Tips on shifting career to IT

[AkiFoblesia]

I would like to share some insights in shifting career to IT. I for one am a career shifter, and somewhat a late one for my age. I worked on a totally unrelated industry for 5 years then shifted to IT at the age of 27. Since then, however, work has been fun :)

As the thread title implies, this is more applicable to working professionals who would like to start an IT career or to non-IT graduates who would like to pursue one.

I will present the tips using these categories:
- Types of IT Jobs for the non-IT graduates
- Skills/Qualifications that make it to an IT position
- Work Load and Compensation
- Companies To Consider and Tips on applying
- Institutions that offer quality IT short courses

Here goes:

Types of IT Jobs for the non-IT graduates

The most common IT jobs fall in any of these categories: programming, qa/testing and hardware (networking, etc).

Programming concerns software development. This type of work generally requires understanding business requirements and then coding or create a corresponding system. A programmer can also be assigned to "short-term" work such as fixing bug. However big of coding a programmer is assigned to, documentation is almost always required. It is being more common for programming positions to be offered to non-IT graduates by offering trainings. The position is usually called "Programmer Trainee".

Testing, as the name implies, is a quality assurance type of work. A tester must have a clear understanding of what is required to be accomplished by a system that is being developed and then, by completion, check whether the requirements are met. To illustrate, suppose that an employee database system is being developed. A tester should know what the system should do. Based for that he/she will check if the developed system works as per required. Software testing positions are usually offered to anyone who graduated with any four-year course.

Hardware, networking, setup, etc. usually requires applicants to have some training on the specific device that is being used by the company. I am not fully aware on the trends in this aspect of IT, however I have yet to encounter a company that offers non-experienced, non-IT graduates to hire for the said position.

I will be focusing on the programming and testing positions.

Take note that the said types of work above are not dead end positions. Eventually a programmer or tester (or any type of employee for this matter) would have to learn to handle people and become leaders.


Skills/Qualifications that make it to an IT position

IT companies test the logical skills of an applicant quite extensively. Ability to grasp programming concepts in a short time is also important. A minimum set of learning speed is required for trainees. Difficulty of training and standard is different from company to company. I know one that dropped off more than 80% of its trainees on one batch due to inability to catch up. Fortunately, this instance/company seem to be more of an exception (its compensation and employees are exceptionally good as well, however). Most of the time serious trainees make it through training.

In addition to logical thinking, the ability to understand business requirement and to read between the lines are also required.


Work Load and Compensation

Of course overtime work is also present (especially?) in the IT industry. Anyone who passes the training can expect similar type of work during actual deployment although more time-constrained. Depending again on the company, there are also relaxed times/days.

There seem to be more companies that do not give OT pay than those who do for the IT industry, at least in Manila (correct me if I am wrong).

As for starting salary, think twice before accepting a basic salary that is less P15,000 per month. Consider 15k as the minimum for a trainee. There are many companies that offer better than that for trainees.

Another thing to note is the bond. Most IT companies that offer trainee positions require 1 to 3 year bonds.

Once experienced, the playing field becomes too complicated that increase in salaries can go as low as to being insignificant to as high as being unbelievable.


Companies To Consider and Tips on applying

I am not aware of all the the companies that offer trainee positions. Of all those that I am aware of, I recommend these companies:

Azeus
Accenture
Safeway Philtech
Pointwest

I have either taken an exam or got employed to each of those companies. And as much as I would like to give description on each for their salary and culture, I am a little hesitant as I am not aware of the legal constraints I have to consider. Suffice it to say those those companies are great places to start an IT career for non-IT graduates.

In applying consider these tips:

- Call the company first; ask if they have a scheduled exam then ask them if you can take that exam then submit your credentials at the same time; this is way faster than submitting one online then wait for a call; this will work only on selected companies

- If an exam has a vocabulary part, do not be scared if you have no idea what the words are. Almost all who make it do not have any idea on what those are either

- Since you are not an IT graduate, it will be good to let them know that you will love to have the job;

- Be prepared to be asked regarding your low grades during college if you have some; and if indeed you have, let them know how good you are in logic and how dedicated you want to be at work


Institutions that offer quality IT short courses

With the available programmer trainee positions out there, one may need not actually pay for trainings on a school, and instead be paid for being trained at IT companies. Enrolling on one however gives you an edge. There are even companies who consider performance during training as a basis for salary increase. In this case, getting training at school before your training at any company might help.

For schools, the first thing that matters is the quality. Once you collected all the good-education quality schools, compare then everything else such as the tuition fees, location, etc.

Crash courses are usually scheduled during the evening or on Saturdays. Consider the following institutions:

- National Computer Center (near UP Diliman)
- Meralco Foundation Institute (Ortigas)
- http://ittc.up.edu.ph (UP Diliman)

I took some courses at NCC. The quality is really good and tuition fee is relatively low. They have strict requirements for their teachers, one of which is that they should be among the best. I think it is also the same for the other two.

[g87]

nice. thanks for the great info! very helpful since i'd be shifting to IT too.

[gothdoll]

hi AkiFoblesia, thanks for this! May I know your college course? I'm also looking into shifting to IT now. Sana nga lang pumasa ako :D

[AkiFoblesia]

^college course ko? Agricultural Economics. hehe. May naging officemates na ko sa IT na graduate ng Biology, Vet Med, Psychology, etc...

[boyMagnet♥]

AkiFoblesia
pwede po ba malaman kung san ka nagstart na company nung nagshift ka sa i.t. and anong position.thanks:)

[Mageta]

Thanks AkiFoblesia!

This is very helpful!

I am also planning to shift to an IT career.

I am currently working as a Fraud Analyst in a CALL CENTER LIKE company.

