@daniellowrie, this was a very great discussion. Had to listen to it again and again. This is great info for us beginners. I thought there was something wrong with me with the struggles, but I’m relieved now to know that it is part of the journey 😊
Great discussion. But as a professor teaching cyber the biggest issue is how do these kids graduating from school get into the work force? When entry level jobs are asking for 3 to 5 years of experience and 3 certs plus other demands. The profession is upside down right now. How does a newly graduated cyber person with a BS or even a MS break into this field? Besides not going after degrees and get more hands on training.
they are not meant to the pathway is they work in helpdesk and experience the reality of the real world environment that is completely disconnected at times at research or approved processes. then with you grasp of those various departments, assets and interactions you can have 3-5 years of experience in IT to work in cybersecurity. Academic is generic study and best practices. business rarely runs best practices because costs and pushing problems over the hill because it is still working. when places are asking for more in cybersecurity they don't want more grads they want more experienced to replace the old experienced and this will take time any grad will be spending years growing that career to fill the gap of the person before them.
That's a myth. You need skills. If you have real hands on skills and a degree you will get a job. Most people think just getting a theory based certification is all you need. Cuz that's all you get. Theory. No hands on skills
Help desk is not an absolute path to working in cyber. There are plenty of people that have taken that path with great success (which is why it gets recommended a lot) . Others, not so much. It is but one of many possible paths and they all have their pros and cons. Freelance is a great way to get experience. Internships is another. There are apprenticeships (albeit, not enough of them). Bug bounty. Many contemporary certifications have ditched the theory-based systems for practical exams, testing for hands-on-keyboard skills. At the end of the day, I would just be willing to do any and all the things to increase your chances of getting into cyber. That may mean working a help desk job. If it is, so what? At least you're in the game. Then again, your first IT job may very well be in cyber, but if it's not, that's OK, you'll just need to pivot into cyber. So go for the entry level cyber jobs, but go for those help desk jobs too. Go for cloud support jobs. Do any job that gets that experience clock ticking. The other big thing you should do is networking with other IT/Cyber folks. Get plugged into the community through social media, discords, conventions, meetups, ect. Get your name and your skills out there so that you're discoverable. There is so much to this topic that a can't be covered in a single comment thread, so get out there to some cyber cons and social channels and start up some conversations. 👍
@@daniellowrie HI thanks. I completely agree. This is also what I tell them. "college" does not prepare these kids correctly. Its not hands on. That is my main problem. I take a completely different approach in my teaching and it is all technical and hands on. Theory is useless without experience and hands-on.
This video has been so great! Love it. I've finally decided to pursue IT ( cybersecurity) after avoiding it for so long. Both of you made me feel like this is what Ive been missing all this time. I know it will be difficult but as your guest said " Its not " Ugh i have to do this, its Wow I get to do this! " Thank you both for so much info .
Need to add another comment. Loved this. I sent this to my students to listen too. I have been telling them everything you have said for a year. Im sitting here watching this going, YES, that, said that! :) Hopefully hearing the message from another person will go over. Good work! Thanks
So the entire secret is creating a network (pun intended) of other like minded individuals and especially individuals in the career field that you want to be in. Utilizing that network to learn more skills and to display what skill sets you have and acquired through projects created.
I’m planning to major in cybersecurity in college. I’m going to a community college that has a direct transfer program to university. I live in NY. Would it be smart to major in cybersecurity? Will my degree be worth it in 4 years? I’m about to graduate hs and have comptia a+.
Just make sure that you do all your own research on any college, degree program, boot camp, certification, etc. Make sure that what anyone is selling you has a good and valuable reputation in the industry and specific field you're looking to enter.
Awesome interview! Loved it! Very valuable information here. 53:17 the pictures of your first videos... LOL! @daniellowrie it looks like a mug shot! haha!
Great video! So I’m looking to transition from nursing to cyber security. Do I need to do a certification in informatics for a hospital to hire me to do cyber security for them? Being a nurse I have experience with electronic health records. So I would like to specialize within the healthcare industry.
I would like to potentially discuss with someone a path. Im in school for information assurance and im working on getting into a reclass school in the Army for 25B (IT Specialist) I have 10 years as a military police officer in the reserves and a wode bredth of tech and soft skills.
I don’t think that’s the answer for job recruitment. Hiring based on experience in an industry that is hard enough to crack into. I feel the better a route would be to finally establish what is entry level. Then hire on that and have a regimen that grows individuals with the presumption that once enough experience is gained then a promotion route can be started. The only thing you are really discussing more so networking then experience. And if we do that then we r taking the best brown noses over the better capable or those with most experience. 😊
I get where you're coming from, but remember, every journey has its tough spots. Feeling a bit overwhelmed is normal, especially in tech. Take a step back, breathe, and maybe break things down into smaller, manageable pieces. You’ve come this far-don’t give up just yet. You might surprise yourself with what you can achieve!
