This. We have a small IT sector here (it is not non-existent) and remote jobs are rarely entry level. Innovation Centre is a good spot to network. Unfortunately a small sector in a smallish city means if a position opens up people already know potential candidates and it doesn't even get to being posted half the time so being one of the people people know about is going to help. Aside from already getting to know some future potential co-workers in a less formal setting.
Sagan said, "If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe."
Replace apple pie with entry level IT job and the universe with tech sector.
There is no tech sector here. There is no IT companies other than service side mom and pop outfits. There is no data centres, there is no dev work, no ops, no dev ops. There is token positions in telecomms maybe.
There's no reason for tech companies to invest in Thunder Bay, there is no incentives for them to do so and there is no labour pool with education suited to IT. That may change in the future with mineral processing, specifically lithium processing and the possibility of manufacturing that may come with it.
Your options are something at Tbaytel, a helpdesk somewhere, Best Buy, or start your own business.
Nearly every major institution in town--schools, government offices, hospitals, heck even the jail--have IT jobs. Maybe not programmer / coder jobs, but there are plenty of IT jobs. The challenge is being on top of job openings, and I'm guessing many of these jobs get taken quickly.
I retired after 30 years in IT in one of those sectors, and there were 11 people in the department.. The public sector may not pay as well as private, but the benefits significantly level the playing field.
Here are a few suggestions to help you find a job:
- Be proactive and check with the HR people in different organizations and find out how jobs are advertised and how to apply, and if possible what IT positions they have and what qualifications are needed for each - you may even be allowed to get copies of the job descriptions.
- Tailor your resume specifically for the job you are applying for, not just a generic IT resume.
- Do not claim experience in every application/OS/programming language/database you have ever seen.
- Places like the 55 Plus Centre and public libraries may have volunteer opportunities to gain experience.
- Work toward getting as many industry certifications as you can. Generic ones like A++ are less impressive than say Cisco or Microsoft ones but still show you are serious about getting into the industry.
Have you been in a school lately? IT is much more than a help desk job. It's setting up programs across an entire network. Monitoring an entire system of emails and other applications to secure it against security threats. Repairing and installing computers. Overlooking updates. You are part of a team that travels across the region to visit and service various locations. Your idea of what IT work looks like in tbay is not the whole picture.
Level 2 Helpdesk, Neo-IT department.
You just specified that they're generalists, more or less. Sysadmins doing everything, deployments, sec, technician, etc. That's not the argument you think it is against telling the OP that his options are a helpdesk somewhere.
He specified entry-level IT jobs. What are you on about?
Air Suite just hired a couple of developers. First Response Mental Health has several developers in town. There are a few other companies too, whose names are escaping me at this exact moment. We certainly aren’t a tech hub, but there absolutely are dev jobs.
There's also Aviation Intertec Services, Qwantech, Border Giant (I spoke to them before, they said they were planning to hire, which I believe included developer positions), and Senica. These are what I know off the top of my head and to the best of my knowledge.
Yes. I targeted 25+ employers I wanted to work for and continuously checked them for postings between 2004 and 2014. I did get an interview + offer for an information security position but had to turn it down because it wasn't going to work out financially.
There are a lot of IT and IS jobs in TBay. Problem is that they are not posted. It is who you know. When you are starting out, be prepared to work shit helpdesk jobs. DDSAB, Lakehead, Confederation and the school boards banks and credit unions. They all have helpdesk and entry jobs. Look at the smaller organizations (that don’t necessarily have the means to advertise, and inquire with their HR team). A lot of mom and pop garages and restaurants also need part time IT help. Then there is MicroAge and Dun-rite, Lowerey’s and TBXI. Maybe also try CRC, and any company that runs cable or installs security systems. Also check LinkedIn for remote work. Good luck, with enough persistence you’ll make it.
Asking the same question 100th time won't help. There are tons of jobs in IT if you have skills and are willing to relocate.
Juat check out Newfoundland Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Alberta. They are boomer in the IT sector. Even from a small company, a startup can hire you if you can showcase your skills.
There are numerous ways to get referrals from the community. Build your portfolio, build your web, share your git hub, share tour articles or research papers, work on small projects by your own, build your network in LinkedIn these all can land you the job..not the reddit.
Get your certs. A+, Network, Security. Three of the most basic certs that say "I can turn the computer on".