[angisa]

very nice thread.
im currently in singapore and working in a bank. I am also planning to shift to IT. Knowing how well-paid IT Professionals are, i was convinced to shift careers.

Hirap kasi ng work ko. feeling hindi worth ang magpaalipin sa bangko. hehehe. Inggit ako sa mga IT dito, relatively mas madali ang work. hay.

Tips naman jan!

[harukatenoh]

very nice thread.
im currently in singapore and working in a bank. I am also planning to shift to IT. Knowing how well-paid IT Professionals are, i was convinced to shift careers.

Hirap kasi ng work ko. feeling hindi worth ang magpaalipin sa bangko. hehehe. Inggit ako sa mga IT dito, relatively mas madali ang work. hay.

Tips naman jan!

Hi there nice thread. na-inspire naman ako sayo kasi 27 na din ako at talagang iniisip ko na lumipat ng IT. actually last year nag-apply na ako sa mga companies na nabanggit mo. yung accenture di na talaga tumawag. feeling ko kasi particular sila sa dati mo na school pati grades :( kaya ngayon nasa job ako na di pa din related sa IT hay...ang masasabi ko lang nose bleed yang exam sa pointwest bwahahaha.

wala ba'ng age limit sa mga companies na nabanggit mo? thanks for this thread :)

[HiM0Dz]

very nice thread.
im currently in singapore and working in a bank. I am also planning to shift to IT. Knowing how well-paid IT Professionals are, i was convinced to shift careers.

Hirap kasi ng work ko. feeling hindi worth ang magpaalipin sa bangko. hehehe. Inggit ako sa mga IT dito, relatively mas madali ang work. hay.

Tips naman jan!

that's good.. but don't expect an easy job.. di ganun kadali ang work sa IT - you may be on call, no holidays, work on shifts, etc.. and work pressure is quite high especially in banks

[gothdoll]

coincidentally, i'm 27 too :D

[car_racer]

i' m also considering an IT career. needless to say, i am posting because, just like the rest, am non-it grad. my training is into media/ communication. im still puzzled how it's gonna be

[DisconnectedMX]

if u have PC at home, then it would be easy. just do the self study first.

[Kolmogorov]

There are many IT accompanies who accept career shifters (like me). The catch is since career shifter ka nga, you will start from the beginning, yung tipong magtuturo sa iyo eh mas bata pa sa iyo

So if you are indeed decided to shift, be humble enough na minsan mautusan ka ng mga employees younger than you.

And of course, do your homework, practice good work attitude, and be a fast-learner! IT is not that hard kung masipag kang mag-aral

Ako rin, 27 hahaha!

[gothdoll]

kolmogorov, may I ask what's your work in IT now? And pano ka nagshift? Ako ay nagtry na but to no avail. sad. :(

[AkiFoblesia]

@Kolmogorov,

true. dapat nailagay ko din yung sinabi mo dun sa first post. naisip ko din yun pero somehow, nakalimutan ko. hehe.

---

nweys, i'll be doing some recollection then post naman ng advantages and disadvantages ng trabahong IT - on my own point of view of course.

will post again soon!

[.::guapito::.]

^hi, so san ka ngayon connected?

[roschelvida]

if u have PC at home, then it would be easy. just do the self study first.

talaga?? pano ba gagawin yun?? san ba mas maganda? pwede ba magdownload ng java at .net or vb tutorial at yung software programming niya mismo?? san ba mas maganda sa tatlo???:hmm:

[jdash]

^ ebooks okay in self-studying to grasp the concepts.

or

CBT's (computer based tutorial) to learn how it is implemented by experts.

There are a lot of source out there in the internet.

[AkiFoblesia]

i suggest you find a good school to learn; while you can learn through self study, generally mas mabilis kapag may nagtuturo sa yo. also, pwede mo mailagay sa resume mo kung mag aral ka. but then again you can just find a company that offers training even if you have no IT-background at all. kung ok foundation mo on logic/math, you can easily adjust.

[you101]

am currently working on IT but am an engineering graduate.

i would like to ask opinion regarding support work e.g. bug fixes, is this an ok work. or should i try to find a way to a more development role?

i feel in a support role, i would not be able to maximize learning potential...

[AkiFoblesia]

am currently working on IT but am an engineering graduate.

i would like to ask opinion regarding support work e.g. bug fixes, is this an ok work. or should i try to find a way to a more development role?

i feel in a support role, i would not be able to maximize learning potential...

pag developer role, kasama na dun yung bug fixing. depende sa project, pwede kang purely bug fixing lang, or develop something from scratch. kung ano man, magkakaroon ka ng growth. ok yun *okay*

[veemi]

I'm a Business Economics grad, first job ko ngayon as programmer trainee and I'm assigned in Java. Okay na ba to? I was initially eyeing SAP that's why I applied for the trainee position. Feeling ko kase magagamit ko kahit papano college background ko kung SAP, parang gusto ko magpalipat...

advice anyone?

[angisa]

magkano po kaya *** sweldo ng mga career shifters?

[^^Ajaj^^]

I'm a Business Economics grad, first job ko ngayon as programmer trainee and I'm assigned in Java. Okay na ba to? I was initially eyeing SAP that's why I applied for the trainee position. Feeling ko kase magagamit ko kahit papano college background ko kung SAP, parang gusto ko magpalipat...

advice anyone?

