IT Jobs? (El Paso: home, college, live)

[joqua]

I was just looking at the news clip for an upcoming semi-annual Ft. Bliss "hiring fair" on Feb. 8, but one has to be a military member or family member to attend. But it reminded me that El Paso has a large "job fair" every year at the convention center, and other job fairs throughout the year.

There are also "public assistance" organizations for job hunters, Work Force Solutions being but one.

[steve9229]

Originally Posted by joqua

I was just looking at the news clip for an upcoming semi-annual Ft. Bliss "hiring fair" on Feb. 8, but one has to be a military member or family member to attend. But it reminded me that El Paso has a large "job fair" every year at the convention center, and other job fairs throughout the year.

There are also "public assistance" organizations for job hunters, Work Force Solutions being but one.

Good to know. I'll keep an eye out for those! Too bad I have no military connection. I'm currently using at least one recruiter as well as searching 25 or so websites daily (including some of those Tyga23 mentioned). I don't think borderplexjobs is one of them but it is now. Thanks for the info!

[steve9229]

So, for those of you that have IT jobs here. Do you have a Bachelor's in Computer Science or a ton of Certs? Or did you know someone who helped you get an IT job? I've applied for over 40 jobs and have 16 years of experience (ranging from Help Desk, to Desktop Tech to Server Admin) but I have only managed to get 2 interviews in the last 4 months. I check 55 sites twice a day and do multiple searches on some of them. Can someone clue me in as to what the deal is?

[atrabilius]

I'm going through the same thing in Southern California, a bunch of interviews in the past few years, no offers of paid employment, and I have a bachelor's in computer information systems and am working on another bachelor's in computer science and have a lot of almost entirely unpaid/volunteer experience. I'm 53. They might be looking for young people.

[tyga23]

Information engineering major here. Get your security plus and work at white sands, fort bliss or nasa. There are 250k + homes in el paso. Where do you think that money comes from. I work for Lockheed Martin and my pay is more than even those of my friends in bigger cities. The secret is getting a security clearance and working in IT. Make sure your record is clean and apply for all those jobs. Look at indeed or clearance jobs.

[steve9229]

Originally Posted by atrabilius

I'm going through the same thing in Southern California, a bunch of interviews in the past few years, no offers of paid employment, and I have a bachelor's in computer information systems and am working on another bachelor's in computer science and have a lot of almost entirely unpaid/volunteer experience. I'm 53. They might be looking for young people.

That sucks. Is sounds worse than it is here.

[steve9229]

Originally Posted by tyga23

Information engineering major here. Get your security plus and work at white sands, fort bliss or nasa. There are 250k + homes in el paso. Where do you think that money comes from. I work for Lockheed Martin and my pay is more than even those of my friends in bigger cities. The secret is getting a security clearance and working in IT. Make sure your record is clean and apply for all those jobs. Look at indeed or clearance jobs.

I tried to get security clearance but apparently it's pretty expensive and only the employer can help you get it. Did you have your security plus before you got your job? I can understand how that may prevent getting a job on a military base but it doesn't explain the lack of interviews from everywhere else I've applied. I appreciate the info.

[tyga23]

Originally Posted by steve9229

I tried to get security clearance but apparently it's pretty expensive and only the employer can help you get it. Did you have your security plus before you got your job? I can understand how that may prevent getting a job on a military base but it doesn't explain the lack of interviews from everywhere else I've applied. I appreciate the info.

you are correct you can only get a clearance if the company that hires you requires one and yes they are very expensive can go up to 80,000 per person. the point of my post wasn't to give you Insight on lack of interviews but rather to tell you maybe you should focus on that kind of employment. contractors are in constant need of people and it's kind of a hidden industry in this area. Las cruces and el paso both. I actually obtained my Security + after employment the government kind of required it after a while which is why I tell you it would definitely be something good to do in the near future not only government but Private Industry is also starting to get on board with that. Honestly I would have somebody(resume builder) look at your resume. there could be something that is throwing employer's off which is why you're getting a lack of callbacks. Good luck to you. Hope you hear something soon

[steve9229]

Originally Posted by tyga23

you are correct you can only get a clearance if the company that hires you requires one and yes they are very expensive can go up to 80,000 per person. the point of my post wasn't to give you Insight on lack of interviews but rather to tell you maybe you should focus on that kind of employment. contractors are in constant need of people and it's kind of a hidden industry in this area. Las cruces and el paso both. I actually obtained my Security + after employment the government kind of required it after a while which is why I tell you it would definitely be something good to do in the near future not only government but Private Industry is also starting to get on board with that. Honestly I would have somebody(resume builder) look at your resume. there could be something that is throwing employer's off which is why you're getting a lack of callbacks. Good luck to you. Hope you hear something soon

I actually had Resume Builder look at it a few months ago and made changes based on their suggestions. I have wondered several times if there was something on it that was steering employers away. However, the few people I have spoken to that have seen it did not mention anything negative on it. Plus, I get interview offers from Dallas, Austin and other places every few weeks. I still wonder though. I believe your suggestion to get Security + is a good one and I'm sure it would benefit me. I have applied for many jobs that have required it. I was mainly curious if you had it before you got your job. Most likely I will not figure out why there is a lack of interviews since it's getting to the point where I need to go back home (and most likely get a job pretty quickly). Either that or I'll be flipping burgers here. I appreciate your feedback! Thanks!

[ITSPECELP]

I'm currently working as a server administrator in El Paso and have worked as such with various government agencies since 2009. I don't have a college degree but I do have a number of certifications. Speaking to Security+: One of my previous employers paid for me to get certified, so, I'd seriously look into getting that if you're applying for any government jobs. So far, in my experience, experience and training has trumped the need for a college degree (non-management/supervisory).


Not sure if you've already done so, but a section of my resume lists all the relevant training I've attended that I feel is relevant to the position I'm applying to - with course name, classroom hours, location, etc.


The top sites I would search for jobs are: Dice.com, workintexas.com and usajobs.gov