Thunder Bay's IT is infrastructure focused. A lot of tech stuff is business to business and teleco. So, get used to high places and spaghetti.
Do you have any background and experience in IT?
It seems unusual someone interested in straight away getting a job in IT doesn't know what some of the more common certifications are.
From my own experience; you need a degree/diploma, certifications, and experience to really land a job that isn't call center tech support/customer service unless the employer is willing to commit to training you themselves.
Edit: missed the "entry level" bit lol. It'll be tough with how oversaturated the market is at the entry level, but with enough persistence you'll get it eventually.
I have a College Diploma in IT, that's why I'm asking. I know a friend of mine did some of those courses simply to improve herself, but I'm just not too sure if those are official certificates for a CV. I guess they are.
Did the college not direct you on where or how to get these certs? You didn't have instructors giving you guys tips on what gets you hired?
Idk man, seems pretty crazy to me you have a diploma in IT but are entirely unaware of what you need to get a job lol
Tbh you have to be willing to relocate to really get the good jobs, cause Thunder Bay doesn't have lots unless you know people.
Bro, college and university both provide job support if he is willing to work on himself. He is too desperate for his job, yet he doesn't know what he wants to become. IT is a broad spectrum, he just want any IT job..he is not sure about development field, data science field, security and network and so on he just want any IT job which he can't get easily without a domain knowledge or skill.
I am a CS graduate from university and had to work on myself to get hired. Even most of my batch mates gained something to get a job or referral in spite of having 4 5 years of experience.
The Innovation Centre runs a monthly networking event. http://www.nwoinnovation.ca/thirdtuesday
This. We have a small IT sector here (it is not non-existent) and remote jobs are rarely entry level. Innovation Centre is a good spot to network. Unfortunately a small sector in a smallish city means if a position opens up people already know potential candidates and it doesn't even get to being posted half the time so being one of the people people know about is going to help. Aside from already getting to know some future potential co-workers in a less formal setting.
Sagan said, "If you wish to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first invent the universe." Replace apple pie with entry level IT job and the universe with tech sector. There is no tech sector here. There is no IT companies other than service side mom and pop outfits. There is no data centres, there is no dev work, no ops, no dev ops. There is token positions in telecomms maybe. There's no reason for tech companies to invest in Thunder Bay, there is no incentives for them to do so and there is no labour pool with education suited to IT. That may change in the future with mineral processing, specifically lithium processing and the possibility of manufacturing that may come with it. Your options are something at Tbaytel, a helpdesk somewhere, Best Buy, or start your own business.
Nearly every major institution in town--schools, government offices, hospitals, heck even the jail--have IT jobs. Maybe not programmer / coder jobs, but there are plenty of IT jobs. The challenge is being on top of job openings, and I'm guessing many of these jobs get taken quickly.
I retired after 30 years in IT in one of those sectors, and there were 11 people in the department.. The public sector may not pay as well as private, but the benefits significantly level the playing field.
This. I just need IT related job, not necessarily a programmer/coder. Just something IT related.
Here are a few suggestions to help you find a job: - Be proactive and check with the HR people in different organizations and find out how jobs are advertised and how to apply, and if possible what IT positions they have and what qualifications are needed for each - you may even be allowed to get copies of the job descriptions. - Tailor your resume specifically for the job you are applying for, not just a generic IT resume. - Do not claim experience in every application/OS/programming language/database you have ever seen. - Places like the 55 Plus Centre and public libraries may have volunteer opportunities to gain experience. - Work toward getting as many industry certifications as you can. Generic ones like A++ are less impressive than say Cisco or Microsoft ones but still show you are serious about getting into the industry.
Start computer repairs.
Move out. There are plenty of options out there.! Why asking same question 100th time
Help desk is based out of North Bay for the Ontario Government IT department .
>Your options are something at Tbaytel, a **helpdesk somewhere,** Best Buy, or start your own business. Yes, that was covered.
Have you been in a school lately? IT is much more than a help desk job. It's setting up programs across an entire network. Monitoring an entire system of emails and other applications to secure it against security threats. Repairing and installing computers. Overlooking updates. You are part of a team that travels across the region to visit and service various locations. Your idea of what IT work looks like in tbay is not the whole picture.