Java is way too good for nowadays marami ng projects relating to java pero tama ka masaya nga daw SAP pero ang alam ko nature din ng SAP java eh*okay*

newei great topic guys... btw 27 na din me now hehehe... ako IT grad pero i could consider IT shifter pa din me hehehe kasi kahit nung college pa lang nasa sales na ako den after grad sales&advertising naman wid Airo Media... tpos after nung nagturo sa AMA and ACLC ayun pero lakas ng hatak ng IT field hehehe*okay*

etoh lang advice ko kung try nyo IT just be contented with what you are doing muna before expecting something drastic change(salary,position,etc...) compared sa iniwan nyong non IT work... being happy alone would constitute sa idea na yung boss mo ay maiimpress at magagandahan sa results ng team nyo yun ang mas ok taasan salary and position mo agad dba...*okay*

[Peter►]

Hind ganon kadali ang trabaho sa IT.Matrabaho, toxic and nakakapagod . Kung hindi mo hilig baka mahirapan ka lang.. Kaya bago ka mag shift mag isip ka isip ka muna.

[AkiFoblesia]

magkano po kaya *** sweldo ng mga career shifters?

most common is 15k. pero meron din mga mas mataas magpa sweldo for trainees.

[20"strong]

^ Baka pedeng magtanong kung san pedeng mag apply as programmer trainee for SAP? Interesado din akong mag shift ng career. Just like veemi Economics grad din ako.

[^^Ajaj^^]

^ Baka pedeng magtanong kung san pedeng mag apply as programmer trainee for SAP? Interesado din akong mag shift ng career. Just like veemi Economics grad din ako.

try Kaisa kung SAP*okay*

[20"strong]

try Kaisa kung SAP*okay*

Dumb question..Babayaran ba nila ako as trainee or parang mageenrol ka sa kanila tapos sila *** mahahanap ng work para sayo? :D

Parang may nabasa din ako na meron din daw sa software factory? Tama ba un?

[pagie]

eto na naman. me thread ang kaisa dito, at kung di ako nagkakamali meron din ang SF.

[akk]

@AkiFoblesia - nag aral ka ba muna ng short course (IT) before applying for an it position and getting hired??

or you were hired by an IT company (for an IT pos.) and from there, they are the ones that provided you with the IT training? sila ba nag-paaral sa iyo?

[tyr_alexandros]

Regarding SAP, the only time you're really required to have experience/knowledge of a particular programming language is if you're going to use ABAP. Some of the modules in SAP require accounting knowledge, HR, logistics etc., kaya hindi necessarily programmer ang kailangan ng companies.

Anyways, maraming companies ang tumatanggap ng career-shifters for programmer trainee position. Some companies only offer allowance lalo na kapag bootcamp training ang style nila. Some offer your usual I.T. entry-level salary along with a training bond. Personally, I prefer companies with bond, kasi it somehow gives me the assurance that the company will invest for my growth.

Tip ko lang para dun sa gustong magshift to IT: do good on your technical exam. Emphasis on logical and mathematical reasoning. Try to familiarize yourself on reading diagrams and flowcharts.

[Goddess_0618]

Hi! Ako naman I'm a business graduate with solid background in banking specifically investment/fund management. But somehow gusto ko i-try sa Misys...kasi ito gamit namin sa office before pero as parang functional consultant lang sana.

Kaya ko na kaya demands non? Or do i need to know SAP and JAVA. What are your recommended schools kahit shot courses lang.

[team slick]

^
Since you posted in the other thread, ill reply to your query here. From a functional side of things, if you're solid in operations then what you need to know is how to apply the business operations in the product that you will be geared at (e.g. Opics, Equation, Summit)

You'll be taught how to use the system although its not a hand helding practice and normally based from experience is that the functional trainng is less intensive compared to a technical training . The assumption is that you'll learn onsite as expected that you'll be able to apply your experience in the said position

From a technical standpoint, it would be preferable if you could understand tech lingo (e.g. sql, programming) as the normal function of a functional consultant is to be a middleman or liaise between the end users (business group) and the tech guys (technical group) but the role is not dependent whether you know how to use the technological aspect/platforms (e.g java or SAP or vb) nor will you actually be given a crash course in learning how to write reports (via sql) or develop something from scratch via the tools before mentioned.

What is expected out of you though is to be able have an understanding of the system in order to provide solutions/workarounds to the requirements of the business group and communicate this solutions to the technical team (bear in mind that this group might not neccessarily understand how the system works but might know how the system is built)

I have worked with functional guys who can barely login into the system but can talk bull crap with the users but most of the functional people that i respect and considered real good in their craft are those who knows the system in and out not how it is build but how it behaves and how it works (e.g. accounting entries raised by different transactions, codes being used, workflow processing)

Since you mentioned that you had previous experience using the system then i would strongly suggest that you emphasize that as your selling point as well as your experience in investment and fund management (whether be it back/front/middle office)

Hope that helps

[team slick]

going back to the topic, if anyone is planning on shifting into IT (programming, application development, networking, etc), the best recommendation i would suggest is to go for something that you would have a previous background of (e.g. banking, manufacturing, factory line processing, oil, airlines)

most of this industries are already and have computer based tasks (like encoding something into a system, interpreting reports for daily operations, analyzing accounting entries or even pressing a button to start a process) which you can then translate into your IT career.

Like i said above, if you can actually apply the experience that you gather in your previous roles couple with the experience of learning a new technology (java, vb, c++, abap) or system, it goes a long way to leverage your position in the IT industry.

Obviously people with the same background and has a technical bias would be in a better position to leverage their demands but at the very least it puts you above entry level IT personnel.

my 2 cents

[Goddess_0618]

thanks slick....very well said. Galing mo mag-explain ah.

If ever I do get in, I owe you one. ...Promise..hehe. Only that remains to be seen kasi mukhang I have a long way to go. Sayang, sana I have the luxury of waiting kaso wala. Baka bumalik na lang ako ulit sa banking industry if I dont get a chance. Sayang, I'm vey much interested and very much willing to learn.

