Cyber security, as a field of its own, has expanded a lot in recent years. The fact that it is a fairly new branch makes it exciting to study, but that is far from being the only reason that students choose to get cyber security degrees.
So, why do people love cyber security? Read on to find out.
1. Cyber Security Jobs Are in High Demand
The need for cyber security professionals is expected to have a 28% growth by 2026, according to the Bureau of Labour Statistics. This percentage is way higher than the national average, which means that the field will expand over the years.
The high demand for these information security professionals comes from the fact that many jobs now have significant sections of them automated. Most of the information is stored online, and that has had a direct impact on the increase of cyber attacks.
Major data breaches in the past few years have shown just how much a cyber attack can affect a company. This is one of the reasons why companies would much rather hire a number of security professionals rather than endure cyber crime.
2. There Is an Increase in the Number of Specialties
There was a time when cyber security was looped into the information technology (IT) department’s duties and was considered a part of IT. However, nowadays, even though it remains closely tied with the IT department, cyber security is a field on its own.
[lgw-widget id=”3″ widget_title=”Interested in a career in Cyber Security?”]Since it is now an established field, naturally, new roles and needs are developing within it. Cyber security now has specialties that cover engineering, governance, assessment, compliance, risk management, architecture, forensics, etc.
3. It’s a Stimulating Job
The one thing that is consistent in the cyber security field is change. The industry not only has new developments every day, but the workdays are also stimulating and different from each other.
If you’re interested in studying and working in this field, you have to be committed to learning. Cyber security is ever-evolving and, as such, requires dedication. In addition, hackers will find new ways to steal data on the daily, which is why cyber security professionals have to be ready to understand and prevent these cyber threats even before they happen.
Hiring managers and professionals seem to favor people who know and want to keep learning because of the nature of the field. Critical thinking skills are vital to the job, and sometimes they’re deemed more important than technical skills.
4. You Get to Solve Complex Technical Puzzles
As mentioned above, the job requires quick thinking, and it has new challenges every day. Many field professionals consider their work as solving a big complicated technical puzzle.
You will figure out how to hack the system, how to protect the system from a cyber attack, and how to make it safer. This makes cyber security a puzzle with two sides. On one side, you have to figure out how you could break in the system, and on the other, you have to figure out how to prevent that from happening.
5. Cyber Security Salaries Are High
Cyber attacks are frequent, oftentimes, even creative, and they cost businesses a good amount of money. The latter is the reason why many are willing to invest a lot in their prevention. As a result, cyber security salaries are mostly above average, even for entry-level jobs.
Some of the highest paying cyber security jobs are:
- Chief Information Security Officer
Median salary: $163,000
- Cloud Engineer
Median salary: $126,000
- Information Security Manager
Median salary: $114,000
- Security Architect
Median salary: $106,000
- Director of Information Security
Median salary: $103,000
- Network Security Engineer
Median salary: $85,000
- Penetration Tester
Median salary: $80,000
6. You Get to Play the Hero
The whole point of cyber security is to protect companies from potential threats, which in itself makes you a hero day after day. However, preventing or solving a major cyber crime can be rewarding and help add excitement and recognition to your career.
Even if your work remains under the radar and not everyone knows you saved the day, you will have the knowledge that your work directly impacts that of others and their security.
There are many benefits to studying cyber security. The job comes with excitement, it’s in high demand, it pays well, and it’s mentally stimulating. In addition, there are many specialties you can choose from, seeing how the field is growing and expanding.
If you feel that this is the right field for you, you can start with our Master’s of Science in Cyber Security program!
