Chris Rossini ⋅ Lakeville, MN General Mills ⋅ 11 years experience

Be ready for your first interview question: "Tell me about the security on your home network."

John Harwell ⋅ Norwalk, CA Cal State University Dominguez Hills ⋅ 5 years experience

I would take a few days to research a career, students in Texas can use CyberWatch, or CyberWatch West to begin searching for information.

To see certificate programs and degrees that are available in Information Security Programs use this link: http://cyberwatchwest.org/index.php/students-138/certificates-a-degrees list many programs that are available. (copy and paste this address in your address bar)

For information relavent to learning what you may need to know to plan a career in information security see this link: http://cyberwatchwest.org/index.php/resources--links (copy and paste this address in your address bar)
*which include work force studies and a 2013 Global Workforce Study by ISC2.

Additional info sec career info is available here:

National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers ...
niccs.us-cert.gov/‎

The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE)
csrc.nist.gov/nice/‎
May 11, 2010 - Highlights. National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies (NICCS) - DHS has launched the NICCS portal. The portal offers the ability ...Find, Attract, and Retain Cyber Professionals. Explore Careers ...Training
Find the education and training courses you need to keep up ...Explore the Framework
The Framework is meant to define professional requirements in ...
The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE)

Tom Cal, CFA ⋅ San Francisco, CA Army Veteran, Investment Manager ⋅ 25 years experience

I think IT-security is a promising field.

Use indeed.com to research certifications and degree requirements mentioned din job-listings.

*As mentioned above, research the CISSP certification and other certifications.
The VCTP program at Syracuse offers course prep and covers the exam fee for the CISSP. Next deadline is Aug 26, 2013. (see prior threads below). The VCTP program offers counseling, so give them a call and ask for advice! PLEASE let us know how it turns out.

* This should motivate you. Over 7,700 job-listings mention CISSP:
http://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=cissp&l=

* Use the "Topic Search" and word-search tools. Lots of good information in these older threads.
e.g.
https://acp-advisornet.org/questions/topic/it-security

https://acp-advisornet.org/search?Search=cissp

* See this post and apply the advice to your field of interest:
https://acp-advisornet.org/question/917/creating-a-supply-chain-management-roadmap

Samantha Keefe ⋅ Boston, MA AVID Technical Resources ⋅ 10 years experience

We agree that hands-on experience is pretty key in IT. Considering checking out our web site (www.avidtr.com) or emailing us for more info. We have plenty of recruiters who can help you find interesting, fulfilling jobs around the country. Good luck with your search!!

Edward Haugh ⋅ Westminster, MD Hewlett Packard ⋅ 17 years experience

Hands on experience and technical certifications. My son works in the field you are looking at and certifications with security clearance are in very high demand. Look for DOD type positions. Where you are at plenty of military posts and DOD facilities to choose from.

Eric Hodgson ⋅ Bethesda, MD Hewlett Packard ⋅ 20 years experience

Experience and academic knowledge (degree or cert) are part of the equation in the IT / Network security field. Additionally you will need to ensure that your own background is in order. If you hold a higher level clearance (TS), that helps greatly. Many companies and the Federal Government (specifically those in the three letter alphabet soup category) seek a TS with polygraph. Even companies who do not deal in the cleared environments are extremely stringent in the background examination of candidates for security positions. Many entry level positions abound, but if you do not have a basic understanding and aptitude as evidenced by at least certification AND a clean background/ capable of undergoing positive review for USG/DoD Secret and above, then you are likely not to make it past the first round of resume reviews by an employer.

Andy Lewis ⋅ Denver, CO Hewlett Packard ⋅ 20 years experience

Look for the requirements in DoD 8570.01-M, and/or look for jobs referencing it. There are some heavy-duty ITSec practitioners who lack degrees. In many ways both certs and degrees are useless EXCEPT as entry criteria for some jobs. My experience is that Recruiters who seek ITSec candidates will have key-word searches they use for Monster, Dice, LinkedIn, etc and then they will check college/education/experience. I have a friend who's resume has items such as "CISSP - in progress", etc so that he will surface in recruiting searches. If you do that, you'd better have a specific test-date etc ("I'm enrolled for testing on Feb 18th and expect results within 6-8 weeks afterwards..."). The bottom line is that some organizations and managers place heavy emphasis on one or the other but the recruiters tend to search on the certs, so for my money, certs is the better answer. Note that Brian's answer WRT getting the cert then interning while pursuing a degree is an OUTSTANDING solution.

Logan Sankaran ⋅ Plano, TX Hewlett Packard ⋅ 25 years experience

I just read that Pentagon is going to add 4000 (current 900) more to its Cyber Command. NSA may have plenty of opportunities in Cyber security area. Banks and financial firms have intenet security professional (my son is in this field). I also heard that some Univ.are already offering or planning to offer degrees in Cyber Security. Univ. of Southern Calif has already have such a degree program. This degree may land you in an excellent job and offer great growth potential.

Charles McGrue ⋅ U.S. Army Reserve, Captain ⋅ 21 years served

I agree with what Brian stated. If you look at various job reqs, they want years of experience. Some might state certifications, but in my casual search, I have not seen many who are looking for Net+/Sec+. I've seen a lot who are asking for Cisco certs, which require experience in order to obtain; especially as they are changing the test to be more geared to people with experience.

As it appears that Benny is eluding too, the hot thing is cyber/network security, but you need to fully understand networks. Yes, you can use script kiddies, but fully understanding networks and the various tools, applications, etc. allows you to be a better candidate. And make sure you know what you are talking about.

Eventually, you will probably need a degree to ensure competitiveness in the screening process unless you have someone help you get in the door. Then again, there are plenty of people who made it in the door and didn't stay because they lacked the paper to support. Just a thought.