[akk]

if i'm a commerce grad, with no computer/it backgound can i land an IT position in companies? if this is possible usually ano po yung mga entry level position na pwede ka?

and if for example i'm an it grad, lahat ba ng exams na ibibigay sayo ng mga companies during the hiring process,may mga math and problem solving exams na kailangan ipasa?

[AkiFoblesia]

to akk,

yup, nag-aral muna ko ng mga short courses on IT before ako nag apply. pero hindi na yun kailangan these days. may mga companies na tatanngap sa yo kahit wala kang IT background, and then you spend yung first weeks mo under their training at sumusweldo ka na nun. companies that provide trainings for non-IT grads are azeus (tester position), accenture, safeway philtech, pointwest, etc.

[hireme!!!]

guys i really need your advice. im a career shifter and i want to be a programmer.. but sad to say my knowledge in computer stuff is plain basic but i am a fast learner and my i.q is above ave.. hehe. im just saying this because i have high hopes in becoming a programmer. question *** guys, is it ok na magtake muna ako ng short course about programming before magprogrammer trainee? what's the difference po ba betwee. developer and tester? help me guys! thanks!

[AkiFoblesia]

^ check mo yung first few messages ng thread na to, especially *** first post. konting backreading lang *okay*

[newatdislyf]

may company ba na tumatanggap ng trainee position na walang bond? i just need to work kasi from november to may cuz magmamasters ako sa june. thanks!

[AkiFoblesia]

^ yup, meron ganung company. hanap-hanap ka lang. sa ibang threads.

pero malabong tanggapin ka ng isang company para i-train ka and then ganun ka lang ka-iksi mag stay. nothing to lose if you will try though. and as a courtesy to the company i also suggest na sabihin mo yang plan mo of resigning early during the interview although negative point sa yo yun.

[chrisann26]

my course in college is non-IT (industrial eng'g) then i worked for 2 years on business operations. after that, i quit my job to study masters in IT for full time and, hopefully, i will graduate next year (takes me about 2 years). my main goal is to apply for systems analyst positions or something related to that, so that my previous work experience will be put to use.

question is, if i apply for an IT job (say like programmer or developer), do i start again at entry-level positions again?

[pagie]

I think so. And to be a systems analyst, you must be a good developer. :)

[xpact83]

yes because if you don't have intensive software devlopement experience it is very likely that you will start at entry level

[mamafox]

do you guys think na factor ang edad para matanggap as an IT career shifter?

[pagie]

Depende sa company yan bro, meron namang nasa mid-30s na pero nabibigyan pa ng opportunity.

[xpact83]

bakit hindi kanalang magtinda ng fish ball hehe.. joke

[mamafox]

good business yan..
kaya lang ala pa me time..

[rokrbro]

Hi. Just wanted to ask if the companies mentioned above are always open for hiring trainees? Or do I have to wait for them to post an ad before I try to apply?

[pagie]

Mostly, non-stop hiring yan. Anyway, hindi naman masyadong abala kung magse-send ka ng cv mo hiring man sila o hindi di ba? Sa mga IT company sa ngayon, ang alam ko lang na stop muna sa hiring ng trainee ay ang arinso at ITS (not sure, that was last month). Radix, accenture, CPI, SVI, poitwest, fujitsu ten, SLI, SMITS still on non-stop hiring. But wait, there's more... pa-research na lang po. :)

[AkiFoblesia]

unfortunately hindi nakawala ang IT industry sa economic crisis. ganun pa man, meron pa din mga hiring. parehong approach pa din ibibigay ko on trying to find IT jobs for non IT graduates.

as an addition, maigi rin na humanap ng kakilala at magpa refer.

[wlaname]

wow, nice thread AkiFoblesia...

Maraming salamat sa information lalo na sa mga gustong mgshift ng career sa IT, at kasama na ako doon.

I'm 27 yrs. old din po, Business Management graduate, working as a factory worker sa electronics, masyadong malayo ang field of experience ko and educational background ko para magshift sa IT. To think na hindi ko pa nagagamit yung natapos ko. Pero this year balak kong mag enrol sa MFI ng program logic formulation, since wala akong kabackground background sa Programming, test na rin ito para sa akin kung kaya ko talaga ang programming, sabi nila kelangan daw eh magaling ka sa logic at math. sa aking pagkakatanda nung ngaaral ako nung college di ko fave ang logic at math, pero interested talaga ako sa programming. Di ko muna goal ang sweldo, eventually naman eh tataas ang value mo pagmarami ka ng experiences at yung years mo as a programmer. Gusto ko muna matutunan ang ins and out ng programming.


tanong ko lang po, mahirap ba ang programming, hindi bale na ang works of load, sanay na ako dun.

Sa ngayon nagaapply ako online bilang programmer trainee, ok lang ba yun magapply kahit wala pa akong experience at backgorund sa IT particular sa programming?

[Krakista]

If you want to break into IT find NICHES.

Get into Adobe Flex, Delphi, Mitel, Quintum, DBA Manufacturing ....

Join Toastmasters, learn Mandarin, learn presentation skills ....

Forget Avaya, Cisco, Java, .NET, SAP ....

[bizbryan]

hi im an ece fresh grad and im currently applying ITstaff in a bank.. any idea naman po dyan kung ano ba gngawa ng isang IT staff? ahm sa bangko, is it analyst, networking? etc. thanks... any information please

[AkiFoblesia]

@ wlaname,

logic yung main skill na kailangan sa programming. kung ok foundation mo sa math/logic, magiging ok ka din sa programming.

[narudo]

hi, tanong ko po sa inyong lahat kung anong IT companies po ngayon ang tumatanggap ng trainees?

[AkiFoblesia]

^^ try azeus.

also, the best thing to do ay magtanong ka sa mga companies mismo kung hiring sila.

