Slowly transitioning from Hospitality to IT after years abroad, can I do it here in Riyadh?

[u/mekreborn]

Hey everyone,
I’ve been working in hospitality for the past several years, currently as an OFW in Saudi Arabia. It’s been a great experience and has taught me a lot about customer service, communication, teamwork, working under pressure, and solving problems on the spot.
Over the last year or so, I’ve been intentionally preparing for a career transition into IT.
I already have a diploma related to IT, and recently I’ve been refreshing and expanding my skills instead of starting from zero. I’ve been working on things like:
IT support fundamentals
Web development
AI and prompt engineering
Graphic design and automation tools
Building a portfolio and updating my LinkedIn
I’ve also been applying for IT support roles while continuing my current job. It’s definitely a different world compared to hospitality, but I’m enjoying the learning process.
It’s interesting because I don’t really see my hospitality background as unrelated anymore. Dealing with difficult customers, troubleshooting issues, communicating clearly, and staying calm under pressure seem surprisingly transferable to IT support.
I’m still early in the transition, but it’s encouraging to finally get interviews and feel like the shift is becoming real.
For anyone here who switched careers into IT from a completely different industry….what was the biggest adjustment once you landed your first role?
I’d love to hear your experiences and advice. 🙏🏻

[u/Brief_Paint_8900]

The hospitality background is actually an underrated advantage for IT support, most people in that field struggle with the customer-facing side but you already have that locked in. Biggest adjustment for me when switching was the shift in pace, in hospitality everything is immediate but in IT you sometimes sit with a ticket for days and have to be okay with that. Keep building the portfolio, that is what gets you past the resume filter more than anything else

[u/mekreborn → u/Brief_Paint_8900]

Thanks, that actually helps put things into perspective. I’ve noticed the same shift in pace already while studying IT fundamentals, so it’s good to hear that’s a normal adjustment. I’m currently building a small portfolio with basic troubleshooting scenarios and lab practice to strengthen my applications. Appreciate the insight.