Careers: Security Certifications Can Enhance Your Job Security And PaycheckCareers: Security Certifications Can Enhance Your Job Security And Paycheck

Four years ago, Lisa Monderewicz hit the books. For 14 months, when she wasn't working at her job in a small IT consulting firm, Monderewicz studied on her own and passed a tough exam that earned her credentials as a Certified Information System Security Professional.

Soon after, job offers--good ones--started rolling in. Monderewicz had been working in IT for nearly a decade, including doing security-related work for the consulting firm, but the certification "suddenly made me much more marketable," Monderewicz says.

She took a new job as a lead on security projects at a large communications company at more than double the salary she was earning before her certification. And the best part: "It's work I really wanted to do," she says.

While not all IT certifications bring extra digits on your paycheck, security expertise is among the IT skills that are hot right now--and are less vulnerable to outsourcing or offshoring, according to IT job experts. Adding a CISSP or other security certification, such as Systems Security Certified Practitioner, to one's credentials can bolster a resumé.

College Credits

Monderewicz is continuing her education and has her eyes set on even bigger career goals. Her current employer reimburses tuition, so she's attending a new information systems security certification program offered by Peirce College in Philadelphia.

Monderewicz is receiving college credits for the coursework she already completed on her own in attaining her CISSP and is taking additional college classes that will let her earn an information security bachelor's degree by December. The college offers the security curriculum on campus and online.

Peirce's program also is offered to IT pros who already have a bachelor's degree but want to earn their CISSP or SSCP certification, as well as students interested in earning a bachelor's degree and certification at the same time. The program gives students credit for work experience. The average age of Peirce's students is 34, says Chris Duffy, the college's CIO.

The price for a three-credit course is $1,224, and 120 credits are needed to complete the bachelor's degree based on the CISSP requirements. The school also offers an associate's degree program based on the SSCP certification, which covers "the management piece" of information security, Duffy says. The school's semesters are seven weeks long, so a bachelor's program that would typically take four years can be competed in just two, Duffy says.

An alternative to college information security certification programs like Peirce's are training boot camps, intense courses that can be completed in five to seven days and cost around $5,000.

As for Monderewicz, once she completes her bachelor's degree, she's planning to go after a master's in IT or go to law school. A law degree, combined with computer security credentials, could help her land a job that requires expertise in regulatory, technology, and privacy issues, she says. "I'd like to move up into a leadership role."