[kakashi0804]

yeah.. tanong ng tanong lang at basa ng basa ng forums.. :)
try nyo rin sa newspaper.. may naliligaw dun hehe

pero sa ***** *** gma lam kong IT companies eh freeze hiring *** sa mga programmer trainees.. try Oracle, CAISTA, Headstrong etc.. hehehe

[conp_]

@ AkiFoblesia - taga uplb ka ba dati? :D

I'm also considering an IT related post. Grad ako ng communication course. May opportunities kaya for a comm grad like me?

[AkiFoblesia]

^^nyahaha. bat mo natanong kung elbi ako? hehe.

Ok lang yan. Any 4-year course, mapa Comm, Vet Med, Agriculture, etc, pwede. Basta sinabi ng company na any 4-year course. As long as ipasa mo yung exam at training :)

[conp_]

^hahaha, wala lang.. uplb lang kasi ang alam kong may agecon na course. so from elbi ka nga? hehehe. elbi din ako e. devcom. :D

Ah I see. Sana makahanap ako. Hehe.

[Buss_Analyzer]

http://www.ravenflow.com/images/changing-role.jpg

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[conp_]

Up lang po. :)

[Buss_AnaIyzer]

http://www.itaa.org/news/images/buildit.jpg

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[sad2kill_99]

Tips on career shift in IT

1. Get certified.
Certification is not the only way..There are a lot of ways..But when you are from a field that is miles away from I.T., this might be very beneficial. It will give a spark to your resume, even if you don't have related work. This is one way to demonstrate that you can learn easily no matter what field you are in. I am a Manufacturing Engineer and worked as a Quality Assurance Engineer. I studied Solaris and Windows and eventually got my Microsoft certified professional and Sun Certified System Administrator. Now, I landed a job as Unix Engineer with a high salary.

2. Train, train, train.
You can either take a short course or self study before trying to take those certifications so that you will know what you are going to talk about during interviews. Getting certified without knowing what you have been certified for is a waste of money.

3. Interview Skills.
Once you got certified, now what? Of course you might get a call from a company for an interview. It's up to you to nail it. Practice answering interview questions, search for questions for your field of choice and point out that you can do it no matter what field you are from.

[pink_angel65]

Madali kaya magshift ng career, from BPO to IT?

ComSci grad ako, at gusto ko mai-apply yung napag-aralan ko sa work, may alam din naman ako sa programming, kaso nga pag IT, kailangan daw magaling ka sa trouleshooting at networking, kaso hindi ako masyadong magaling dun. More on software kasi ako. Tapos wala rin akong experience sa IT.

Hindi ko alam, kung qualified kaya akong makapasok sa IT position.

[AkiFoblesia]

^^basahin mo yung first few posts. makakakuha ka dun sa kasagutan :)

[badzmanaois]

Be a specialist. Nah, be a very damn good specialist.

...badz...
MCITP | Enterprise & Server Administrator
Certified Ethical Hacker (C|EH)
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Bytes & Badz (http://badzmanaois.blogspot.com)
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[QLCPrisoner]

Azeus
Accenture
Safeway Philtech
Pointwest

aside from these companies what else? natry ko na sa accenture and pointwest. safeway wala opening, azeus pending...

[AkiFoblesia]

of the IT companies hiring non-IT grads, it looks like Azeus still has growing demands while many other companies (though not all) lay off employees. it's a good company to look into.

[salbakuta02]

hi!

tanong ko lang kung may mga universities ba na nago-offer ng short-term or crash course sa I.T? kasi gusto ko sana ituloy yung matagal ko nang plano.

[neytey08]

Malawak ang IT.. mula encoder, programmer, web designer, database admin, web developer...Kaya maganda itong kuning course.. Programmer ako nun pero di ko gusto, nag-aral ako phothoshop, web design at developing ayun nagboom na career ko :)... Just like others said, train lang ng train... Kung pangarap nio magandang kumpanya like Microsoft then get certified ;) .. Wala nmang mahirap kung lahat pagtyatyagaan at pag-iigihan ng isang tao.

[rickflag]

hindi madali mag shift to IT pero totoo na malawak ang IT field. if you are exceptional in logic\math\and problem solving in school you have the pontential as a good developer. mind you, ang dami kong kakilalang comsci grads na di marunong mag program. syntax lang ang alam pero di marunong mag attack ng problem or finish a solution in a timely manner. pero if you're good in algebra for example like let X problems you have better chances.

kung magaling ka naman sa arts mas ok na graphic designer ka or better animator. mataas din rates nito especially the latter. i heard sa abs-cbn ang animator pinakamababa ata is 50K.

don't complain if you will be assigned into an entry level ka. we all went through this. siempre di ipagkatiwala sa iyo ang ultra sensitive IT projects, dapat sa mga experienced lang yun kasi kung mag fail yun tsugi company nyo.

patience and perserverance is the key here.

[rickflag]

meron ding isang IT field na mas madali para sa non comsci grads. yung QA or QA analyst. ang requirement lang dito is you have a good eye for details and patience to make lots of documents. pero in demand din to even abroad.

[silver_lining]

hi!

tanong ko lang kung may mga universities ba na nago-offer ng short-term or crash course sa I.T? kasi gusto ko sana ituloy yung matagal ko nang plano.

UP ITTC offers a One-year Certificate Course in IT.

[harukatenoh]

yung tesda may libreng oracle training. pwede mag-avail ng scholarship sa informatics makati o kaya sa winsource.

question lang, kunsakali ba na matapos ko itong oracle training, may guarantee kaya na may mapapasukan ako na IT company o ang tinatanggap lang nila yung may matagal ng experience sa oracle? nagdadalawang isip ako kasi kailangan ko na din ng work dahil madaming bayarin kaya iniisip ko kung itutuloy ko ba yung 20 days training o next time na lang?

