Recommended Certifications

Table of Contents

SimeonOnSecurity recommends top Cyber and IT certifications for those looking to enter the job force. The list includes certifications from CompTIA, Cisco, EC-Council, ISC^2, Juniper, Microsoft, and Offensive Security, with different levels of expertise - Entry, Associate, Professional, and Expert. All certifications listed are directly related to positions in Cyber and will greatly benefit the candidate. Check out the interactive certification roadmap for a visual representation. Learning resources such as books and training are also available. There are many Cyber and IT related certifications out there, but most are argueably a waste of time over others. Some will enable you to land a job, while others wont. This list consists of the certifications that SimeonOnSecurity recommends for those seeking to enter the IT and CyberSecurity job force.

Notes:

• This should apply everywhere in the US, but outside the US these are likely to change.
• There may be other certs out there that are worth in a specific category that aren’t listed here, but the ones here are listed over others because they have the widest recognition.
• While the certifications listed here are a mix of Networking, Windows, Linux, Hacking, and Management certifications, all of these are directly related to positions in Cyber and will greatly benefit you to have them.

Learning Resources: #

• Books
• Training

Visualize: #

Paul Jerimy has built an interactive certification roadmap you can check out here.

Certifications: #

Entry Level: #

Note: These certifications are for entry-level professionals. They are the baseline of a good IT/Cyber skill set. You should be very familiar with all the information required to get these certs at every level.

• CompTIA’s A+
• CompTIA’s Network+
• CompTIA’s Security+

Associate Level: #

Note: Typically, you only need one of these certifications. Multiple are still useful and valueable.

• CompTIA’s Linux+
• CompTIA’s CySA+
• Cisco’s CCNA
• Junipers’s JNCIA
• EC-Council’s CEH
• Microsoft’s MCSA (Replaced)

Professional Level: #

Note: This is where you should strive to be at the very least. These certs are pretty great to have.

• Cisco’s CCNP Enterprise
• CompTIA’s CASP+
• ISC^2’s CISSP
• Juniper’s JNCIP-SP
• Offensive Security’s OSCP
• Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA)
• Microsoft’s MCSE (Replaced)

Expert Level: #

Note: These are expert certifications. These set you out from the crowd and set you up to potentially become a subject matter expert (SME). This is where the real money is at.

• Cisco’s CCIE Enterprise
• EC-Council’s LPT
• ISC^2’s CISSP ISSAP/ISSEP/ISSMP
• Juniper’s JNCIE-SP
• Offensive Security’s OSEE
• Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE)

Notable Mentions: #

• eLearnSecurity Certifications - Cost effective if you’re going for multiple certifications at once. But, eLearnSecurity is pretty new and the certifications aren’t really recongnised yet.
• Hurricane Electric IPv6 Sage - Free certification, somewhat easy, good resume filler.
• Python Institute’s PCEP/PCAP/PCPP - Good to have, but isn’t gonna get you a job by itself. Offers free training for the first two certifications.
• Splunk Certifications - You’re better off learning the material and skipping the certifications.
• W3 Schools Python/SQL/PHP/JAVA - Good to have, but isn’t gonna get you a job by itself.
• Wireshark’s WCNA - Good to have, but isn’t gonna get you a job by itself.