Comment Armadillo's (Score 1) 903
Of all the admin's I know none really started out to be sys admin's. It just kind of happened. Out of our shop the degree base consists of Masters degrees in Biology, Teaching, and Engineering, and several Bachelor degrees in electrical, general, and or computer science.
Several pieces of advice. Universities are great to work at and are a lot of fun, but pay very little. Corp. companies pay more but are more rigid in culture and thus more main stream.
I think the best piece of advice about being a sys admin comes from the O'Reilly Essential System Administration Book
Sys Admins need to be thick skinned. There is a reason there is an armadillo on the front cover