Newbie looking for a path

So, I am just now entering college( Computer Science) and I would like to get on a path to become a Linux SysAdmin.

My problem is finding a path. I am not in the US so finding internships is significantly harder.

I have been using only Linux for a few years now( Ubuntu in the beginning and made the switch to ArchLinux), I recently got a VPS and a domain name to have some fun( web server- done, email and calendar for my BlackBerry- WIP, VPN-planned, IRC client so I can access it over ssh form my phone).

I was thinking of getting some RedHat certification( I have no experience with RedHat or CentOS but I assume it can't be that different) but I thought I should ask here first.

What do you think I should do to get into this? I already plan on helping with the colleges' server and so on( read a lot of posts on /r/linuxadmin and /r/syadmin).

Is it worth to get a RedHat certificate? Will it actually help me( RedHat certificate = 2-5 years experience)?

Should I look into other certifications? VMWare, Xen, KVM, etc?

Thank you beforehand for your answers.

EDIT: forgot about IRC.