to jim2 for forwarding my cv around his work. even though i didnt get a job there ur a champ dude.



its goint to be great having money again. wooootttt

[fritter]

congratulations - it's a pain in the arse having to get those bits of paper at first, but now you've got your foot in the door you'll be all set :yeah:

[bluninja]

Wow, old thread. Glad to hear that Big Dog made the successful transition to IT. When I returned to yU.K. I decided to return to IT to get back to some money, but had no luck except short crappy contracts. Feed back was that, a 2 year break had lost me all my experience and as I had no certs I was not very employable.

Went with a training provider and obtained my MCSA, should have completed my MCSE and Security+ last September but I keep being left hanging waiting for the next course (and they would cancel my contract if I just took the certs without waiting to do the course).

Still I'm working at a college now as the Systems Engineer and will complete the certs in the next couple of months. The pay is crap, but I get to do anything and everything so it's good for ramping up my experience and currency ready for my next job...and hopefully a return to NZ in 3 years.

[Big Dog]

Wow, old thread. Glad to hear that Big Dog made the successful transition to IT.
Thanks BluNinja.
Hows it going in the land of gatso?
Currently doing MCDST (they won't let me sit MCSA until I pass that, company policy). When that is done I'll move on to MCSA etc. all on the company wedge.

Still got the Aprilia?

[bluninja]

Yup, still got the Aprilia (in storage). I started to commute to work on my GT200 this week. Engine locked at 110kmh on the way home on the motorway, so I guess the Aprilia will be brought out of storage sooner than I'd planned (had wanted to wait till the worst of the frosty mornings was over).

Next week I'm doing my 070-216 exam, then the 070-224 to finish my MCSE on 2000, followed by the 2 upgrade exams for 2003. I'm working in a mixed 2000/2003/Novell server setup, and we're just getting about 50 Macs, so plenty of stuff to play with, gain experience on, and add to my CV for my next job.

The training cost me £6k, but I thought it was worth it on the basis of the courses running every 2 weeks and a job guarantee at the end (£20k pa job, or all your training money back). I have to wait ages for the courses, and I found my own job anyway, but such is life.

[Big Dog]

Got my 70-271 in three weeks.

By the end of the year work has made available for me to do (read that expects me to pass):
MCP
MCDST
MCSA
CCNA
MCSE
Security +
& Microsoft Security.

Certainly makes Helpdesk / Problem co-ordinator type role much more bearable when you are actually learning something.

[bluninja]

I would wish you good luck, but with your IQ, even depreciated by the bash on your head, you'll have no problems and won't need luck. Maybe in a few years when you're hiring IT people yourself I might send you my CV LOL.