IT Certifications in the Kenyan Market

[dennis_darren]

@epoch

Hizo mbili zimetosha. Focus kutafuta job. Most companies have training costs as part of the IT budget. As such, most certs utapata ukiwa job (either paid ama ujilipie depending on your interests).
Experience ya job ni muhimu.
I hope unatafuta.

Currently hustle yangu sio demanding hence wanted to do as many certs as possible. CCNA alone inakaa too little.

[system]

@Jay Ule Msee

Ongeza Linux administration, CCNA security, alafu upige mix ya avaya na mikrotik.Na uchukue driving licence unawesa pata job inahitaji kwenda sites na company car. an example ni Empire Microsystems hapo upper hill shelter afrique, JTL or Zuku Faiba

Salimia Mworia.

[epoch]

@dennis_darren

Currently hustle yangu sio demanding hence wanted to do as many certs as possible. CCNA alone inakaa too little.

Good. Some need practice to maintain them.

[Jay_Ule_Msee]

@Thagichu

Salimia Mworia.

I will…Talkers wanakuwaga wasito chini ya maji. Ni vile kijiji ni place ya kupunguza stress nikisoma upuss comments na kutafuta good deals and life skills

[system]

@Jay Ule Msee

I will…Talkers wanakuwaga wasito chini ya maji. Ni vile kijiji ni place ya kupunguza stress nikisoma upuss comments na kutafuta good deals and life skills

True, the village makes us equal.

[dennis_darren]

Sasa mmesemaje wakubwa. CCNA should be coupleD with MCSA or its better to just head straight into CCNP?

[Jay_Ule_Msee]

Naona wewe ni kama unataka kuwa sys admin. my niko core networking hizi zingine ni side dish. either way after 3 years,cert ya ccna ikiexpire, you will have to pass other Cisco programs

[conteh]

@dennis_darren

So I don’t need to know a little of this and a little of that? I’ve been seeing a lot of companies where the system admin is also the network admin. Thats why I was considering another entry level cert instead in order to have a different skillet such as server administration. Its like more of a data centre full stack. Juu nikiendelea na CCNP mambo ya Active Directory na Virtualization nitawai julia wapi. This was my thinking line. Is it better to focus solely on networking and get the CCNP ama ni diversify skills na other certs? Which one will make it easier to get a job?

CISA, MCSE, Oracle DBA etc

[dennis_darren]

@Jay Ule Msee

Naona wewe ni kama unataka kuwa sys admin. my niko core networking hizi zingine ni side dish. either way after 3 years,cert ya ccna ikiexpire, you will have to pass other Cisco programs

Before 3 years nitakua nime advance to CCNP. Since core ni networking, side dish ndio natafuta sasa ya kuongezea for the time being. Kufanya CCNP bila job experience haikai idea poa.

[Kigui]

To the OP.

You seem to be starting out on your IT career. Karibu sana. If i were in your shoes, i would complete that ccna first, you already have momentum and the second exam is a continuation of the first exam. I would then consider entry level Windows Admin certification, and then a solid understanding of administering sql server databases. It will also be helpful to have a solid understanding office applications as well as scripting in powershell or python. This skillset will get you an entry level job in any shop that uses Microsoft.

VMWare is for more advanced shops and will be handled by more experienced hands.

Talkers feel free to critique my opinion. I have been away for a while and may not have the exact feel of the market.

[system]

@Kigui

To the OP.

You seem to be starting out on your IT career. Karibu sana. If i were in your shoes, i would complete that ccna first, you already have momentum and the second exam is a continuation of the first exam. I would then consider entry level Windows Admin certification, and then a solid understanding of administering sql server databases. It will also be helpful to have a solid understanding office applications as well as scripting in powershell or python. This skillset will get you an entry level job in any shop that uses Microsoft.

VMWare is for more advanced shops and will be handled by more experienced hands.

Talkers feel free to critique my opinion. I have been away for a while and may not have the exact feel of the market.

I would take oracle and Linux.

[Kigui]

@Thagichu

I would take oracle and Linux.

Why? I thought most Kenyan shops run on Windows. Why restrict an entrant to very few job opportunities in oracle/unix world? I may be wrong, but i believe there are very few opportunities in this area.

BTW OP, do you have a theoretical foundation course (degree/diploma) in IT? It is always helpful in the long term.

[system]

@Kigui

Why? I thought most Kenyan shops run on Windows. Why restrict an entrant to very few job opportunities in oracle/unix world? I may be wrong, but i believe there are very few opportunities in this area.

BTW OP, do you have a theoretical foundation course (degree/diploma)? It is always helpful in the long term.

Oracle and Linux pay well unlike windows. Unless you want to be a support desk person, get beyond Windows.

[Kigui]

@Thagichu

Oracle and Linux pay well unlike windows. Unless you want to be a support desk person, get beyond Windows.

Agreed. The pay is better for Unix/Oracle path. I was looking at it from an entrant point of view. Yeye anahitaji kitunguu inuke. Once he gets a job, he can afford to build a home lab. Asome ajiendeleze kwa hizo skills zingine that will land him the next better paying job.

[dennis_darren]

@Kigui

To the OP.

You seem to be starting out on your IT career. Karibu sana. If i were in your shoes, i would complete that ccna first, you already have momentum and the second exam is a continuation of the first exam. I would then consider entry level Windows Admin certification, and then a solid understanding of administering sql server databases. It will also be helpful to have a solid understanding office applications as well as scripting in powershell or python. This skillset will get you an entry level job in any shop that uses Microsoft.

VMWare is for more advanced shops and will be handled by more experienced hands.

Talkers feel free to critique my opinion. I have been away for a while and may not have the exact feel of the market.

This is the sort of advice I was looking for. So it should be sort of CCNA—>MCSA—>ORACLE OCA although I think the MCSA has sql stuff in there so somehow the MCSA alone looks like the next step right?

[dennis_darren]

@Thagichu

Oracle and Linux pay well unlike windows. Unless you want to be a support desk person, get beyond Windows.

So for this path CCNA---->LINUX+/LPIC1---->OCA. I was actually thinking of the MCSA because I saw it’s more of server administration not because I want to land a help desk job.

[Kigui]

@dennis_darren

This is the sort of advice I was looking for. So it should be sort of CCNA—>MCSA—>ORACLE OCA although I think the MCSA has sql stuff in there so somehow the MCSA alone looks like the next step right?

Thanks @dennis_darren. For now, concentrate on ccna, once done do mcsa, keep applying for jobs. Hang out with people who can give you leads to jobs (thats very important!). Keep looking at the job marketplace for skills that employers are looking for. Keep sharpening your axe with new skills. Challenge yourself, build a data centre in your room.

[Kigui]

BTW, you dont need a lot of money to build a data centre start here http://www.tomshardware.com

[Kigui]

@dennis_darren

So for this path CCNA---->LINUX+/LPIC1---->OCA. I was actually thinking of the MCSA because I saw it’s more of server administration not because I want to land a help desk job.

You cant be too choosy at this stage, evaluate the market and look for low hanging fruits that can help you scale up.

[dennis_darren]

@Kigui

Thanks @dennis_darren. For now, concentrate on ccna, once done do mcsa, keep applying for jobs. Hang out with people who can give you leads to jobs (thats very important!). Keep looking at the job marketplace for skills that employers are looking for. Keep sharpening your axe with new skills. Challenge yourself, build a data centre in your room.

Data Centre maybe after landing a job. Equipment specifically cisco hardware is very expensive. Saw 2960s going for over 60k, unless am looking in the wrong places it’s out of reach for now.