How many years do you have to go to school to be an IT specialist?

Typically a Bachelor's (or sometimes Associate's) degree will be enough to get you started, but it depends on the company. Some have strict schooling requirements, and some are more lenient. For an entry level position though, they won't require more than a Bachelor's degree. From that point on, you'll be progressing, and specializing a bit more in one area or another, so the requirements change and it might be helpful to even have a Master's degree. See this article for a bit further info: https://study.com/articles/How_to_Become_an_Information_Technology_IT_Specialist.html.

Note that by definition on that site, "IT Specialist" does a large variety of things (<span style="color: rgb(85, 85, 85);">managing hardware, software, networking and solving problems)</span>, but in larger companies, you are more likely to specialize and may only perform one of those roles.

Personally, I just went to a technical school (not a college) for a couple years before getting my first tech support job. However, as I switched jobs and my career progressed, I saw that companies often required a degree for jobs, even if you have experience. As a result, I went to school and got my degree while working. This way, in case I run across an opportunity that says I just *have* to have that degree, I have it!