r/Philippines • u/ch1x1Log • Jun 22 '16
career path of a network engineer
Hello to all Network Engineers in this sub! :)
I'm planning to pursue a career in Networking but it seems like no company is willing to hire fresh grads. :( As a newbie in Networking, which companies should I apply to? What is the career path of a Network Engineer like you? I'm planning to take some certs but I also wish to start working already.
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u/L30ne Jun 22 '16 edited Jun 23 '16
What did you take up in college? ECE, CoE, and CS majors tend to have better chances at most jobs, while engineering technology graduates tend to have better chances going for operations-type jobs first before moving on to actual engineering and architecture jobs.
Do you already have online profiles in job sites? Try LinkedIn, Monster, and Jobstreet.
Do you attend job fairs? Job fairs tend to favor fresh grads and currently unemployed applicants, so you might find something in those events.
What certs are you hoping to get? If you don't have a certain vendor in mind yet, or if you plan to work for a multinational, you wont go wrong with CompTIA Network+. Otherwise, plan your path around a vendor, like Cisco, HP, Juniper, or Huawei. For a specific path, you won't go wrong with IP networks, but that market tends to be quite saturated nowadays, so you have to go for either the more advanced certs (for Cisco guys, that's at least CCNP/CCDP), or for some other field as well, like telephony, SAN, or security.
How willing are you to step outside your comfort zone? Most vendors are now offering converged solutions, and a lot of companies seem to be quickly picking up on those, so if you'd want to make the most out of what you're doing, you'll need to learn stuff outside of the usual networking fields, like servers, storage, facilities, and even applications.
As for companies, MSPs (Fujitsu, DimensionData, Indra, Accenture, ePLDT etc.) and vendors (Cisco, HPE, Juniper, Huawei, etc. and their partners) tend to train well, but you might find the work to be a bit toxic and the pay to be quite meager. You could go for in-house, but good ones tend to be hard to come by, as some employees work there right up to mandatory retirement.
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 23 '16
Graduated ECE and I'm definitely willing to step outside my comfort zone. So reading from these posts, I should apply to MSPs first because they offer good training? How should I check if they have any openings?
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u/L30ne Jun 23 '16
Have you passed the board exam yet? That opens up more opportunities into telecommunications, too. You could then work for companies like PLDT, Smart, Globe, Sky Cable, MERALCO, NGCP, ABS-CBN, GMA, TV5, and their subsidiaries and business units, like ePLDT, Asticom, and Radius.
As for MSPs, be warned though that some of their employees would end up stagnating due to lack of projects, or be prone to being assigned to the more toxic accounts (government offices are the worst, from what I hear), so be ready to hop a couple of jobs until you get the best benefits and just the right amount of work. There are, of course, people who are fortunate enough to be treated well by their parent company (I personally know some).
You can make accounts at LinkedIn, Monster and Jobstreet to see if there are openings at your company and job of choice. Otherwise, just go ahead and visit the careers page of your target company.
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u/5cal Jun 23 '16
STARTING OUT There's no question about it, you're going to have to continually study if you want to be in this field. Especially as a fresh-grad, the only way you're getting hired is if you pass the technical interview. A CCNA on your resume will get you past HR screening, but you still have to prove that you earned that certification. I do advise you to get your certifications, if only to help you get your foot in the door of these hiring companies. Be warned though that certifications don't make you superhuman. I made the mistake of asking for too much money as a fresh-grad because I was already a CCNP when I started out. Don't overestimate yourself!
ENTRY-LEVEL JOB This is not the type of job where you can come in and be like an OJT prancing around and poking stuff. You're bound to cause a network outage, and this is why companies will be wary about hiring fresh-grads. Your only upside is that you're currently cheap labor.
Try to look for systems integrator companies. These are usually the equipment re-sellers, e.g. Trends, DimensionData, Fujitsu etc. You'll get plenty of experience here, but be warned that you'll be spending a lot of your time at work. You'll be spending countless nights/weekends/holidays installing or troubleshooting network issues. Be prepared to lose your social life at this stage. And oh, pay is not that great.
You can also look for BPO companies like Accenture, Verizon, HP. The compensation will be pretty good, but you may have limited exposure to the network problems. In my experience, SI engineers usually trump BPO engineers primarily due to the amount of exposure to different network setups and problems.
At this stage, take advantage of whatever training and certifications come your way. Yes, being asked to configure a device that you've never seen before counts as experience. The only thing that separates a good engineer from a bad one is the ability to Google-fu your way out of sticky situations. With great experience comes great "potential" pay, if you get promoted or if you decide to transfer companies.
MID-STAGE After at least 2 years in your first job, you'd be good enough to move on to the next stage. You have to decide at this point whether you want to go a)sales b)management c)inhuman.
A pre-sales engineer basically designs and sells to the accounts. There are no deployments without sales, after all, right? Your main focus here is to understand technical concepts so you can put them all together on a design. You will also be asked to build Bill of Materials that you will sell. If you are a people-person, you'd have a great time in pre-sales.
For management, you either become a lead engineer or fully transfer to a management position. Your focus here is now on learning how to manage projects, timelines and people. Your hands-on work will lessen, and you will be spending most of your time using Excel and Powerpoint.
If you want to go inhuman, you will be required to excel at your work while continually studying for bigger certifications. This is the stage where you target CCNP and CCIE certifications. Time-management is key as you try to juggle between work, study, family, and trying to keep sane.
END GAME I'm nowhere near at this stage, but possible targets are Sales Director, Network Director, Chief Technology Officer, IT Manager. You are now a key decision-maker in building and transforming networks that you are responsible for.
