Cyber Security Jobs You May Pursue with a Cyber Security Certificate

Cyber security is increasingly important to businesses, from your local bank to the federal government. Whether the information they manage is personal, medical or financial, it must be protected as it travels from individual devices to clouds to on-site servers.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, job growth for information security analysts is expected to increase 31% from 2019 to 2029, far outpacing the average for all other jobs.¹ This means that having people trained to develop, deploy and maintain secure technical applications, software and servers is vital to many organizations’ day-to-day operations.

No matter where you are in your career, education and experience can play a key role in your ability to pursue cyber security jobs. A cyber security certificate program can be a good way to get hands-on experience and gain additional knowledge. Here are some examples of entry-level and next-level roles in cyber security to explore whether you’re just getting started or looking to take the next step in your career.

The computer user support specialist will assist end users with troubleshooting, security and computer software and network concerns. This role, while typically full time, can sometimes operate outside of a 9-5 shift depending on when and where the users are located that will need operational support.

A cyber security technician will act as both the attacker and defender in networks to find any weaknesses and determine how to strengthen systems to prevent hackers from exploiting vulnerabilities. They may build firewalls into network infrastructures to close off any insecurities and monitor for any potential threats or attempted breaches. In addition to maintaining documentation, installing upgrades and overall monitoring operational performance, they must stay up-to-date on new risks.

A network systems administrator is responsible for overseeing an organization’s networks of computer systems and databases to ensure proper maintenance and security. Their duties include maintaining on-site computer networks and systems including local area networks (LANs), wide area networks (WANs) and virtual private networks (VPNs). They install, configure and troubleshoot switches, routers, wireless access points and other physical hardware.

The security analyst plays a vital role in keeping an organization’s proprietary and sensitive information secure. This role will ultimately be responsible for ensuring that the company's digital and physical information assets are protected from unauthorized access securing both online and on-premises infrastructures, analyzing data to filter out suspicious activity. This allows a company to find and mitigate risks before security breaches occur.

If you are interested in a career in cyber security, consider advancing your education so you can build your knowledge and gain hands-on experience. At DeVry, we offer a 100% online Undergraduate Certificate in Cyber Security.

To help you pursue a variety of entry-level cyber security jobs, our cyber security certificate program teaches skills including:

• Ethical Hacking - Gain knowledge and skills related to activities behind hacking attacks and countermeasures. Learn to build defense mechanisms to protect applications, systems and networks from hackers.
• IT Operation, Regulations and Trends - Gain an understanding of the operation, regulation and trends related to information technology and networking.
• Network Security Testing - Examine network security testing using a layered approach requiring design, implementation and testing of attack countermeasures.

At DeVry, we also align our cyber security online courses to real-world industry exam standards. Our program can help prepare you to pursue certification opportunities including:

• CompTIA A+
• CompTIA Cloud+
• CompTIA LINUX+
• CompTIA NETWORK+
• CompTIA PenTest+
• CompTIA Security+
• EC Council Certified Ethical Hacker
• EC Council Certified Network Defender

In addition, our cyber security certificate program is stackable. Qualifying credits earned in your undergraduate cyber security certificate can be applied toward applicable degree programs at DeVry including:

• Associate Degree in Information Technology and Networking
• Bachelor's Degree Specialization in Cyber Security
• Bachelor's Degree Specialization in Cyber Security Programming