Here's How To Get Started In A Tech Career

With great salaries, loads of opportunities to upskill and great perks, there’s never been a better time to get involved in a tech career . But how do you take your career from alpha test to live and online? We want to show you how to set your course, and take that first step.

Figure out what you’re interested in

The exciting thing to know about a career in tech is that no two tech jobs are alike. There are web developers, network engineers, user experience designers, security engineers, and loads more. That’s why it’s worth thinking a little more specifically about what you find interesting about tech.

You can also check out the aptitude tests on a website like WithYouWithMe, which is a site specifically designed to match your personality and interests with tech careers.

Pick up some skills or get qualified

You may want to consider doing something like a Cert II - IV, or even a university degree. VET qualifications will usually take around a year to complete full-time, and can often be done outside of normal working hours, so they’re great if you’ve already got plenty on your plate.

A university degree will be a requirement for some jobs, but it’s a bit more of a commitment, as you’ll have more work to do, and degree programs can be three years long or more. Not to mention that recent research by the Tech Council of Australia has shown that VET graduates on average receive 3% less in salary than their university counterparts.

Another alternative is to do smaller courses. These can be great because they’re shorter in length, and are usually pretty focussed on a couple of work-related skills. While some cost money, there are also heaps of free courses you can work on at your own pace.

Skill Finder is a site co-run by the Digital Skills Organisation (that you might remember from our DigiSkills Academy) that gives you access to over 3000 online courses provided by the world’s leading tech companies - all for free. Not bad, hey?

Get some experience under your belt

If you’ve picked up some skills or qualifications, now can be a great time to get your hands dirty and try some new projects.
One way to start is to try some work experience programs. Big tech companies usually have formal internship programs, while startups might look for interns to help them lighten their workloads a little.

If you’re already working in one sector but your company has an IT department, you might be able to ask about doing some shadowing or extra work experience.

You can also try working on some stuff yourself. DIY projects are a great way to learn because you build your technical skills, as well as your problem solving skills at the same time. You could try to code a program or website to solve a problem, build something using a Raspberry Pi computer, or build your own custom PC. This will help you learn more as you encounter hiccups and problems, as well as building up a bit of a portfolio you can use if you decide to apply for a tech job.

Just like anything in life, often the best way to find out if you enjoy something or not is to try it out for a little while!

Apply Yourself!

By now you’ve hopefully figured out what area of the tech sector you’re interested in, gotten a bit of experience under your belt, and gained some certifications or qualifications to make your resumé pop.

You’re ready to head out there and hunt for jobs! Classic job sites like LinkedIn are helpful because recruiters and HR professionals will be hanging out there, but there are some more tech-focussed job hunting sites out there as well.

Withyouwithme is a platform that is designed to get people into great tech jobs that they’ll love. They do this by using skills and aptitude tests to match you with career paths, giving you training recommendations, and allowing you to apply for jobs - no cover letter or resume needed.

If this all sounds like something you’d be into, make sure you check out our Tech Expo, right here! It’s chock-full of great chats with people working in the tech industry today, hacks on picking up new skills, and heaps more.