[AkiFoblesia]

^^ anong background mo? college degree? work experience?

kung programmer trainee position habol mo, pwede ka na mag apply even without taking an IT course, kasi meron nang mga companies na tumatanggap ng any 4-year course.

im not so sure kung paano ang diskarte ng mga companies sa mga experienced na.

as for taking the oracle course, it can help. just make sure na meron hiring for oracle. maaari ka kasi matanggap pero isalang ka sa java training or iba pa.

my suggestion, if you have good background in math/logic, try applying for a programmer trainee position. pwede rin as qa/tester. read the first post for more info.

[harukatenoh]

^^ anong background mo? college degree? work experience?

kung programmer trainee position habol mo, pwede ka na mag apply even without taking an IT course, kasi meron nang mga companies na tumatanggap ng any 4-year course.

im not so sure kung paano ang diskarte ng mga companies sa mga experienced na.

as for taking the oracle course, it can help. just make sure na meron hiring for oracle. maaari ka kasi matanggap pero isalang ka sa java training or iba pa.

my suggestion, if you have good background in math/logic, try applying for a programmer trainee position. pwede rin as qa/tester. read the first post for more info.


yup may college degree po, information system course ko. pero parang kulang kasi naturo nung college e.

kasi more on database yung inaral namin nung college at parang mahirap yung java. hirap kasi ng exams pag apply as programmer trainee. i guess hindi ako pwede talaga dun :(

thanks po for the reply :)

[zerglingboy]

Share ko lang.

i worked for 5 years as a QA engineer in a multinational company.

i was 28 then when i decided to quit and start from ground zero again.
i accepted a java programmer position.
after training disappointment kasi nadeploy kami s hindi pang java na trabaho.
after a year tinakasan ko si bond. lumipat ng ibang company.

medyo malapit na s java kasi yung unang mga buwan namin Web Content Management system ang ginagagawa.
buti nitong huli may j2EE na.

ngayun magsasara na company. buti na lang nakapasa ako sa SCJP exam. so sana makatulong sa paghahanap. baka may alam kayung openings dyan. i still have a lot to learn....

[zerglingboy]

sorry di malinaw yung sa taas. so hindi IT related yung pagiging QA Engineer ko.
yung inaaccept kong position java programmer trainee yun so nangalahati sahod ko. pero gusto kong magshift eh.
ayun....

[AkiFoblesia]

IT companies are slowly rehiring people, so I guess it is timely to put this thread up.

[sher_amf]

Tips on career shift in IT

1. Get certified.
Certification is not the only way..There are a lot of ways..But when you are from a field that is miles away from I.T., this might be very beneficial. It will give a spark to your resume, even if you don't have related work. This is one way to demonstrate that you can learn easily no matter what field you are in. I am a Manufacturing Engineer and worked as a Quality Assurance Engineer. I studied Solaris and Windows and eventually got my Microsoft certified professional and Sun Certified System Administrator. Now, I landed a job as Unix Engineer with a high salary.

2. Train, train, train.
You can either take a short course or self study before trying to take those certifications so that you will know what you are going to talk about during interviews. Getting certified without knowing what you have been certified for is a waste of money.

3. Interview Skills.
Once you got certified, now what? Of course you might get a call from a company for an interview. It's up to you to nail it. Practice answering interview questions, search for questions for your field of choice and point out that you can do it no matter what field you are from.

how and where do you get certified?

[AkiFoblesia]

^ una, alamin mo muna yung gusto mong i-pursue. networking, java programming, testing, .net, etc. halos lahat merong certification.

to get certified, pwede kang mag-enroll then get a certification exam (e.g. CCNA). pwede rin pumasok ka muna as programmer sa isang company that offers its employees free training and pays for certification exam.

[valen]

nice thread!

just like everyone who posted on this thread, i would also like to shift my career to IT, SOON! *okay*

[Jasperbad]

Bro's,

Below is a post i came across with from another forum. Any comments po about this?



Guys, I've learned about this "free" java and .net training in Phoenix One in Makati (Salustiana Building).

The procedure is they will ask you to take an exam, and if you pass, then you could get into their java/.net programming boot camp.


Any opinions about this? Do you think Phoenix One is a reputable institution to get a programming training? Do you think this free java/.net training is valid or is this just a marketing ploy? What about if you do not have any programming background, is it advisable to jump right away into java/.net training?

[Cookie_Mobster]

Free to.. by TESDA yung free training, nag gaganyan kami ngayon

from scratch ang lessons, and okay sa phoenix one

[sholess]

@ AkiFoblesia - taga uplb ka ba dati? :D

I'm also considering an IT related post. Grad ako ng communication course. May opportunities kaya for a comm grad like me?

I also have a comm degree. journalism to be exact. I'm doing SAP. IT companies mostly gauge your aptitude and how fast you can learn and adapt. Although I had to admit may konting edge yung mga IT grads during the hiring process- companies would definitely prefer IT grads over those that are not.
Pero after that, if you got in, its a level playing field na and if you are really determined you'll have no problem catching up with your IT grad colleagues and maybe even surpass them. Tiga UP ka naman e, its gonna be a a walk in the park. :)

[Jasperbad]

Free to.. by TESDA yung free training, nag gaganyan kami ngayon

from scratch ang lessons, and okay sa phoenix one



Ic. Thanks po for the info. What about if you dont have any programming background? Is it advisable to jump right into java programming? Im working po kc right now, I'm just concerned baka mahirapan ako mag catch up...

By the way, which programming language offers better opportunities? Java po ba or .Net? They made me choose between the two po kc..

