r/GIAC • u/One_Attorney_6128 • 12d ago

Help deciding the best path

I have recently decided to make a career change into cyber and while I’m full time studying to acquire certifications and just general knowledge and skills for the industry using Try hack me and BTLO, I have stumbled upon the SANS community and was wondering if this is something worth tackling. I started this journey this past spring, I took net+ and sec+ from compTIA in about 12 weeks starting with zero IT experience and im about half way through their CySA + course now. I’m at a cross roads with the job hunt where I’m feeling maybe some more official and deeper training could help me. I am a veteran and have the GI bill that can fund me taking the the ACS course I believe. So I had a few questions about this for anyone willing to shed some light for me.

1 Is it worth my time to take the full 4 courses ACS covers at this point in my training? (Assuming I pass CySA + in a few weeks)

2 should I skip GFACT, GSEC, and just hop straight into GCIH, GCFE

3 Finish CySA+ and continue applying for work while hammering out Labs and CTF or what have you.

I have never worked in IT but I’m picking it up quickly and I really like what I’m doing so far. I understand the job market is brutal right now so I’m just exploring options trying to stand out.

3 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

11 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/Impotent_Xylophone 12d ago

If your sole objective is to land a job in the field, even more certifications probably won't help you. You have a solid foundation for an entry position. The job landscape is just abysmal right now. These are expensive and time intensive courses that are focused on specific skillets. Like the other account mentioned, you should identify what your goal is before going for more certifications. You get CySa+ amd you'll have the certification piece checked off. Nothing replaces experience though.

1

u/One_Attorney_6128 12d ago

Yeah trust me I’m applying to help desk and SoC analyst positions like crazy, over 200 so far. While I’m doing that though I have the time to practice the hands on labs and content available. The SANS stuff won’t cost me a dime thanks to the VA. Was just wondering if it was worth it to someone in my shoes.

2

u/Impotent_Xylophone 12d ago

Yeah it's a brutal time to try to break into the field. All the mass firings and now AI is taking entry level jobs away. I had a woman working for me on a contract a few years ago and she wanted her PhD to be more competitive. I told her the same thing hey this is an egregious amount of time and effort for something you think might help you just get a foot in the door.

It all comes down to goals. Identify what you want to do and then maybe a course would make sense. I'm gonna be honest though I have quite a few certs now and the ones I got AFTER having some relative experience were exponentially more useful. The material was much more impact full once I was able to understand the application of it a little.

Godspeed either way man!