University Headquarters (HQ) is an industry-leading, independent educational organization that provides independent college rankings using a proprietary formula to create first class, unbiased rankings. The team at University HQ strives to provide accurate and trustworthy rankings that highlight the best programs for cybersecurity.
What is a Cyber Security Administrator?
An excellent position within the cyber security field is that of cyber security administrator, also called the IT security administrator, security administrator, network systems administrator, or systems security administrator. What this employee does in a routine day relies heavily on the size of the employer and the nature of the industry you are a part of: finance, healthcare, retail, banking, or government.
Beginning cyber security administrators have usually earned their bachelor’s or master’s degrees. Or, they may have attended a bootcamps that taught them what they need to know and enabled them to earn experience and vital certifications. Degrees from a university are usually preferred, along with prior experience working in information technology (IT). People who are interested in cyber security as a career don’t have to earn earlier degrees (associate or bachelor’s) in a computer- or IT-related field. As long as they have a degree in a different field, along with experience that transfers to a technical field, they should do well.
Featured Online Cybersecurity Programs
Steps to Becoming a Cyber Security Administrator
Cyber security administrators are specialists with the knowledge and expertise companies need to protect themselves and their data from cyber-thieves. They may work for the government, private companies, corporations, or for national or international firms. Their main responsibility may be to protect the data belonging to their employer, but they do so by leading a team of IT professionals and maintaining best practices throughout the organization. They prevent attacks, detect attempted intrusions, and respond to attacks as they are in progress. They may also help choose and install the security systems needed to maintain their firewalls.
-
Step 1: Enroll in a Cyber Security/Information Security Program
-
Step 2: Take Part in an Internship
-
Step 3: Find a Job
-
Step 4: Earn Needed Certifications
Step 1: Enroll in a Cyber Security/Information Security Program
A degree program in some aspect of security administration or information security is part of what makes this professional highly valuable to a company. If a professional already has an undergraduate degree in a different field, they may be able to apply to a master’s degree or MBA focused on cyber security. While taking certificate courses can be useful, they have their limitations.
Find Your Online Cybersecurity Program
Knowing that companies are struggling with a shortage of more than two million security administrators, anyone who is interested and has met some of the requirements may be able to land a position as a security administrator. Salaries for security administration managers are close to $100,000 and, with time in their positions, these security administrators will see their median salaries going up. A person interested in this career path can enroll into a master’s degree program in cyber security as a security administrator and embark on an exciting career.
Step 2: Take Part in an Internship
Companies offering security administrator services to organizations without their own cyber security department or employee covering IT security responsibilities may hire information technology interns who are currently enrolled in educational institutions – this may include institutions from high school all the way up to the bachelor’s level. If you are earning anything less than a master’s, you’ll want to make sure that you find yourself an internship of some kind to get your foot in the door of IT.
Interns shouldn’t spend their days answering phones; instead, they’ll work on their security administrator skills by working together with other cyber professionals. Those with the best internship experiences will work closely with others on the IT team on mission-focused projects; in addition, interns can expand their skills, learn in a fast-paced environment, and enhance their upcoming careers. They may also gain exposure to cyber security work that isn’t in their current assignment by way of working in a larger IT environment.
Step 3: Find a Job
As students near their graduation dates, it’s time for them to begin looking for the security administrator positions they most want. As you consider existing job openings, you should keep your mind open to all available possibilities. For instance, you may want to work as an administrator but, if you don’t have much experience, you may need to work as vulnerability tester (penetration tester) for a while in order to have the opportunity to advance.
Other mid-level positions include security administrator consultant/manager and cyber security analyst. And, once you’ve been chosen for advanced-level work, you might then work as a security manager or security administrator.
Step 4: Earn Needed Certifications
New graduates and security administrator professionals alike can gain much by seeking out security-focused certifications, which will provide them with insight into the work they do every day.
Some of the many options available include:
- Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC): br This prepares IT professionals for the unique challenges they face and enables them to become valued partners to the company.
- Certified Ethical Hacker CEH):
This certification allows penetration testers to build their skills so that they are able to look for vulnerabilities in systems. They learn to use the same tools as a malicious hacker, only they use them for good. - Certified Information Privacy Professional/US (CIPP/US):
A security administrator who earns this certification will become familiar with U.S. privacy laws and regulation. - Certified Information Systems auditor (CISA):
This certification is for security administrator professionals who audit, control, monitor, and assess information technology systems for organizations. - Certified Information Security Manager (CISM):
This is considered to be one of the most sought-after certifications and these professionals are some of the highest paid.
Cyber Security Administrator Career & Salary
Where Might You Work?
A security administrator may find work in private companies, corporations, the armed forces, government contracting, financial services, healthcare, or education. They may also work for an information technology organization that works in consulting with other industries. Really, considering how ubiquitous technology and big data have become, you may be able to find some sort of computer-related position in nearly any company in nearly any industry.
Search Programs Offering Cybersecurity Majors
Depending on the work environment, cyber professionals may be expected to carry out more general roles because the company may not be large enough to hire a full team of cyber professionals. In a large company, the professional may find themselves working within a large team, with everyone assigned a specific role such as penetration testing, security consultant, analyst, network security administrator, or security architect. All of these roles ensure good cyber security for their employer’s network systems. Any time a breach takes place, all specialists will be required to work on narrowing down where the break-in occurred, what the possible damage is, how to block the cyber-thief, patching the opening and all other openings that made the network vulnerable, and hardening the network’s security.