I kind of aimed this mostly towards future admins. * Chad Walstrom <chewie at wookimus.net> [020418 17:11]: > $30k-$40k is average starting, depending upon your background and Depending on the work required, I allmost wouldn't ask for less than 40k. The living costs of the Twin Cities market have gone up over the last couple years with 'affordable' housing being $170k now. > > 4) What kind of education/training does one need to get into this field? Can > > you recommend specific graduate programs? > > Just know your stuff. A saavy manager will question you based on Ditto. Some people get hired purely because of their knowledge and experience. Don't let it bother you. Use your education to learn more, constantly. Don't feel bad if you spend part of a day just *learning*. Be sure that your boss understands that in non-critical situations that learning is allways a better idea than just doing it as fast as possible. If every day is critical, make them get you an assistant/peer. Brownout potential high. > > 5) Is on-the-job training available/required? > Probably. ;-) Get involved in the technology you work with. Find out if users of the technology have conferences. Look out for opportunites to network with people who have skills you don't that will allow you to ask them 'hard' questions. Look into USENIX/SAGE information especially if your working in the unix world, their newsletters have lots of cool tidbits about the unix world. Don't become an island user. Be weary of companies that wont send you out to a conference aligned with technology they use heavily and need you to support as well as possible. Be weary of people who critizise you for not knowing everything instantly. Be weary of companies that ask you to pay for all training with things directly related to your work. > > 6) How are job openings publicized in this field? What trade or > > professional journals do you read? > If the job is publicized, you're going to have heavy competition. Take Some places only hire out of the helpdesk sometimes for systems administration. Some places only end up hiring referrals. Network, network, network. (in the people sense) > > > 7) How do most people get hired in your organization? Are some methods more > > effective than others are? > References, references, references. Remember the addage, "It's not what > you know, it's who you know." All else fails, knock on doors. Agreed. Find smart people who think you are smart. > > 9) Are candidates for full-time employment considered from the intern pool? > Absolutely. They're usually offered the job first if they're good at > what they do. Ditto. Same goes for some places helpdesks. > > 10) How competitive is the entry-level job market in the Minneapolis/St. Paul > > area? > Quite. Get truckin'! Ask Zibby. > > 11) What is the employment outlook in this field? How is this industry doing? > > What are the emerging jobs in this career area? > > Tech jobs will always be available. They may shift around a bit, but Good. Watch out what technology you know and can support and do. It's like being on a treadmill, some technology falls off the end, you most likely dont want to be there with it when it happens. Good luck! -- Scott Dier <dieman at ringworld.org> http://www.ringworld.org/