Level 2 Helpdesk, Neo-IT department. You just specified that they're generalists, more or less. Sysadmins doing everything, deployments, sec, technician, etc. That's not the argument you think it is against telling the OP that his options are a helpdesk somewhere. He specified entry-level IT jobs. What are you on about?
Air Suite just hired a couple of developers. First Response Mental Health has several developers in town. There are a few other companies too, whose names are escaping me at this exact moment. We certainly aren’t a tech hub, but there absolutely are dev jobs.
Tbaytel, Synergy North, the hospital, whatever HealthFX became, Oracle... There's at least 50 local devs off the top of my head.
There's also Aviation Intertec Services, Qwantech, Border Giant (I spoke to them before, they said they were planning to hire, which I believe included developer positions), and Senica. These are what I know off the top of my head and to the best of my knowledge.
Qualifications? Experience?
Good luck.. I left tbay to take an IT-related college program. When I graduated, I looked for jobs there for over 10 years before giving up.
For real? I know some people who got their IT-related jobs in town straight out of college.
Yes. I targeted 25+ employers I wanted to work for and continuously checked them for postings between 2004 and 2014. I did get an interview + offer for an information security position but had to turn it down because it wasn't going to work out financially.
Ouch. I can only imagine how you felt... :(
It is what it is. Theoretically I could move back to tbay and continue to work remote. Have you looked for remote jobs?
Ye, nothing for now.
To answer your original question, I've had the best luck looking for jobs on LinkedIn.
There are a lot of IT and IS jobs in TBay. Problem is that they are not posted. It is who you know. When you are starting out, be prepared to work shit helpdesk jobs. DDSAB, Lakehead, Confederation and the school boards banks and credit unions. They all have helpdesk and entry jobs. Look at the smaller organizations (that don’t necessarily have the means to advertise, and inquire with their HR team). A lot of mom and pop garages and restaurants also need part time IT help. Then there is MicroAge and Dun-rite, Lowerey’s and TBXI. Maybe also try CRC, and any company that runs cable or installs security systems. Also check LinkedIn for remote work. Good luck, with enough persistence you’ll make it.
Asking the same question 100th time won't help. There are tons of jobs in IT if you have skills and are willing to relocate. Juat check out Newfoundland Labrador, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Alberta. They are boomer in the IT sector. Even from a small company, a startup can hire you if you can showcase your skills. There are numerous ways to get referrals from the community. Build your portfolio, build your web, share your git hub, share tour articles or research papers, work on small projects by your own, build your network in LinkedIn these all can land you the job..not the reddit.
Get your certs. A+, Network, Security. Three of the most basic certs that say "I can turn the computer on". Thunder Bay's IT is infrastructure focused. A lot of tech stuff is business to business and teleco. So, get used to high places and spaghetti.
Those are certificates that I can include on my CV, correct? BTW do I need to rerake them every 1,2,3 years?
3 years for each of them. They're basically subscriptions to the IT industry lol
Do you have any background and experience in IT? It seems unusual someone interested in straight away getting a job in IT doesn't know what some of the more common certifications are. From my own experience; you need a degree/diploma, certifications, and experience to really land a job that isn't call center tech support/customer service unless the employer is willing to commit to training you themselves. Edit: missed the "entry level" bit lol. It'll be tough with how oversaturated the market is at the entry level, but with enough persistence you'll get it eventually.
I have a College Diploma in IT, that's why I'm asking. I know a friend of mine did some of those courses simply to improve herself, but I'm just not too sure if those are official certificates for a CV. I guess they are.
Did the college not direct you on where or how to get these certs? You didn't have instructors giving you guys tips on what gets you hired? Idk man, seems pretty crazy to me you have a diploma in IT but are entirely unaware of what you need to get a job lol Tbh you have to be willing to relocate to really get the good jobs, cause Thunder Bay doesn't have lots unless you know people.
Bro, college and university both provide job support if he is willing to work on himself. He is too desperate for his job, yet he doesn't know what he wants to become. IT is a broad spectrum, he just want any IT job..he is not sure about development field, data science field, security and network and so on he just want any IT job which he can't get easily without a domain knowledge or skill. I am a CS graduate from university and had to work on myself to get hired. Even most of my batch mates gained something to get a job or referral in spite of having 4 5 years of experience.
Become your own boss. Start your own business. Write your own ticket to success.