Best type of Degree to get??

[evan.briggs]

I am currently a System Administrator in the US Army and I am leaving the military very soon. I WILL be using my GI BILL, but I kind of torn on what degree would be best to further my education in System Administration. I was looking online and saw like "Network System Administration" from Devry, but is that really best for that? Or should i go with something more general like "Informations Systems" or something like that? I would most appreciate the feed back because im kind of going crazy about deciding which is best..

Thank!

 

[BikerEcho]

I can't really answer for the US, but here in Denmark there are no "best" education.
It's all about what you want. I have the education "IT supporter" and i could continues to become a "datamatiker" (Something that is more adjusted for networking) It's does not give much more payment, and i just wanted to get off the school bench (sense i have been on the bench sense first grade. it has to stop somewhere). so i stooped at IT supporter. compare me to one of my friends that is taking the "datamatiker", He is still living with his parents and reading books. I am actually working and adding experience to my Resumé.
So no one else but yourself can tell what is right for you.

 

[iPwn]

Do not attend a 'for profit' school
E.g. Devry, ITT-Tech, Westwood College, College America, IBMC, etc

Attend a public university, or any organization that is "regionally accredited". Nationally accredited schools will (mostly) get you a degree that isn't worth the paper it's printed on.

That is the best advice I can give. I used my VA Voc Rehab benefits (can be a little better than using the GI Bill, context permitting) and am attending ITT-Tech. Worst. Life. Decision. Ever. For Profit schools lure you in with all kinds of promises. Once you sign, good luck getting anything from them. I asked their student support team what their exchange server address was so I could use outlook and was told "we don't support non-company devices." Took me about an hour of command line utils and searching until I found their mail server. Then I wrote a scathing email to department heads, deans and executives. Their reply? "...you have the server address now, is this resolved?"

Anywho. If your goal is systems administration, Network Systems Administration is going to teach you all about networking (routers/switches/firewalls/servers/etc). Are you wanting to stay more on the 'end-user support' side of the house? The fields of IT are many and specializations abound. It all kind of depends on what you want to be doing in 10 years.

 

[IAntDemo]

My advice: Goodluck

 

[JogaBonito1502]

I might be biased, but the best type of degree available is an engineering degree (if you allow yourself degrees in fields not directly related to systems administration). I recommend it, not because of the jobs you'd be able to undertake, but because an engineering degree teaches you how to problem solve and how to think critically unlike any other degree.

 

[setishock]

Apply to MIT before you get out.

 

[evan.briggs]

I really want to work my way up to the top as a Lead Systems Admin. I was also looking at an engineering degree. I just dont know if Im smart enough... Like Calculus!! HMM.. I mean if i put my mind to it I probably could but yes i was told not to go to a for-profit school which makes sense. I will need to take my SAT's again as well. Is university of phoenix a for-profit school?

 

[root]

lead system admin for what?

servers, workstations, networking equipment.

when you say lead you mean like in charge of support, or planning future road maps, development, you want to be installing systems etc?

to be honest, to get a job any degree will do, (so long as your results are good).
as said above engineering degree will teach some thinking that others don't, but you'll need to have a passion for the subject in order to pass.)


once you've got the job it's going to be your experience that will determine if you get to be the head guy.

 

[evan.briggs]

ya, ive been in the military as a sysadmin for 3 years, for both servers and workstations. currently have security + and mcts windows 7 configurations certifications. yes i would like to be a lead for servers mostly for a good corp. that has a mass varity of systems. i do understand that experience is what gets you a job, but im not going to let my GI bill go to waste and i want something that could give me to most experience i could.

 

[root]

With the vendor certs that you have, and more importantly the 3+ years experience that you have a degree will add nothing to your CV.

so pick a degree (any degree) make it something that you like.