Cybersecurity, alongside various medical professions, is one of the fastest-growing career opportunities today. IT professionals are in high demand as businesses and individuals rely more and more upon the ever-changing field of technology, artificial intelligence, and cyberspace.
There are dozens of choices for those who are interested in a career in technology and cybersecurity is just one of them. As an in-demand career, there are many reasons why choosing this path may be beneficial to you and your career goals.
Here are just a few of the many benefits you can take advantage of by choosing to pursue a career in cybersecurity.
1. Remote Work
If you’re someone who wants to be able to work remotely, whether that’s at home or from your vacation rental overseas, a career in cybersecurity is a very possible option.
Remote work, although still a fairly new phenomenon, is quickly becoming normalized and many people (cybersecurity professionals included) are choosing to work remotely over a typical office location.
While many professions still battle over whether remote work should be allowed or made possible for their employees, cybersecurity professionals have quickly jumped on board the work-from-home train and made working remotely simple, possible, and normal.
If you want to work a job that will allow you to travel and move wherever you want without the complication of scheduling workdays and visiting an office, a cybersecurity career is a perfect choice. You can continue working at a job you love and do it from wherever you are in the world, allowing for working vacations and month-long overseas stays whenever you want.
2. Jobs Are Available Anywhere
Cybersecurity professionals are in incredibly high demand and as such, you won’t have much trouble looking for a job once you graduate. While many recent graduates may have to move to find an available job, this isn’t true for those in cybersecurity.
If you are someone who wants to work in an office, the great news is that you have an almost endless amount of choices. Many cybersecurity professionals have said that they feel confident they could get a job anywhere in the country if they wanted to.
Rather than moving somewhere, you don’t want to live just to get the job you want, you can find a place where you do want to live and then search for a job. Chances are, you’ll find an opportunity fairly quickly.
3. High Salary
According to ZipRecruiter, the average salary for a cybersecurity professional is around $112,000 annually. Of course, this will vary depending on your location, experience, and where or who you choose to work for, but even the 25th percentile of cybersecurity professionals are earning around $60,000 annually.
Some cybersecurity professionals may earn over $300,000 annually after several years in the workforce. While it isn’t guaranteed that you’ll make a salary this high, earning special certifications and gaining more experience will increase your chances of getting a higher salary.
4. Fairly Easy Education Requirements
Cybersecurity careers are in high demand and pay well, but they don’t have strenuous education requirements like medical and law careers do. Quite a large percentage of cybersecurity professionals are self-taught or hold only a bachelor’s degree. Many may not even have a degree in cybersecurity.
While cybersecurity does not have rigorous education requirements, you should still work on getting credible certifications or a degree. As more people join the cybersecurity workforce, having these extra qualifications will help set you apart from the competition as well as increase your salary. They can also help you be better at your job and give you the knowledge you need to have a successful career.
5. Positive Job Outlook
Again, cybersecurity professionals are in high demand which makes for a great job outlook. The Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that information security analysts (a subsection of cybersecurity) will see a job increase of 33% while all other computer-based occupations can expect an increase of 13%. This is well above the general increase of 8% that most other career fields expect.
6. Varied Job Culture
When it comes to working as a cybersecurity professional, you can expect a lot of varied job cultures. Some managers will expect you to adhere to a professional dress code when you’re in the office whereas others will be okay with jeans and a t-shirt. Whichever you prefer, you’ll be able to find a manager that will allow it.
As cybersecurity job cultures can be so varied, it isn’t as hard to find a workplace where you feel comfortable. You can find a company that will allow you to dress and work as you please, though if you have really specific demands, you might need to do a bit more searching before you find the perfect workplace.
7. Variety of Roles
Cybersecurity isn’t as narrow as some professions. You can choose from a variety of specialties or arrange your work so that you only ever have to work with the things that interest you. With so many roles available, it’s much less likely that you’ll grow bored of your work.
A career in cybersecurity presents a lot of challenges and often requires problem-solving skills, so there’s no dull day. You’ll be working with a lot of new technology, or you can choose to focus on one specific technology that you enjoy in particular. Whichever role you choose to fill in the cybersecurity world, you won’t be lacking in things to do or job stimulation.
Choose an Ever-Evolving Career
Cybersecurity is constantly growing and changing and evolving. Even once you complete your degree, there will always be things that you didn’t know and new challenges to solve. If you enjoy working with technology or problem solving sometimes complicated situations, cybersecurity may just be the career for you!
Getting involved in cybersecurity isn’t difficult and there’s no one specific degree to take. While you can choose to major in cybersecurity, you may decide that your interests lie in one particular field and choose to focus on that. No matter what specialty you choose or where you get your education, a career in cybersecurity is exciting and always in high demand.
