New member, looking for a little advice

[swanny06]

Hello,

I'm new to the forum and new to the Cybersecurity field. I'm 25 years old, and a year away from having my bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity. After which I plan to get my Network+, Security+, and Ethical Hacking certs. I'm currently a professional Firefighter looking to change my career field to something thats more in the area of my degree field. However, without the certs and degree I'm having a hard time finding a position that pays me what I require. Any advice towards getting my foot in the door, or advice you think would be helpful for me would be greatly appreciated!

-Matt


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[icecream-guy]

Welcome aboard.

good choice on the career move, you'll find people here that have done the same, and quite successfully. One thing you might not want to hear though, sometimes one needs to pay the price now to reap the rewards later.  so you may have to find something, not necessarily that fits, but just to get your foot in the door, from there, work hard, learns lots, and move into positions where you want to be, using the skills you've learned along the way.

[swanny06]

Welcome aboard.

good choice on the career move, you'll find people here that have done the same, and quite successfully. One thing you might not want to hear though, sometimes one needs to pay the price now to reap the rewards later.  so you may have to find something, not necessarily that fits, but just to get your foot in the door, from there, work hard, learns lots, and move into positions where you want to be, using the skills you've learned along the way.

Thanks for the reply and words of advice. It's definitely a scary feeling changing careers to something I'm not very familiar with. I've applied for a few positions as a data entry analyst, as well as a few helpdesk positions.  I may end up having to work two separate jobs until I actually get that degree in hand.

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[icecream-guy]

Have you considered positions in a SOC or a NOC,  might get stuck on 3rd shift for a while, but it's a foot in the door, and will provide the needed experience.

[icecream-guy]

Others will say to obtain your Cisco CCNA, that will open some doors for you.  then the CCNA Security.
The Network+, Security+,  will not do much for you unless you plan to work as a contractor in a federal environment.
(Assuming you are US based)

[deanwebb]

Others will say to obtain your Cisco CCNA, that will open some doors for you.  then the CCNA Security.
The Network+, Security+,  will not do much for you unless you plan to work as a contractor in a federal environment.
(Assuming you are US based)

I agree here. Cisco CCNA regular, then CCNA Security. That's how I made my career change from teaching to networking back in 2013.

Now I work at a security vendor and I am very happy with my job.

[swanny06]

Have you considered positions in a SOC or a NOC,  might get stuck on 3rd shift for a while, but it's a foot in the door, and will provide the needed experience.

Others will say to obtain your Cisco CCNA, that will open some doors for you.  then the CCNA Security.
The Network+, Security+,  will not do much for you unless you plan to work as a contractor in a federal environment.
(Assuming you are US based)

I've never considered those positions but I'm looking at openings for them right now. Thank you for the recommendations. I'm in the DMV so theres a lot of positions available near me. In the immediate area I have two naval bases, so that was the idea behind the Network + and Security +. However, I'd definitely look into and consider the CCNA as I'm not 100% on going for a federal position.

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[DesertFox]

I found CCNA Cyberops interesting as well but I am not sure how it is accepted into the market. It is relatively new (compared to CCNA Security at least). I am not working in security or in USA, so don't take it for granted. It helped me get 2 interviews but both were not successful (different reasons).

[swanny06]

Others will say to obtain your Cisco CCNA, that will open some doors for you.  then the CCNA Security.
The Network+, Security+,  will not do much for you unless you plan to work as a contractor in a federal environment.
(Assuming you are US based)

I agree here. Cisco CCNA regular, then CCNA Security. That's how I made my career change from teaching to networking back in 2013.

Now I work at a security vendor and I am very happy with my job.

I'm definitely going to look into these certs over the CompTIA. While it seems I'd have to drive farther for a non federal position, if the position/pay is right I'd be happy. It's great to hear from someone who did what I'm trying to do.

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[NetworkGroover]

I'd agree with everything said here of course, and add my own opinion.

Knowledge guarantees you to eventually(key word there) be successful.  Having a cert helps but it's no guarantee.  That said, get certs that help you gain applicable knowledge.  If Network+ has a lot of content you find helpful, do it - gain the knowledge.  Starting out, I'd advise not going anything niche or specialty, unless a job requires it, until you've established a good foundation.  While it may not sound like it, I'd consider security to be niche.  I only got Security+ because my job at the time required it.  I haven't found it insanely helpful - this shows that mileage varies.  What doesn't vary is foundational networking knowledge, so make sure you're solid there first. 

