Ok, I graduated. Now what?

In my previous blog post, I mentioned that after graduating from university, I felt like my education was not comprehensive enough. I found that companies were looking for more than just a degree and I realized that the days of a degree being enough were over, unless you got lucky. In light of this, I took the opportunity to create a plan for myself to further my education and improve my skills.

In this blog post, I will share what I’ve learned since graduating and discuss some next steps you can take after finishing your computer security degree. If you have just completed your education and are ready to tackle a new job, this post will provide some insight on different tools, platforms, and other resources you can use to further your education and make the most of your time.

It’s important to note that everyone’s goals and aspirations are different, so the path you take will vary depending on what you want to achieve. For example, if you want to become a penetration tester, your journey will be quite different than someone who wants to start a business focused on compliance, such as performing SOC-2 audits.

That being said, I will try to provide some general context that can apply to anyone in the early stages of their career.

The Security Certification Roadmap

One of the first things people probably figure out when working in the field of IT or security is what certificates they should obtain to further their career. This is likely something that many readers have done or are planning to do.

While obtaining certifications can be beneficial for boosting credibility, it’s worth noting that it is not the only factor that companies take into account when hiring. Experience is also an important consideration for employers.

When considering which certifications to take, it’s important to think about which ones are recognized in your area and which ones will be the most beneficial for your career goals. This can be a difficult question to answer, and one that I had myself when in school and after graduating.

After connecting with many people, researching, and talking, I found different threads and subreddits where people discuss certifications, and I found a certification roadmap that was very helpful.