We can’t deny it, it is rough out there. Even in times like these, where the job market is hot and prospective employees have every advantage, competition is fierce.

If you have been blasting out resumes and taking personality tests online, but not getting any calls back it can be demoralizing. “Entry-level” job postings abound with requirements and expectations more akin to someone with 5-10 years of professional experience. You may be asking yourself, “How can I get experience if no one gives me the chance to get experience?” Internships are a great option, but they aren’t available to everyone.

Let’s assume that you are looking for your first Information Technology job and a technical role at that. Not a Project Manager, or Service Coordinator, or Sales Engineer- but a tech. What should you bring to the table before you have even one day of experience.

Here are five entry-level IT skills you should not only perfect on your own time, but highlight and even celebrate on your resumes, within your cover letters, and certainly in person during an interview.

1. Computer Hardware

If you are anything like most of the new-to-IT-crowd, you likely have some interest in the hardware aspect of the field. Perhaps you have been building gaming computers for the past ten years, maybe you are the whiz kid who fixes their family’s anything, or if you were like me, you took every family appliance apart and [hopefully] got it back together again. (Sorry about that toaster, Mom!

Knowledge of computer hardware is not only something you will need to understand as a foundation to build upon, but it is something a hiring manager will expect even the most junior technicians to have a firm grasp over. The beautiful thing is that while the size, scale, and complexity of hardware changes over time, or from business to business, the technology used in business IT hardware is not all that different from the technology contained in your home desktop or laptop. This should be your first stop on your journey towards a long and fulfilling career in tech.

If you have the resources, build a PC, see what makes it tick, what works, what doesn’t. There are entire communities dedicated to home-labs, some of which are pretty sophisticated. But yours does not need to be. A PC is the foundation upon which you can build more and more knowledge. Start simple, buy used even, just get comfortable tearing apart and re-assembling computers start to finish.

If you are studying for a certification like the CompTIA A+, you’ll have a framework to follow while learning about standard computer hardware. This is highly recommended if you haven’t spent much time playing with PCs.

2. Windows Networking

Network Engineering is a field unto itself within the world of IT. Sure, there are Jacks of all Trades and some mighty fine ones, but you can spend your entire career as a Network Engineer living in routers and switches all day long.

If you’ve applied to an entry level technician job, no one will expect you to configure for them a new router or switch on day one. That said, they will expect you to be able to correctly perform basic configuration on all of the client devices on the network.

In most environments, this means getting very comfortable with the network settings in Windows. If you are going to be tested during the interview process, don’t be expected if you will need to assign a static IP address to a Windows device, or change DNS settings, or run some commands in the command line.

It doesn’t really matter how far down the Network Engineering rabbit hole you go, you will never really escape Windows networking. So you may as well get comfortable with it now!

3. Active Directory User Management

Much like Windows running on desktops and laptops, you will almost certainly find Microsoft’s Active Directory running in the background at most any business data center/server room/network closet. Even if you chance into a job at a business that does use a different directory solution, the skills you learn while practicing with Active Directory will likely carry over nicely.

Active Directory itself can be a pretty big animal, but much like with networking you will likely need to only know the basics. Get yourself with the organizational structure of Active Directory (Users, OUs, Groups, etc.). Spin up a Windows Server Virtual Machine and configure it as a domain controller. Spend time creating users and groups, joining other virtual machines to the domain, moving objects between OUs, and overall getting comfortable with the interface.

Oh, and yes, you will need to learn how to reset a password!

4. Remote Desktop Protocol (RDP)

Almost anywhere you land, you will likely find yourself providing some form of remote support. Even if you are embedded with a department in your organization, you will still need to help users who are out of the office, working from home or the road. In these instances, you’ll lean on some form of remote desktop to take control of a remote computer and provide assistance.

At the most basic level, Microsoft’s own Remote Desktop Connection is something you will encounter anywhere you go. It gives you the ability to view and control a remote desktop, laptop, or server using a client that is already available in Windows Pro and Enterprise editions.

It isn’t the most elegant remote access tool in the world, but if you were given a test environment to work on during the interview process, I would place my bets on you utilizing Remote Desktop Connection over much of anything else.

For bonus points, experiment with other remote desktop tools, such as LogMeIn, TeamViewer, or GoToMyPC. Explaining to a hiring manager that you are already familiar with these tools and their functionality and that that familiarity will certainly carry over to whatever tool the IT Department uses, will be just one more thing to differentiate you from the rest of the candidate pool.

5. Communication

Last but certainly not least is probably the single most important skill to hone prior to interviewing, and to continue to hone throughout the entirety of your career: Communication.

It doesn’t matter if you are the best damn technician the world has ever known if you can’t properly tell your own story, communicate complex ideas/theories/models to non-technical people, or hell- just hold a conversation for a while!

Of all the skills to work on, communication is also the one that will pay the most dividends. Good communicators in this field are rare, but ones that can speak in public, be influential, build rapport with users and customers are a hot commodity and are in high demand. The more effective your communication skills become, the more in-demand you will find yourself in the job market- not just here in the beginning, but forever afterward.

Final Thoughts

You may think that you will receive all of the on-the-job training you will need to be successful in your first job, however, you must always remember that competition is fierce, and you are not entitled to anything. Business owners, department managers, and team leaders are all looking for the shortest path to success. What that means for you is that the more that you can bring to the table on day zero, the less effort they will need to put into your success, and the more likely it will be for you to get an offer.

Take control of your own professional destiny, and put the hours in on your own time to learn and become a pro. This attitude alone might be all that separates you from the rest, and it might be all there is to give you that little bit of edge you need.

If, in fact, you have been struggling to land that first job, don’t be afraid to change things up. Refresh the resume, spend some extra time on that next cover letter, make some cold calls to companies you are interested in. Focus on these skills and the value you will bring any organization. It can be brutal out there, but it doesn’t have to be.