My First IT Certificate
For people starting off in the IT industry, many wonder what IT certification they should first pursue. Which certificate will get them a foot in the door? Which certificate is the most bang for the buck? It may be rough to decide how to even start the transition into the IT realm, but we all have different journeys on how we started off in our transition into IT, including our very first certifications that we take.
As many people recommend, CompTIA A+ is the most direct path for IT beginner professionals to pursue. It covers the fundamentals of what a IT support technician should know to assist in troubleshooting technological issues. CompTIA is also a reputable IT industry organization with credibility. However, for me I actually took Coursera's Google IT Support certificate as my very first. Why, you may ask? Well, it's self-paced, affordable in cost, and easy to obtain without needing to schedule for an exam. Once you complete the course, you automatically obtain the certificate which you can start using.
The Coursera Google IT support certificate includes a lot of resources that are beneficial for people making a career shift into IT. Firstly, there is an organized curriculum for each section, allowing a user to see the general outline and know what to expect. After each section, there is a quiz that is great for refreshing the brain in what was learned. Secondly, the certification course offers both videos and external resource links that one can refer to for more assistance. It compiles resources for us already, rather than needing to proactively search for them. Thirdly, the course greatly offers practice for Performance Based Questions, providing virtual hands-on lab experiences. These labs must be completed before allowing a user to move onto the next section, making the course even better through accountability via course progress.
No matter what certification you start off with, it is important to keep in mind what the end goal is. But overall, I highly recommend starting off with Coursera's Google IT support certificate, as it is quick to add to your resume, along with personal knowledge and growth as well. Hope this helps! Feel free to reach out if you have any questions :)