Why Pre-Training for Cybersecurity Certification Programs is a Must

Should you find yourself following a career path in cybersecurity, know that you are in a profession that offers well-paying job security. Stats show a projected workforce shortage of 3.5 million people by 2021.

With a zero percent unemployment rate, demand is so high that even entry-level positions in cybersecurity come with salaries that start upwards of $80,000 a year (depending on your location and the role you land). The key to landing one of these positions is to obtain specific cybersecurity certification training.

The cybersecurity field comes with many specializations, like risk management, ethical hacking, pen testing, forensics, cloud security, analysis, incident response, and so much more. In this career, you can work your way up to a lucrative career, with years of experience, of course, as an organization’s Chief Information Security Officer. 

 Accelerated Specialization

The special thing about cybersecurity is that it is the career of the future. With the ability to take an accelerated track, entering the field is accessible to more individuals who otherwise would not have the time or financial capabilities. There are options for choosing professional training courses at vocational institutes.

The only problem with this focused vocational training is that it prepares students for a career quickly, which takes away the benefit of several academic semesters or numerous internships to help you choose a specific cybersecurity path. However, if you prefer to get started in this field sooner than later, this may be the best path.

 Previous Experience

Most people have their subjective view of why they are attracted to cybersecurity as a career. Some hold a fascination with computer networks and systems while others want to impact their society or be recognized. Some choose it out of interest.

While not necessary, any sort of aptitude for tech may help decide an appropriate cybersecurity path. For example, an IT background and networking skills can help you land a network security position. Those with software development experience could steer their career towards application security.

Self-Assessment

Those unsure of which path to take in cybersecurity or don’t have a lot of experience or IT skills may have to take a deep look into their own personality.

People who thrive under pressure make good candidates for incident response. People in this environment find themselves working in a buzzing security operations center where every second matters. For more contained and careful personalities, working in prevention and focusing on risk management would be good.

An aptitude for detective work and working out the why and how things happened are great qualities for forensic investigations. Being creative, a team player and a problem solver attract people to pen testing. A lone wolf may look into ethical hacking.

Being an excellent communicator makes for a valuable System Administrator, mediating between the world of high-tech Information Security and the office workers. Seeing the big picture and taking a holistic view of an organization’s security efforts could lead to becoming an excellent cybersecurity designer or engineer.

A prospective student should research cybersecurity positions, see what they are interested in, and figure out how their soft skills mesh with the different requirements.

Cybersecurity Pre-Training Courses

Professional training institutes with a good reputation don’t throw new students headfirst into an accelerated certification program. Carefully designed pre-training courses equip students with the introductory skills they need to succeed in cybersecurity and decide if they have chosen the right career path.

What’s great is that vocational institutes can assess a student’s suitability for their chosen specialization. Case-specific challenges test a student’s ability to use problem-solving skills and out-of-the-box thinking to cope and deal with the kind of real-life problems they will face throughout their career.

Pre-training courses give students access to meeting their instructors, course materials, and the curriculum, enabling them to work their way through the subject matter comfortably. There is also the chance to meet classmates and spend time in the classroom setting to introduce the training experience comprehensively.

With thoughtfully created pre-training and introductory courses set into place, students will quickly be ready to immerse themselves in cybersecurity careers. The goal here is to set students up to succeed in their chosen specialization and to make sure that they don’t lose significant amounts of time and money if the fit is not right.

To learn more about the University of Miami Cybersecurity Programs, CLICK HERE to get in touch with our education advisor