In this episode, Kip focuses on the top questions received from our user survey: “Is formal training and certification the only way to get into cybersecurity?”
The short answer is no, it isn’t the only way, but it certainly helps. Your best bet is to choose your certification or university degree, if you choose to get them, with your dream cybersecurity job already in mind. Otherwise, you may need to work much harder to attract the hiring manager’s attention.
Kip also mentions his masterclass, which was called “How to Get Your First Cybersecurity Job”, but that program has since been replaced by the new and improved Hired in 21 Days program. You can find more details about Hired in 21 Days at https://www.hiredin21days.com.
Kip Boyle:
Hi, everyone. This is Your Cyber Path, the podcast that helps you get your first cybersecurity job. I’m Kip Boyle, and I’m an experienced hiring manager of cybersecurity professionals. If you want to give me feedback on the show, or if you want me to answer your question on a future episode, please visit the show page at anchor.fm/yourcyberpath. And that’s all one word. When you get there, just click on the message button and start talking. If you’re new to the podcast, I need to tell you that we’re planning to run an online class to help you get your first cybersecurity job. And to make sure the class will really help, we’ve been running a survey to find out what you’re struggling with. In this episode, I’m going to tell you the top question we’ve received from the survey respondents so far. But first, I want you to know we currently have over 114 questions, which completely blows me away.
It so exceeds my expectations for how many people were going to talk to us when we released the survey. So thank you very much. Everybody’s been so generous. Okay. So the top question so far is this, “What certification or education should I get?” And as we went through the questions, we realized there’s a closely related question, which is this, “Is formal training and certification the only way to get into cybersecurity?” Well, I’m happy to say that our masterclass will directly address these questions. But first, let me tell you a little bit more about how the class will actually work. So the way we’ve got it set up is each weekday, you’ll receive a lesson that’s designed to answer some of the questions you sent us. And your daily commitment for the lesson is only somewhere between 60 and 90 minutes of your focused time.
We’re going to release the first lesson on Monday, April the 6th. And the last lesson will be sent out on Friday, May the 1st. Okay. Back to answering the top question, “What certification or education should I get?” So we have one lesson in the masterclass specifically on certifications, and we’re going to have another one specifically on university degrees. And we’re also going to mention these two topics in several of the other lessons. So you can expect there’s going to be quite a bit of coverage throughout the masterclass. But let me give you a sneak peek at the answer to this question, and here it is, every cybersecurity job has unique qualifications that you’re going to need to meet.
So that means your best bet is to choose your certification or university degree, if you choose to get them, with your dream cybersecurity job already in mind. Otherwise, you may need to work much harder to attract the hiring manager’s attention. The class is going to go into a lot more detail about this, but there’s a little peek at what we’re going to talk about. Now, for those of you in the audience who want in on this masterclass, if you haven’t already signed up, it’s called How to Get Your First Cybersecurity Job as Told by Hiring Managers. Here’s what you do, just send me your number one question about getting your first cybersecurity job, and do that using my online survey.
I’m going to give you the link in a moment. And then you’ll get free access to this four week online class that’s starting on April 6th, 2020. And then just as an added bonus, you’ll get a free copy of my Amazon bestselling book, it’s called Fire Doesn’t Innovate: The Executive’s Practical Guide to Thriving in the Face of Evolving Cyber Risks. Now you can reach the survey by going to b.link/cyberpath. That’s the letter B.L-I-N-K/cyberpath, all one word. And do us all a favor and forward this link to anyone you know who might be interested in joining us. Okay. That’s enough for now. Next time, I’m going to tell you the second most frequent question we received from all 112 of you. So until next time, remember, you’re just one path away.
YOUR HOST:
Kip Boyle serves as virtual chief information security officer for many customers, including a professional sports team and fast-growing FinTech and AdTech companies. Over the years, Kip has built teams by interviewing hundreds of cybersecurity professionals. And now, he’s sharing his insider’s perspective with you!
YOUR CO-HOST:
Jason Dion is the lead instructor at Dion Training Solutions. Jason has been the Director of a Network and Security Operations Center and an Information Systems Officer for large organizations around the globe. He is an experienced hiring manager in the government and defense sectors.
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