Nelson Colon ⋅ Staten Island, NY U.S. Air Force, Technical Sergeant ⋅ 12 years served

Hi everybody,

As I previously mentioned, I will be completing my semester tomorrow. In January, I will be taking a business course at Shanghai University in China for three weeks. I am looking forward to this experience. After returning from China, I will begin my final semester in college. My full time position will begin in late July.

Thank you once again for your support. I will keep everybody updated in the coming months.

Nelson

Dan Avilla ⋅ Santa Cruz, CA Hewlett Packard ⋅ 20 years experience

PMP certification is "The" certification for project managers. You can take the courses and the test but you cannot be certified without XX hours of documented experience. And to maintain the certification you need to keep documenting ongoing experience. Many universities have a PM certificate program that is a good step along the path if you dont have the documentable experience.

Thomas Hev ⋅ Philadelphia, PA U.S. Navy, Lieutenant ⋅ 6 years served

Hi Nelson,

Congratulations on obtaining the full time position. I enjoyed reading this thread as I am also interested in learning more about the PMP certification and working in IT.

Bill Pugh ⋅ San Antonio, TX USAA ⋅ 15 years experience

I would highly recommend obtaining the PMP at some point. Also, for large companies, "IT" encompasses many systems, processses and functions. Some companies rely on large mainframe computers to conduct daily transactions. Another growing interest these days seems to be data collection and retention. There are many companies who specialize in deriving Information and providing analytic services from large amounts of data. In addition, the mobile devices are really driving business development and opportunity as well. Knowing details about those devices and services would be a good thing to have. Finally, remember at some point in your IT career, you'll be expected to transition to a manager/leader role. Think about obtaining an MBA early on.

Peter Nesbitt ⋅ New York, NY U.S. Army, Staff Sergeant ⋅ 6 years served

I work for a VC firm focused on tech. I go to a couple networking events a week. There is enormous demand for any Ruby-on-Rails experience.

Venky Addanki ⋅ Vienna, VA Accenture ⋅ 15 years experience

In addition to what others have said, Programming on smart phones, IPad will be a key skill. If you get a chance, get some good books on IOS and Android application development. Learning to write Facebook applications is also a good skill to have. It takes about a year of reading, experimentation to become good at these knowledge areas.

Samantha Keefe ⋅ Boston, MA AVID Technical Resources ⋅ 10 years experience

Perhaps one more avenue for others (congratulations on your job, Nelson!) is to contact AVID Technical Resources. We work hard to place people in the best IT job for their skillset and their personality/work-style. You could check us out at www.avidtr.com. We're all over the country and we have a lot of loyal consultants who work with us for years. We put a lot of stock in treating candidates well and I think our 99 positive google reviews will do a lot to prove that, too. Hope this is helpful to anybody looking for an IT job.

Chris Norton ⋅ Hightstown, NJ Defense Mobile Corporation ⋅ 18 years experience

I know we missed you, Nelson, so my response is aimed at others that might come here.

My personal belief is that the military typically draws or creates people with ADD, and I mean that in the best possible way. We typically have very broad and varied interests (and capabilities!)

I really think that if you've got that worldview, you could do far worse than pursuing a technical leadership program (which, here it comes)....we have a bunch of them.

http://att.jobs/student-program/search

AT&T historically has not done a real good job of marketing this to veterans, but we're making real headway. The NETDP program in particular really wants to bring more on board, so please apply.

Richard Buck ⋅ Patterson, NY EY ⋅ 25 years experience

Good morning. My name is Richard Buck, a Marine Corp vet.Some of the areas that I know that my company, Capco, is looking for are: Architecture, Data mining, package integration and testing. Capco also offers a ATP program. Our ATP is an intensive two-week developmental training program for entry-level management consultants and technology consultants who typically have 0-3 years of experience, and a strong desire to work in the consulting industry, focusing exclusively on financial services. The program is designed to provide our Associates with a thorough foundation of consulting methodology and client strategy on which to build a future career with Capco.

