Heidi Said:

Im interesting in eventually working with a job for Computer Security. What degree(s) should I pursue?

We Answered:

At the bachelor's level, it's not going to make a lot of difference between CS, CE, or something IT/IS-related.

I'm working in computer (network / content) security and I have a CS degree. Most positions I see in this area prefer a bachelor's in CS or CE.

Obviously when you can take your upper level electives, try to take those that are security related. The system administration class I took in college was actually very security focused. I also worked as a system administrator for the college's IT department. This paid well, I could do home work during my shift, and I was able to learn a lot of stuff.

You should also spend time reading about computer security on your own. In all honesty, you're going to need to do this for the rest of your career, so you might as well start doing it now.

Tyler Said:

If Im a Computer Security Major transferring to 4yr school for Computer Science Degree?

We Answered:

Wow, you're full of questions today! This provides a little more insight into your reason for avoiding CS, so maybe I can address it better.

Computer science is a very tough major. Many "traditional" majors at my university had 40-60 hours of required coursework for graduation. The computer science program had 92 hours of required coursework. That being the case, very few students graduated in 4 years. I entered college with 21 credit hours and took 18 and 20 hours of classes (respectively) my last two semesters in order to graduate in 3.5 years without a minor and only a couple electives.

Also, many computer science programs have an internship requirement. This can be hard for transfer students expecting to graduate in 2 years because they find themselves applying for internships just a few months after starting the program while others have had 2 years of course work prior to applying for internships. You should be in a better situation in this respect because of your community college concentration, but it might still be hard to graduate in 2 more years.

Another barrier you'll face is that many of your credits won't transfer. If you have an associate's degree from an accredited institution, then most colleges will wave your general education (or "liberal arts") requirement. This will save you from having to retake history and other classes that may not directly apply to your degree. Your core programming courses (if you took them) should also transfer. Though you might need to take an extra course if the central programming language is different from what you learned (so if you took C++ and the university is in to Java, they might make you take a "Java as a second language" course). You _might_ also get transfer credit for things like calculus (if you took it).

Contact the registrar's office at the university you plan to attend and see if you can meet with someone to discuss what courses might transfer. They should hopefully be able to assist you with this.

The bottom line is that CS is a hard degree with a lot of requirements. This is why it's such a useful degree and why you will come out qualified for almost any computer job. You're going to have to work hard and it's probably going to take at least another 3 years of school. But when it comes down to it, you will be well-prepared for any job in the industry, including those in computer security.

Christian Said:

computer security degree? intimidated... should I?

We Answered:

I programmed up a GUI Program Visual Basic to determine if you are qualified. It returned yes. Computer forensics isn't really a difficult field of study, until you get very deep into it.

Ramon Said:

is an associates degree better than a bachelors degree in computer networking security?

We Answered:

Hey! You sound like me. I wondered what might be best for getting a job in security. I decided to go with the easier 2 year and faster degree. Four years is a long time and a lot of money. And in case you've seen the news, kids getting out with a bachelors can't find squat in this economy. I'm not saying an AAS is going to guarantee you anything but let's face it. The whole four year thing is mostly an American stigma seen as "necessary for an academic student". Certificates count for something. Good luck. We'll both be vying for jobs in this toilet of a world. =)

Harvey Said:

What are some starter jobs for someone with a computer security degree and very little (no) experience?

We Answered:

As an alternative to bussing tables rather than an instant career, Helpdesk in any company is often a good gateway to a more advanced IT career where it's not just a phone logging service.. Very few people spend long in Helpdesk if they show any technical apptitude!!

Sam Said:

Computer Security Degree question..?

We Answered:

Some of the main areas of computer security are Computer Security Auditing, Security Engineering, Security officer and computer forensics. Depending upon the size of the organization you work for a lot of these positions can overlap. Most auditing positions are primarily focused on testing the security of a system by looking for vulnerabilities. Security engineering is normally focused on network infrastructure design to ensure that firewalls and other security devices are properly located and configured. A security officer provides normally provides security oversight basically ensuring that security rules and policy for an organization exist and are properly followed. Forensics is involved with examining a system for signs of illegal or malicious activity. There are also other jobs related to computer security such as system certifies who document a system and ensure that it has an authority to operate, secure communication specialists who deal with secure communications. Within each field there are other specialties which can include Application security, encryption and wireless security.

Basically there are a lot of options.

Jack Said:

Will a degree in Computer Science: Information security and assurance be sufficient to get a job in...?

We Answered:

Technically yes, although it is important to have taken few hand-on courses such as popular programming courses