I recently decided to go back to school and get a job in the tech industry. I’m looking at cyber security but I’m not looked into that decision.
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What degree would you recommend someone to pursue?
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What field would you recommend after graduating?
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What would you tell someone to avoid at all cost?
First thing I would do is try to figure out what you enjoy doing. Bit-fiddling and getting really low level? Web dev (and breaking that one down, front end, back end, dev ops, etc.)?
For cyber security, a lot of others here have mentioned it, but definitely wanna echo: learning Linux is key. Also get familiar with networking, routing, switching, etc. Understanding databases is really good because it’ll help you understand how they can be exploited in various applications.
Degree:
It used to be it HAD to be CS and nothing else. But these days, it seems like most jobs are happy with any tech-adjacent degree as long as you can prove your stuff.
But along the way, start building small projects on the side as you’re learning. Build up to more complex ones. Course work alone won’t teach you enough. Most degrees will have some sort of senior capstone project that will be good for experience as well.
If you’re doing cyber security/infosec there’s various options. Some schools will have dedicated infosec degrees, where others you can pick to major in CS or IT.
But after your first couple of jobs and getting a few years of experience, the degree you have shouldn’t matter to employers anymore.
Field:
Depends on what you want to do, really.
Avoid:
Games: It’s a nightmare, and no matter how much you love the work, the industry will chew you up and spit you out.
Fintech: It’s shitty and exploitative of it’s customers.
AI/ML/Crypto/Blockchain/etc: These are full of empty buzzwords with either vaporware, or products that cause far more harm than good.