Gah - now I'm blabbering on.  My point is work the certs you find interesting and helpful, but stay away from niche stuff until later or if a job requires it.  Work whatever jobs you can get that help you gain knowledge - don't forget that there is the possibility of lateral movement within a job to a more desirable role.  I couldn't find a networking job but took a web security job - this actually helped me more than I realized because a major focus of that job was packet capture analysis in Wireshark and that is a fantastic skill to learn that helps in so many ways that may not be part of a formal cert. That web security job was like seven years ago, and I still leverage that packet capture skill today when analyzing protocol behavior, etc.

You live by two naval bases?  You on the West Coast?  If so, I'm local to you and we can chat if you'd like, though I'm likely not the best person as my career has been kind of strange.  I work for a vendor, and I have zero days of actual operational experience in a core networking role.

[swanny06]

I'd agree with everything said here of course, and add my own opinion.

Knowledge guarantees you to eventually(key word there) be successful.  Having a cert helps but it's no guarantee.  That said, get certs that help you gain applicable knowledge.  If Network+ has a lot of content you find helpful, do it - gain the knowledge.  Starting out, I'd advise not going anything niche or specialty, unless a job requires it, until you've established a good foundation.  While it may not sound like it, I'd consider security to be niche.  I only got Security+ because my job at the time required it.  I haven't found it insanely helpful - this shows that mileage varies.  What doesn't vary is foundational networking knowledge, so make sure you're solid there first. 

Gah - now I'm blabbering on.  My point is work the certs you find interesting and helpful, but stay away from niche stuff until later or if a job requires it.  Work whatever jobs you can get that help you gain knowledge - don't forget that there is the possibility of lateral movement within a job to a more desirable role.  I couldn't find a networking job but took a web security job - this actually helped me more than I realized because a major focus of that job was packet capture analysis in Wireshark and that is a fantastic skill to learn that helps in so many ways that may not be part of a formal cert. That web security job was like seven years ago, and I still leverage that packet capture skill today when analyzing protocol behavior, etc.

You live by two naval bases?  You on the West Coast?  If so, I'm local to you and we can chat if you'd like, though I'm likely not the best person as my career has been kind of strange.  I work for a vendor, and I have zero days of actual operational experience in a core networking role.

Hey thank you so much for your advise. I apologize for the delayed response.

I agree completely that having a solid base in Networking is the key here. School has helped a lot with that. I also have CCT Routing and Switching which I took before my networking classes which helped me gain a great base with networking as well as equipment used by Cisco. Not that knowing how to install their equipment helps with my career path, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to get familiar. I have a big interest in the Ethical Hacking side of it.

I live on the east coast about an hour outside of Washington DC. So there are a lot of non federal jobs, but there are even more federal jobs available. The problem I'm having is getting hired with the positions I've applied for. That being said, I'm positive people with experience are competing for the same positions.

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[deanwebb]

The trick is that first position. Be prepared for 999 "no" answers to your 1000 applications. But that one "yes" gets you in the biz and from there, it's much easier to navigate your career.

Ethical hacking is going to involve programming and scripting more than anything else. There is shifting around in the network, but it's more geared to taking down servers once you arrive at them.

[swanny06]

The trick is that first position. Be prepared for 999 "no" answers to your 1000 applications. But that one "yes" gets you in the biz and from there, it's much easier to navigate your career.

Ethical hacking is going to involve programming and scripting more than anything else. There is shifting around in the network, but it's more geared to taking down servers once you arrive at them.

Thank you for your piece of advice. It can definitely be discouraging getting turned down but persistence is key.

While ethical hacking is my end goal I have a ton to learn before I'm able to land that. I've been looking at the CEH cert after I graduate and get a few years under my belt.

Thanks everyone! I don't know anyone involved with this field so all of the advice is extremely helpful.

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[deanwebb]

That's how I found the board back in the day... I needed a little help.

I got that help, now I'm paying it forward, as are a lot of other guys here, and I thank them all just as much as you do!