[bloodasp]

Ic. Thanks po for the info. What about if you dont have any programming background? Is it advisable to jump right into java programming? Im working po kc right now, I'm just concerned baka mahirapan ako mag catch up...

By the way, which programming language offers better opportunities? Java po ba or .Net? They made me choose between the two po kc..

Any of the two languages would do. Java has a longer learning curve due to the tools involved for developing. The good side to that is you'll definitely learn lots of stuff including, good OO design, design patterns and frameworks used by different tools, app servers, ORM etc. If you wanna be productive real quick and avoid the headache of setting up the different tools and app servers used in Java development, go M$ .NET.

And yes, programming is not just the languange. It's an art. :D

I'm not a comsci grad, but a science grad and I went the Java to .NET route. I definitely learned a lot from Java (not the just the language but design patterns and best practices). That gave me an edge when I moved to .NET. Basically, the design practices, patterns and best practices are the same across both language so that's one thing you'd also like to pick up.

[roundtablepizza]

yung tesda may libreng oracle training. pwede mag-avail ng scholarship sa informatics makati o kaya sa winsource.

question lang, kunsakali ba na matapos ko itong oracle training, may guarantee kaya na may mapapasukan ako na IT company o ang tinatanggap lang nila yung may matagal ng experience sa oracle? nagdadalawang isip ako kasi kailangan ko na din ng work dahil madaming bayarin kaya iniisip ko kung itutuloy ko ba yung 20 days training o next time na lang?

paano ka nag apply ng scholarship ng tesda? at saan training center ka pumasok? btw wala kang binayaran kahit anu?

[roundtablepizza]

Free to.. by TESDA yung free training, nag gaganyan kami ngayon

from scratch ang lessons, and okay sa phoenix one

are you under scholarship from TESDA tapos training center mo is phoenix one? what scholarship btw?

[Jasperbad]

Any of the two languages would do. Java has a longer learning curve due to the tools involved for developing. The good side to that is you'll definitely learn lots of stuff including, good OO design, design patterns and frameworks used by different tools, app servers, ORM etc. If you wanna be productive real quick and avoid the headache of setting up the different tools and app servers used in Java development, go M$ .NET.

And yes, programming is not just the languange. It's an art. :D

I'm not a comsci grad, but a science grad and I went the Java to .NET route. I definitely learned a lot from Java (not the just the language but design patterns and best practices). That gave me an edge when I moved to .NET. Basically, the design practices, patterns and best practices are the same across both language so that's one thing you'd also like to pick up.




Thanks for the reply bro. My only concern is that: I may have a hardtime catching up with the Java lessons because i actuallly do not have any programming background whatsoever.

Do you think it is advisable for me to jump right into JAVA programming even if i dont have any programming background?

[AkiFoblesia]

^i've seen numerous programmers that started with java without any programming background at all and yet ending up good. it will largely depend on your logical skills. how's your math?

pero malaking advantage kung kukuha ka muna ng short course on introduction to programming. take "program logic formulation", at piliin mo yung school at nagpipiga ng utak ng student nila. see first post.

[Jasperbad]

Ic. Thanks po for the input.


I was pretty capable in Math and Calculus,
so i guess makakayanan ko ang Java.


Concern ko na lang ***** is *** sweldo ko
na mawawala once na mag start na yung
Java training namin.

Im planning to go on Prolonged Leave of Absence kc.
Which means i wont be getting paid for the whole period na mag
le-leave ako. Sayang naman yun kc kailangan ko rin talaga yung
pera.


Naghahanap nga ako ng mga companies na nag hi-hire ng
Programmer Trainees kaya lang mukhang wala pang nag hi-hire
*****.


Baka po may mga may alam dyan. Share naman po.

Thanks...

[bloodasp]

Thanks for the reply bro. My only concern is that: I may have a hardtime catching up with the Java lessons because i actuallly do not have any programming background whatsoever.

Do you think it is advisable for me to jump right into JAVA programming even if i dont have any programming background?

Java shouldn't be hard if you understood Calculus. You actually don't need any formal training to learn it. There's a lot more you can learn outside that training that's for sure. But the certificate will definitely help. If you can do without the certificate, then just self study so you don't need to go on leave. There are lots of people willing to answer any question you might have.

[AkiFoblesia]

Naghahanap nga ako ng mga companies na nag hi-hire ng
Programmer Trainees kaya lang mukhang wala pang nag hi-hire
*****.

try mo azeus, tester position. mas sikat ngayon ang experienced hire, hindi tulad nung before recession, ang daming naghahanap ng trainees. pero subukan mo pa din. check the first post for some suggested companies and tips on how to apply.

tingin ka na din sa ibang threads.

[FleetingMind]

just sharing. :P

months before my graduation, i was already looking for jobs. i was a bsmath student btw sa upd. e sa upd, january pa lang may mga job fair na.

bsmath, though a very competitive course, seems not to be a popular course at that time among the employers. usually, tatanungin ko lang yung mga employers kung tumatanggap sila ng bsmath. pag medyo naghesitate sumagot or medyo clerical or tech support yung dating ng sagot, di na ko nag-aapply. :P

then i chanced upon azeus. nung tinanong ko kung tumatanggap sila ng bsmath, yes agad ang sagot nila. inoffer nila yung tester position, kasi sabi ko wala talaga akong alam sa it. i grabbed the chance to apply for the post, pero natakot din ako during the course of application. sa buong 4 years ko kasi sa college, i only had 1 "computer-subject like" na subject. at di pa ganun kaganda ang naging instruction.

took the exam, passed the interviews. they were tough. i've been honest with the employer, sabi ko di nga ako makapagfriendster kasi di ako comfortable with computers. i was really nervous kasi masyadong malaki para sakin yung inoffer na salary, considering na di talaga ako marunong sa it. ang sabi sakin, basta willing matuto at marunong naman magshutdown ng pc, kakayanin ang trabaho.

