Hey there! I'm in my final college year and starting to hunt for jobs in system administration since I'm leaning towards a career in infrastructure and eventually cloud tech. I've noticed that job postings for SysAdmin roles vary significantly in what they require—some seem more like help desk jobs, while others demand a lot of DevOps skills, including CI/CD and scripting. Should I be avoiding the simpler SysAdmin jobs if I'm aiming to work in cloud or DevOps? And are there any red flags I should watch out for in job descriptions? Thanks for your help!
5 Answers
Just a heads up, it's really competitive out there! If you've got coding skills, try landing higher-end junior roles. Otherwise, just know help desk is where many start off. Good luck!
Definitely aim for a solid help desk role to begin with. Even with just a year’s experience, showing you understand key concepts will help you more than just having a degree. Experience trumps everything.
I manage a team of SysAdmins and honestly, it's tough to hire someone without at least two years of real-world SysAdmin experience. If you've got no experience, help desk is probably the best starting point. Choose a job that aligns with your interests rather than just going for the highest pay, and watch out for job descriptions that ask for too much across the board—that's usually a red flag!
As a hiring manager, I find that a mere degree isn’t enough to land a SysAdmin job. Many graduates have decent theoretical knowledge but lack practical skills. It's best to start in a role that gives you hands-on experience, like help desk, before moving to a SysAdmin position. Building your skills practically is crucial!
Starting off, it's pretty common that you might need to take a help desk position at first. Just focus on doing your best there and try to keep things cloud and automation-oriented if that’s your goal. I’m in a cloud role now and wouldn't want to go back to on-prem jobs, but I was quite lucky in my journey.
Totally agree! SysAdmin isn't your typical entry-level position. Real-world experience is hard to get right out of college. Starting at help desk, getting some certifications, and working your way up is a smart move.