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Why You Should Consider A Career In Cybersecurity

Why You Should Consider A Career In Cybersecurity

If you are an information technology professional, or recently graduated from college with a technical degree, now is a great time to think about joining the ranks of today’s cybersecurity workforce. Of course, becoming a cybersecurity professional will require that you invest time learning and practicing, but, the payoff from doing so can be amazing. Here are several reasons why:

1. There is effectively 0% unemployment

There is presently a tremendous, problematic shortage of qualified cybersecurity professionals; some estimates even show over one-million unfilled cybersecurity jobs – meaning that if you are properly trained, finding a job working in cybersecurity is probably a lot easier to do than in many other fields. Furthermore, the outlook over the next few years is excellent – the shortage that began several years ago has grown significantly over time, and is expected to continue to do so for the foreseeable future. To quote the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, “Employment of information security analysts is projected to grow 28 percent from 2016 to 2026, much faster than the average for all occupations.”

2. You can earn a high salary

Cybersecurity professionals are generally among the most highly-compensated technology workers. According to the United States Department of Labor, the median annual wages for information security analysts is almost $100,000 nationally, with many jobs in various locations paying considerably higher. With the demand for cybersecurity professionals continuing to far outpace the supply, salaries are likely to continue rising. As such, investing in cybersecurity training now can pay off quite handsomely.

3. You are likely to enjoy greater job security than most other people

For multiple reasons, many companies are far less likely to let go of cybersecurity professionals than they would other employees. Shrinking the security team may increase the likelihood of a breach, and can dramatically increase the impact of a breach should one occur; think for a moment about customers’ and regulators’ reactions to news reports that “A large amount of personal data leaked after company X tried to save money by reducing its cybersecurity staff.” Of course, as alluded to before, another deterrent against letting information security professionals go is that employers know that it is often both difficult and expensive to find suitable replacements.

4. You can help make the world be a better place

As I noted in an interview earlier this year, essentially, everything that cybersecurity professionals do at work is intended to bring goodness to the world: the vast majority of cybersecurity professionals dedicate their careers to protecting innocent people from nefarious parties who would harm them.

5. You can choose where you want to live

There are presently job openings in cybersecurity in all 50 States, as well as in Washington, DC – and similar opportunities exist in essentially every other Western country as well. While many professions are de facto tied to specific regions – cybersecurity professionals can choose where they want to live.

6. Cybersecurity is exciting

There are only a few civilian professions in which workers get to experience rapid change, utilize the latest in technology, see the creativity and wisdom of highly-sophisticated adversaries, and participate in the constant battle between good and evil. Cybersecurity is one of them.

How to launch your career in cybersecurity

Of course, there are many different types of cybersecurity jobs – and understanding the various career path options is an important first step. For tips on how to launch your own cybersecurity career, be sure to check out the article, Launch Your Cybersecurity Career in 8 Steps, made available to you by the CompTIA, the non-profit organization that has helped train and certify millions of information technology professionals since its founding 36 years ago.

This article sponsored by CompTIA.

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