Richard Buck
76warrior85@gmail.com
914 391 3375

James Yaple ⋅ Austin, TX Department of Veterans Affairs ⋅ 25 years experience

The suggestions to get involved in software development, QA and testing are great, as is the pursuit of a PMP. Another area to evaluate is computer security. A CISSP is a door-opener in lots of government and related positions. It's not easy to get. As you approach graduation, you could reach out to any number of firms involved in government contracts. Government contract work has the advantage of being very vet-friendly. Larger firms, such as Northrop-Grumman or General Dynamics, always have openings. Smaller firms are more subject to contract awards. Mitre and similar firms are also an option.

Nelson Colon ⋅ Staten Island, NY U.S. Air Force, Technical Sergeant ⋅ 12 years served

Hi everybody,

Last month, I received an offer with the company, which I accepted. I will be done with my semester in December. Thanks.

Nelson

Nelson Colon ⋅ Staten Island, NY U.S. Air Force, Technical Sergeant ⋅ 12 years served

Hi everybody,

It has been several months since my last visit to this forum. Currently, I am beginning my last year in college. This past summer, I interned for a major financial services company. My role was a business systems analyst. I was involved in several projects during my internship. One project involved the introduction of a mobile application in which I was in frequent contact between end users, project managers, and product developers. Additionally, I managed several SharePoint sites and shared mailboxes. I produced Web analytics reports for senior managers. I had the opportunity to get involved in many networking events, in which I met other interns and senior managers throughout the company.

I am currently being considered for a full-time job offer with this company, which I will accept. I am looking forward to a great career with this company. Thank you for providing me with career advice. I will keep everybody updated later this year on my career progression.

Nelson

Tom Cal, CFA ⋅ San Francisco, CA Army Veteran, Investment Manager ⋅ 25 years experience

http://www.pmi.org/Certification/Project-Management-Professional-PMP.aspx
http://www.pmi.org/en/Certification/Certified-Associate-in-Project-Management-CAPM.aspx
http://www.linkedin.com/groups/US-Military-Veterans-Information-Technology-3950472

Tim Scheerer ⋅ Chesterton, IN ⋅ 25 years experience

Hi Nelson, yes, I know that PMP certification (thru PMI, I believe) is one of the certification steps that a Project Manager must attain in order to be considered a Certified Project Manager within IBM. It is not the only step; there is an experience component as well.

Nelson Colon ⋅ Staten Island, NY U.S. Air Force, Technical Sergeant ⋅ 12 years served

I was thinking about project management. I can build a system and see the project until its completion. I have one bachelor's degree already from Embry-Riddle Aeronuatical University and have a management minor. Currently, I am pursuing a second bachelor's degree in computer information systems with a concentration in public administration. As much as I would like to know programming, I am more interested in the management side of information technology in the public sector. Additionally, I am enrolled in a computer networking course in which I will begin next week. I did an interesting project in my systems analysis course last year on designing an airport system.

Tim, do you know anything about PMP certification? I heard about this certification. Thank you very much, Bob and Tim for your advice. Your help is greatly appreciated.

Sincerely,
Nelson

Tim Scheerer ⋅ Chesterton, IN ⋅ 25 years experience

Hello Nelson, first off, thank you for your service to our country. A couple thoughts on career development in Information Technology. 1. Please take a look at IBM's website (www.ibm.com) - there is a link to jobs at the bottom of the home page. The website should give you a good idea as to what types of jobs a leading technology company is trying to fill. In fact, there is a specific link for University Students. so you could see if there might be an internship opportunity for you. 2. To Bob's point above, I can tell you that Project Management is a very much in-demand career path. Best wishes to you.

Bob Hanrahan ⋅ Melbourne, FL U.S. Air Force, Captain ⋅ 5 years served

Nelson, I can't tell you what you should pursue, but from your explanation of what you like and where you want to be, Io offer the following: I would pursue a year or two in software development (programming/testing) working your way up to a team lead position followed by a year or two as a systems analyst/designer. This would give you a good base for managing teams of sofware developers. In parallel finish your degree. Take advantage of company sponsored training and training dollars. Be sure to use your GI Bill. As you progress into management positions you'll have a good technical base. Keep the momentum up on your studies by working on your MBA using GI Bill and company funded education support.
Sound like you have access to military installations. Try to find a base that has a Transition Assistance Program (TAP) program. Their program can help you in terms of transition, job hunting etc. If you want to start a business down the road, check the VA their guidance and for pointers to the Small Business Administration support for business startups. Hope this helps. Good Luck in all your endeavors.