trying to reenter IT field after a break of over 5 years

Question

Hello.

I have had some misfortune in life - I was unwell and had to stay out of work for an extended period of about 5 years. Before that I used to work as an Oracle/Oracle Ebusiness suite consultant. But now I am fully recovered, feeling sharper than ever.

But there aren't many opportunities in my areas of expertise in a small market like New Zealand, and the long absence is no help either. So for the last 5 months I have been training myself in C#, ASP.NET, web technologies like HTML, JQuery, CSS and also SQL Server. I had some previous experience with JAVA and VB .NET (a few months). But I am fully confident of my abilities and believe I can hit the ground running given a chance. I used to be an expert with SQL and C language and these skills are portable to SQL Server and C#.

Another problem I face is my age- I am over 50.

What is your opinion - Am I doing the right thing? Can I get back into an IT career - I am willing to start all over again at a junior level; I am really facing a crisis in my life.

Answer 1

It's likely better to go back into IT where you have some good skills than it is to start fresh with something else. It is a tough market right now, but if you make getting an IT job your second job (or if you are unemployed your full time job) then you'll be able to get one. It might help you to get a Microsoft Technology Specialist certification to beef up your resume. Of course keep "Oracle" in your job search keywords, but also try C, VB, .NET, SQL, database, etc and you'll find a bunch. Keep applying and don't get discouraged if the first few don't work out.

Answer 2

You are right - there are limited Oracle based positions in this country. Having said that, it is a bonus to have both Oracle and SQLServer skills, there are not many of these around.

If you are looking for a programming job, then you will have to be prepared to accept a junior or intermediate role - there is a lot to learn in the C#/ASP.NET area, it will take some time before you can consider yourself senior in this area. You also don't mention what city you are based in - the job landscape differs considerably between Auckland and Wellington. The other cities also have dev roles, but obviously far fewer.

You should be congratulated though for taking the initiative and time to retrain, that has to be seen as a positive at interview time. Keep your nose to the ground, subscribe to Seek, phone a few of the recruitment consultants and make sure you are on their database. The market hasn't got the quantity of positions that it has had in the past, but there is still a constant flow of positions out there.

I wouldn't normally advocate this, but something else for you to consider is that Australia is not far away - not only do they have a larger market, they also have more opportunities in specialist areas. Believe it or not, the mining areas (QLD, WA and SA) also have a constant need for computing specialists. With your Oracle skills, London may have been a good option as well, but i understand they have tightened up their work visa requirements and you may find your age is against you (unless you have British heritage that you can leverage).

I hope this helps in some way :)

Edit: another thing i should mention is to re-establish your network of people you know. This market is small enough that quite often who you know will get you a job faster than what you know. Sites like LinkedIn can help with rebuilding that network - IMHO it won't get you head-hunted, but it will help you get your contacts back in place.