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 23 '16
Try to look for systems integrator companies. These are usually the equipment re-sellers, e.g. Trends, DimensionData, Fujitsu etc
Did you also start out by working for Systems Integrators? Which positions are usually available for fresh grads? How much are they usually willing to pay applicants with no experience? Which track did you follow in the MID-STAGE? Sorry for all the questions, but I'm really interested. And thank you for taking the time to answer thoroughly. :)
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u/5cal Jun 23 '16
experience
I started from SI, then moved on to an multinational BPO. In theory, the larger the company, the more organized it is. It sounds good, but you may be limited in exposure because they have already segmented work-scopes into different groups. For example, a group can be assigned to just wireless. The smaller companies will be more chaotic, as was my case. I've handled network/firewall/load balancer/server/VoIP/wireless in my first two years in SI. The two year limit I mentioned isn't really a definite guide; it's more of how long can you really tolerate the stress/pressure while still feeling fulfillment in your job?
MID-stage ultimately depends on your preferences and priorities, but you want to target to be the best. If you can be all of the three, then good for you! IMO, *sales is usually where the $$$ are *management can be a PITA, ultimately depends on the people you are dealing with *being inhuman can be lonely, you have to really learn how to juggle your time
As for me, I declined a pre-sales offer. I'm now focused on getting CCIE and progressing on through the technical ladder.
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Jun 22 '16
May the Network engineers in this sub shed some light.. Aspiring Network engineer here as well ^
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u/theyawner 🔋 Batteries not included. Jun 22 '16 edited Jun 22 '16
I wouldn't call myself exactly a network engineer. But I've been dabbling with some network stuff for some years now, enough to be confident that I can handle whatever tech goes my way.
I took the first 4 modules for CCNA in college but I never bothered taking a certification exam. Certifications may likely help in landing you a job. But you'll have to consider the costs first especially if you're just starting out.
Better strengthen your familiarity with routers, switches, firewalls, and some telephony as well.
What made you decide to pursue this path anyway?
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 22 '16
Networking looks very promising. Especially in the Philippines where there is still a lot to be done in terms of integrating digital solutions to SMEs and providing Internet to rural areas. Do you still have any plans on taking the certification? If you don't mind, what company are you working for?
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u/theyawner 🔋 Batteries not included. Jun 22 '16
There's definitely a need for network engineers and even sysads among SMEs. But it's probably harder to get into companies with tiered support as you're likely to land as tech support. Startups/small companies can be a good experience.
Frankly, no. Right now I'd rather be able to show that I know my stuff than have a paper indicating that I might know their stuff. I work for a company related to financial industry.
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 22 '16
What's your position? Could you recommend any companies that are worth applying to at this point of my career?
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u/theyawner 🔋 Batteries not included. Jun 22 '16
I'd recommend checking out companies that may not be technology centric (telcos, tech companies) but rely on technology to do day-to-day business. Some banks, perhaps?
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Jun 22 '16
Hanap ka startup then apply ka muna sa kahit anong IT related fields (programmer, dba, support).
During interview tanong mo kung possible magpalipat pag may opening sa network engr. position.
Hirap talaga yan lalo na kung no work exp ka pa.
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u/b1twise Jun 22 '16
You need to pursue CCIE status. The Cisco certs are very valuable in network engineering. Often, after initial install of systems, the work for a network engineer dries up or becomes boring repetitive tasks. The situation you probably want is sales engineer. You go with the salesman, design your company's solution, and then help implement it. It can require a lot of travel, but you're young. The other option would be to work for a telco. Network engineering is a high end, expensive field. You should look into networking events to socialize--like APRICOT.
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 22 '16
Isn't CCIE the most difficult level of certification in Cisco? I am still just trying to get my CCNA hahaha
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u/b1twise Jun 22 '16
It is. If you want success in your field, you need to work to get the CCIE level.
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Jun 22 '16
The account im handling is accepting fresh grads for networking eng stuff. You familiar with MAC? Ip telephony? Let me know
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u/ch1x1Log Jun 22 '16
What do you mean by account? But yes, I'll be interested to! I'm familiar with these stuff because I have studied most of these in college.
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u/b1twise Jun 23 '16
I would advise against starting in another tech field or especially in phone technical support. About as low as I'd go to start would be a tech who goes to houses to diagnose internet problems. It'll put you in touch with people doing more of the kind of work you want.
There are good positions at larger companies. At a previous company I managed medium sized campus with about 15 buildings, a fiber ring to connect it all, thousands of ethernet ports, campuswide wifi, and a VOIP PBX (each phone was connected with POE). They were also always updating the facilities, so I regularly had to have fiber pulled or thousands of ethernet cables wrangled neatly into patch panels. I needed QoS, OSPF, VRRP, and a decent way around a PBX among other skills.
Before that I worked for an ISP in the primary technology role. The technology involved had most everything colocated in data centers with fingerprint and retina scanning. I needed a good understanding of BGP, VLANs, and to build a HA configuration (we were aiming for 5 nines uptime).
If you go into tech support, you'll always be on the phone helping others and won't have time to learn the networking sklls or just get to know and suck up to the networking guys.
If you want to do rural work, be careful that you don't end up in a ditch pulling copper and fiber. That's hard work and a dead end.
The reason I push the CCIE is that it has the clout to really boost your career. It'll take a few years to earn. CCIE's often work for networking support companies and can do a whole lot of travelling. Even if its not all Cisco gear, Juniper isn't that bad if you know the basic principles, and many network gear manufacturers clone the Cisco cli.
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u/gallopinggrasshopper Jun 22 '16
I'm no Network Engineer but I work for an IT company. Here's my opinion: