Cybersecurity? sounds cool
Author: Stefan Waldvogel
The "I know little about Cybersecurity, but I want such a job" path
If you are going this way, because Cybersecurity sounds fantastic, you have a problem. Cybersecurity is huge…. Really huge. For this reason, you need to research more about this topic; Know where you are and what you want.
Let us say you are a server and do not have relevant work experience/certifications for a Cybersecurity job. You heard about the hype, and you want to earn the big bucks.
The first thing that you need to know is:
Cybersecurity is not entry-level, and it is helpful to start smart. Getting a Cybersecurity job is the second step.
Step 1a: There are many ways to start, but it is good to build the basics for an absolute beginner. You can go for CompTIA (A+ only if you want a help desk position), Network+ and Security+. You are looking for the knowledge; the certification is secondary but an excellent motivation. Learn the things with free or cheap resources. Prof. Messer on YouTube is one way to go. Building the basics needs time. Without IT experience, reaching Security+ might cost you 2 to 6 months or more. This level is still entry-level, the salaries are between 35K and 45K, if you are lucky, it is more. Most likely not, because so many people have this knowledge/certification.
If you want an actual class, go to a Community College. An in-house course with 50 hours is between $300 and $600. Never spend more if you pay for it.
Step 1b: Now, you have the basics, and you need more to get a well-paid job. Cloud and networking are good options, but research about it. It will help if you have available jobs in your area. One Microsoft Azure cloud path could be AZ-900 -> AZ-104 → AZ-500. Use MS learn, YouTube, and the official GitHub to learn it. The knowledge is free. If you have AZ-104, you apply for jobs. This plan might take some time, and during this time, add AZ-500.
The network path targets CCNA, and it is a valuable Cisco certification. Get this certification or something similar (e.g., NSE path). One way is again the Community College, but the course is $5,000. This is a lot of money, but if you apply for a scholarship, it is often free, and you can make some new friends in the field. Other options are David Bombal on Udemy / YouTube.
Both paths open you a door to $50K to $70K jobs or sometimes a lot more. Cloud is usually the best option, more money, more jobs.
Step 1c: Work one to three years in it. Try to do networking on LinkedIn, research more about Cybersecurity, and you are ready to jump.
You can find a lot of job descriptions in NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework:
https://niccs.cisa.gov/workforce-development/Cybersecurity-security-workforce-framework
According to a TEKSystems presentation, these are the top Cybersecurity jobs on LinkedIn:
A different option to find valuable job titles is LinkedIn. Connect to people in Cybersecurity, write a post and analyze the views. You get something like this:
Let us say you are a server and do not have relevant work experience/certifications for a Cybersecurity job. You heard about the hype, and you want to earn the big bucks.
The first thing that you need to know is:
Cybersecurity is not entry-level, and it is helpful to start smart. Getting a Cybersecurity job is the second step.
Step 1a: There are many ways to start, but it is good to build the basics for an absolute beginner. You can go for CompTIA (A+ only if you want a help desk position), Network+ and Security+. You are looking for the knowledge; the certification is secondary but an excellent motivation. Learn the things with free or cheap resources. Prof. Messer on YouTube is one way to go. Building the basics needs time. Without IT experience, reaching Security+ might cost you 2 to 6 months or more. This level is still entry-level, the salaries are between 35K and 45K, if you are lucky, it is more. Most likely not, because so many people have this knowledge/certification.
If you want an actual class, go to a Community College. An in-house course with 50 hours is between $300 and $600. Never spend more if you pay for it.
Step 1b: Now, you have the basics, and you need more to get a well-paid job. Cloud and networking are good options, but research about it. It will help if you have available jobs in your area. One Microsoft Azure cloud path could be AZ-900 -> AZ-104 → AZ-500. Use MS learn, YouTube, and the official GitHub to learn it. The knowledge is free. If you have AZ-104, you apply for jobs. This plan might take some time, and during this time, add AZ-500.
The network path targets CCNA, and it is a valuable Cisco certification. Get this certification or something similar (e.g., NSE path). One way is again the Community College, but the course is $5,000. This is a lot of money, but if you apply for a scholarship, it is often free, and you can make some new friends in the field. Other options are David Bombal on Udemy / YouTube.
Both paths open you a door to $50K to $70K jobs or sometimes a lot more. Cloud is usually the best option, more money, more jobs.
Step 1c: Work one to three years in it. Try to do networking on LinkedIn, research more about Cybersecurity, and you are ready to jump.
You can find a lot of job descriptions in NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework:
https://niccs.cisa.gov/workforce-development/Cybersecurity-security-workforce-framework
According to a TEKSystems presentation, these are the top Cybersecurity jobs on LinkedIn:
- Information Security Engineer
- Network Security Engineer
- Cybersecurity Engineer
- Information Security Analyst
- Cloud Security Engineer
- Cybersecurity Analyst
- Cybersecurity Threat Analyst
- Security Architect
- Incident Response Analyst
- Threat Analyst
A different option to find valuable job titles is LinkedIn. Connect to people in Cybersecurity, write a post and analyze the views. You get something like this:
This picture shows one reason for adding relevant people to your LinkedIn network. You can tailor your audience, and you can see matching job titles.
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