what happened after? i was hired and trained by azeus. but after 6 months, di ako pumasa sa probation. masyadong mababa ang skills ko for their standards. did i feel bad about the company? hm, felt bad about the fact that i did not become a permanent employee, especially that i felt degraded. incompetency ba naman maging dahilan ng pag-alis mo sa kumpanya... but i will forever be grateful to azeus for the opportunity, learning and friendship. without them, i would not have considered it as a job, and would not be happy as i am now.

i still work in the it field, though in a different company. qa pa rin, and still feels there is a lot more to learn after more than 3 years of work. i often feel toxic, lalo na minsan, yung mga pagkakamali sa office, dinaramdam ko personally. adik. haha. pero madalas rin, everything seems to be a discovery, and i love experiencing new stuffs.

as what others have said, very tough sa it field. dapat willing ka magtrabaho for extra long hours to meet the demands of ever-changing technologies. for career shifters, reassess your reasons for shifting, kasi kung burnt out ka sa work mo kaya ka lilipat sa it, hm, brace yourself.

[Kolmogorov]

^I like your positive attitude even if you weren't regularized.

IT jobs are very broad nowadays. For career shifters, the catch is if you are willing to accept an entry-level salary (or slightly higher) for an entry-level IT position.

And yeah, stressful na trabaho ang IT. Nung bagyong Ondoy, may mga tao sa amin na 24 hours na nag shift

[amylim4088]

I agree, IT jobs are very broad.. you have to choose a specialization for any IT jobs nowadays. Employers choose IT workers with specialization.

[AkiFoblesia]

for career shifters, make sure to know which part of IT you want to be in. Networking, DBA, Programmer, Tester, etc.. After you've known what you want, check for companies that hire trainees. Usually available for programming and testing.

[sher_amf]

i am currently a tester in a company....most of my friends look at it na parang mababaw yung work ko kasi tester lang nga daw ako...

what is the difference with web development and programmer? and is there a difference? kasi ako i usually is more into design the gui and the screens... im not really a hardcore programmer but of course i still have knowledge with programming

[3ws3ws]

Point of view:

Web development is also concerned with programming but it solely depends on what project you are currently in.(i.e modular development for a nonexisting functions. debugging or restructuring the current module. integration of an existing application dev sa real frameworks)

Web development are very much in demand nowadays.*okay* usually if you're in a begginer level you still have to undergo baby steps. (that's what I've learned from my prev job)
Ok yun.. kung wcms and more of designing yung hawak mo and wanted to venture yourself more into programming I might suggest that you still have to concentrate on it. tapos aralin mo yung existing na language and frameworks involved. much better if you would also engage yourself more into how your entire project was developed (a.k.a sdlc ).

now, here's the thing my sole definition of hardcore programming jobs are those which you need to build from scratch. mostly ( c, c++, ASSEMBLY! :D).

Pero you can be a hardcore programmer in web dev. Some jobs kasi will ask you to develop your own module and cms(pero depende na din sa competency level saka kung walang existing na solution para dun.)

backfall: pag existing na kasi yung mga modules na ginagawa mo. at ang ginagawa mo ay click nalang ng click.The tendency is pwedeng di ka mahasa masyado sa programming. (pero it still depends on you)
yung learning curve mo mababa.

on the positive side: since existing na yung module di ka na mahihirapan. saka lesser tendency for errors. You dont have to code it by yourself. mas madali matapos yung project. may fulfillment ka as a developer:)

as for you.. stick with what you're doing pakita mong kaya mo yan :) i swear it will all be worth it :)

[thirdyboy]

guys i need your suggestion..

im a bs-math major in comsci grad. so medyo magaling nmn ako sa math favorite ko kc **** yan subject n yan. meron ** ako background s programming *** *** feeling ko mdyo pumurol n un utak ko s programming kc after graduation ko hnd ko ngmit yan dahil s insurance company ako ngwork. **** ko mgshift ng career. ok b un web development or enhance ko un java skills ko uli? im planning to take short course kc, san b mgnda mgenrol? ms mgnda kung libre syempre..
or mgenrol ako ng web development course then apply ako as programmer trainee? at least mgging mlawak un knowledge ko db? any suggestions? TIA

[AkiFoblesia]

^first, iwasan mo yung mga bawal na text para hindi mapalitan ng asterisk.

as for you query, check mo kung meron nang kumukuha ng programmer trainee. since magaling ka sa math, makakaya mo yung training. pwede nang simulain yun, kahit hindi na kumuha ng short course.

kung gusto mo talaga mag enroll, mahirap maghanap ng libre na maganda ang quality. pwede mo pang gawin e maghanap ka ng financial support. pwede ka rin maghanap ng schools na may offer na discount kung mataas ang score mo sa qualifying exam. dati ganun sa phoenix one. try mo na lang kung ganun pa din.

as for other schools, check the first thread.

[amajbbYUAP]

Make sure na gusto talaga ninyo mag-IT at hindi dahil sa na-e-engganyo kayo sa mga nababasa ninyong suweldo ng mga nasa ganitong industry.

[anthonx]

paano ka nag apply ng scholarship ng tesda? at saan training center ka pumasok? btw wala kang binayaran kahit anu?

I'm not sure kung nasagot na iyong tanong mo pero just in case wala pa. Anyway, ang pagkaalam ko iyong mismong training center ka mag apply, then you will undergo an examination to test your IQ yata. Pagkatapos pag pumasa ka na then probably makakasali kana sa scholarship. Pero limited slots din lang yata and base on another thread ay nag stop na daw sila for October sa pagtatanggap ng sholarship. Kasi daw naubos na ang pundo ng TESDA.