A degree without applicable experience is a non-starter for most would be employers. A good five to ten years delay in the progression of someone’s career occurs when they did not achieve the intern experience while in school. Sometimes career upward mobility is never achieved. The struggle for many low to mid-level income individuals is creating the free time for taking on an internship when they are responsible for other family members and at the very least, providing a stable income for themselves.
Meanwhile, the current employer format is to post a job with the required experience, degrees, and certifications. There is a disconnect in the workforce when corporations want to employ individuals with more diverse backgrounds but do not cultivate any relationships with our fresh out of high school or struggling to get through college, prospective workforce.
As a prospective employer, viewing a limited to no experience on a resume is a quick exit to the circular file. Add the grammatical errors, typos, and not tailoring their resume and cover letter to the job at hand is a deal breaker for most employers. Especially, when sifting through hundreds of job candidate emails. The inability to maintain their professionalism throughout the interview process (and beyond) when articulating their thoughts is just another reason for most employers to dismiss the candidate. I can’t tell you how many send emails like it’s a text message, filled with half sentences and incomplete thoughts.
Finally, faking it to you make it… We are guilty of it and for many, it’s encouraged. However, employers cannot pursue candidates that say they have a wealth of experience but the candidate completely fails during the interview at providing the muscle memory steps for accomplishing the task they supposedly know so much about.
While I do not have the answers for creating free time, I do know free continuing education (Non-Credit, No Fee) classes at www.sdccd.edu that can benefit these prospective employees with kick starting their careers. Check out below for a list of opportunities for attending vocational schooling classes in tech. This will help towards achieving a position as network IT professional.
Communication Classes (Free Classes)
CRTW 537 – Writers Workshop
COMP 628 – Business Information Systems
Industry Vertical Classes (Free IT Classes)
COMP 608 – Basic Network Config
COMP 609 – Network Security Basics
COMP 612 – Hardware Service Tech
COMP 642 – Service Admin Fundamentals
COMP 641 – Linux Essentials
COMP 643 – Linux Server
Paid Continuing Ed Classes
ETG-222 Introduction to PC Security | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com)
ETG-242 Introduction to Networking | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com)
Understanding the Cloud | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com) (not really challenging but could be interesting)
More Advanced Classes
Intermediate Networking | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com) (I really like this one)
Intermediate Networking | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com) (self paced version)
CompTIA Security+ Certification Prep 1 | Southwestern College – Chula Vista, CA (ed2go.com)
Additional resources can be found at San Diego State’s many programs listed below to Assist Youth with a Career Road Map.
SDSU Internships
Student Affairs Department Internship Info:
https://sacd.sdsu.edu/career/internship-central/student-internships
Academic Internships:
https://studentsuccess.sdsu.edu/academic-internships
Entrepreneurship Internships:
https://lavincenter.sdsu.edu/programs/Internships
Micro-Internships:
https://info.parkerdewey.com/sdsu
How to Assist Youth with a Career Road Map for Success Summary
There are plenty of ways organizations can participate in assisting low to mid-level income individuals find their footing in corporate and service sector fields. Simply saying there aren’t any applicants is not going to solve any ongoing issues.
Additional Resources:
How to be a Network IT Professional in the San Diego scene – Network Antics
