There are more high-paying cybersecurity job openings than there are qualified applicants to fill them. That’s a massive problem for industries in need of cyber professionals, and a huge opportunity for veterans looking to transition into new civilian careers.
Let’s examine why veterans are often perfect for cybersecurity jobs, even if it means going back to school to get qualified.
Cybersecurity Careers are Perfect for Veterans
Today’s military networks contain so much sensitive information they are often classified as weapons systems in order to ensure the utmost level of protection.
Military members in all branches and across nearly every career field work on computers linked to these very same weaponized networks. Often, most don’t realize the behind-the-scenes war being fought between military cyber experts and the global enemies which are trying every trick in the book to gain access.
Having a military background, even if it was not specifically in information technology, gives you an advantage because you’ve worked in such an environment and have a general familiarity of the need to maintain information security.
Values and Skills Instilled from the Military Translate to Cybersecurity
Every military member receives mandatory ancillary training, including courses on information security. It becomes almost second nature to be on the lookout for suspicious emails, to be cautious when using external storage devices, to have situational awareness when discussing sensitive information. This is the exact mindset needed to be a successful cybersecurity professional in the civilian world!
Other traits which the military either instills or enhances includes being proactive and offensive, development of analytical thinking and problem-solving, getting to the core issue underlying any given issue and maintaining diligence in pursuing resolutions so that work can continue unimpeded. Having this “mission-driven” orientation is critical to working within the cybersecurity field.
Corporations Need Cybersecurity Experts As Well
It’s not just the military which must take data security seriously. Civilian cybersecurity jobs are big business because nearly every large company now requires in-house, dedicated experts to help ward off the multitude of attacks they also receive every day.
Every month headlines are made of some massive corporate data breach, with the personal data of millions of people being lost to hackers. Some resulted in the loss of financial information, such as the hack of Capital One’s credit card data for 100 million Americans and 6 million Canadians. Others are more embarrassing, like the 412 million users of AdultFriendFinder whose identities were exposed during a hack.
Resources to Learn More
The demand for skilled cybersecurity experts is so great there are sites devoted to helping guide interested candidates on their career options, making it as easy as possible for interested people to learn more.
Cyberseek maintain an interactive career pathway featuring common cyber jobs and details on related salaries as well as the necessary educational credentials and skills to get started.
The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) is a unique partnership between government, academia, and the private sector focused on cybersecurity education, training, and workforce development.
Cyberdegrees.org is a massive information site featuring a directory of colleges and universities with cybersecurity programs. You can find more information about common career paths including:
- Chief Information Security Office
- Security Architect
- Cybersecurity Engineer
- Malware Analyst
- Penetration Tester
- Computer Forensics Analyst
- Application Security Engineer
- Cloud Security Specialist
- Database Administrator
- Incident Manager
Another very exciting option to consider, for active duty personnel about to transition out soon, is DoD SkillBridge. This program partners with various companies which feature internship programs in different areas, including cybersecurity. But of course permission to apply depends on your unit commander first.
Good luck on your quest to explore cybersecurity opportunities. The jobs are out there waiting!