Member Avatar for Beowulf165

Currently I am going to be attending college for Information Technology and I learned that you can focus on doing either Networking or Help desk. So I was curious what are the goods and bads of each?? Which one is easier to do?? A little info about myself. Currently I work selling computers, laptops, printers, and software to customers and like to do a little tinkering myself with old towers. I consider myself to be a guy that knows more then the average person but not as much as a pro. Simple things that I can do include cleaning a tower, performance tuning computers, typing which I'm good at, and building my a computer tower if need be. There was a time when I did HVAC work so who knows it might be helpful down the line. Any kind of input who'd be helpful. :)

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Two common entry points into IT are front-line user support and infrastructure/network work. The right choice depends less on which is "easier" and more on what skills and daily tasks you want: customer-facing troubleshooting and broad Windows/macOS/hardware exposure vs deeper protocol, routing/switching and design work. , and point out useful themes: labels alone dont sell you — concrete skills and examples do — and an IT degree can lead to many different roles.

Practical differences to weigh:

  • Help desk gets you into the workforce fastest, builds communication and triage skills, and exposes you to many platforms. Use it as a launching pad by tracking specific technical accomplishments you can list on a resume.
  • Networking requires study and lab practice (subnetting, VLANs, OSPF/BGP basics, CLI comfort) but signals specialization on a CV and opens infrastructure roles.
    A blended approach is common and effective: take help-desk or internship work while studying networking on the side.

A short, practical roadmap:

  • Get a vendor-neutral starter cert (CompTIA A+) and a portfolio of fixes or projects.
  • While working, set up a home lab (Packet Tracer / GNS3) and study Network+ or CCNA to learn routing/switching and CLI.
  • Add Linux basics and a cloud intro (AWS/Azure) as networking increasingly overlaps with cloud.

For current pay, outlook, and job definitions consult the Bureau of Labor Statistics pages for user support and network/admin roles (Computer User Support Specialists, Network and Computer Systems Administrators). For certs and lab tools see CompTIA and Cisco details (A+, Network+, ).

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Member Avatar for muta

Have you looked at the modules?

I don't doing purely helpdesk is that good for your career, becaue after you are bored it will be very hard to prove that you can do something else. If you do Networking then an employer ca cleary see that you study networking. But if you see's HelpDesk what does that mean it doesn't say what you can do - or he/she will have to read more into your CV to understand what it means. Remember not a lot of employers have the time to read all of your CV.

If you do helpdesk it doesn't mean you can do helpdesk but if you do networking there is a good chance you can working on a helpdesk.

Member Avatar for donnie1581

IT careers range way further than just networking and help desk support. A degree in the IT field will open up a gateway to a rather large list of different occupations. I am currently earning a bachelors in Systems IT, but I am just now starting to think about what career I want to emphasize on.

Member Avatar for Crement

As stated above, IT careers range much further. At the moment, I have done the following jobs: Level 1 support helpdesk and have been a Systems Administrator (for all internal networks) - now it all just depends on what your goals are.

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