Resources for Exploring Cybersecurity Careers

The Need for Information Security Professionals 

In today’s world, keeping our digital information and services safe is crucial. Whether it is your airline rewards account or the systems that power your home, cybersecurity measures are needed for protection against hackers, theft, and disasters. 

Unfortunately, many organizations have trouble finding skilled workers to protect their data and systems. Not only must they protect against cyber-attacks, but they must also keep data and services available despite equipment failure or disasters. 

Every industry that uses computers and digital information—banking, retail, agricultural businesses, science, government, and more—needs cybersecurity experts. These professionals manage tools, systems, and processes that keep technology safe and reliable. 

Because cybersecurity covers such a vast territory, the job roles are incredibly diverse. The NICE Cybersecurity Workforce Framework defines 52 distinct roles, each with its own tasks and skills. This helps students explore and decide which role suits them best. However, the framework can feel overwhelming without proper guidance. 

Articulating Cybersecurity Careers 

To make career exploration easier, the Education Pathway National Center (EPNC) developed resources and workbooks that can be used to advise students individually or in a group. Their goal is to equip teachers, advisors, and career counselors with tools to effectively guide students through cybersecurity career exploration. 

Learners will understand the seven categories of cybersecurity work roles, as defined by the NICE Framework: 

• Investigation
• Cyberspace Intelligence
• Cyberspace Effects
• Protection & Defense
• Implementation & Operation
• Design & Development
• Oversight & Governance

The workbook contains activities that teachers and advisors may use in a classroom setting. The exercises dispel the myth that cybersecurity is just technical expertise. Some roles engage a wider set of skills such as project management, planning, teaching, and documentation. But, in all cases, the earnings potential and the number of job openings are extremely attractive. 

Exploring Jobs, College Majors, and Certifications 

The workbook and toolkit help teachers explain the many academic options along with the predicted employment prospects from each. For example, technical certificate, Associate’s, Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD. The importance of industry certifications is also explained. 

Degree majors are discussed too, for example artificial intelligence or pen testing and forensics. Knowing the degree major is a crucial factor in selecting a college and in knowing the job prospects from each. 

Cyberseek.org is used as a tool for exploring the number of cybersecurity job openings, state by state or nationwide. It shows the total number of current cybersecurity job postings and breaks them into categories aligned with the NICE framework. 

The toolkit and workbook from the EPNC enable academic advisors to effectively guide students in their search for the best college to launch their cyber career. 

To see the authors explain the workbook and the toolkit, watch this recording produced by the National Cybersecurity Training & Education Center (NCyTE), a collaborator with EPNC.  

Highlights from the video: 

• Employers look for cybersecurity workers with degrees and certifications so that, in the event of a breach, they can defend their choice in hiring individuals with proven skills.
• The 481 industry certifications are mapped in a single diagram, grouped into categories, and ranked from entry-level to advanced.
• As the field of cybersecurity grows more advanced, more specialty areas are defined. Along with each specialty comes another industry certification.
• As a person grows more specialized, so does their salary, their job security, and their list of certifications.
• Choosing cybersecurity as a career means you are signing up to be a life-long learner.

To learn more about the toolkit, the workbook, and the workshops visit https://www.caeepnc.org/careertoolkit/ 

To learn more about NCyTE visit https://www.ncyte.net/about-ncyte/about-us