Re: advice

[Jimi Thompson <jimit () myrealbox com>]

John Kampanellis wrote:

> Hi!
>
> I know my question has already been asked, but I think that answers do
> not follow the rule one size fit all.
> What I would like, is the chance to get as much as I can from the
> maturity and experience of the people joinning this list.
>
> I come from Greece. I a holder of a diploma in Electrical and Computer
> Engineering and I am about to finish my MSc in System and Network
> Security, pursued in France. Considering, that I am about to finish my
> internship, I have to thing what to do next. I decided that a first step
> before entering the market, could be to get a certificate. But which
> one? 
>
> I am pationned with security and and I am very intersted in networks. My
> opinion is that  being successful in the security domain, requires from
> someone to have a very good knowedge of networks and systems.So my
> questions are  the following:
>  

The biggest question is what do you want to do?  Security is very 
demanding.  You get the 3am phone calls and you cannot dodge the 
bullet.  No one likes to see you coming because you are ALWAYS the 
bringer of bad news - something is either broken or is likely to become 
broken.  You spend money but have a very hard time with "ROI".  You also 
spend a sigificant portion of your job making people do things that they 
don't really want to do.   That said, I love what I do.  It's just not 
for everyone.  You have to find what you want to do, which may or may 
not be security.  It may or may not be networking.  It may or may not be 
Microsoft.  If you find what you want do and your  heart is really in 
it, you'll be good at it in time.  If you are good at it, the money will 
come.  Really, the money is irrelevant.  The bigger isssue is that no 
one on this list can answer these questions for you because only you 
know where your heart lies and only you know what you truly love doing.

> 1)Should I get a certificate in networks , i.e. CCNA? 
> Since I have an MSc in security may be being certified in networking is
> better.
> I believe that I know 70% of what CCNA covers. However, may a
> certificate may help me at the beginning of my carreer.
>  
Network & Security together usually make a nice combo. 

> 2)Should I get a ceritificate in security and in that case which one?
> I know some of you would recommend me certificates such as:GIAC, CISSP,
> CSSP.
> However, the problem is that I don't thing there are centers in Greece
> where I can get the exams.
> The only one for which I have found a exam center is "Security Certified
> Program (SCP)".
> What is your opinion about?
>  

Since you are not out of school as yet, you likely do not have 
sufficient job experience to qualify for a CISSP (requires 4 years of 
full time work experience in Security).   You might qualify for the 
SANS/GIAC

> 3)My third option (which I don't like so much) is a Microsoft
> Certificate such as MSSE.
> I am asking you, even though I don't like this option so much. I don't
> thing that people in Microsoft have real good knowledge about networking
> or security.
>  

I have a rather poor opionion of most of the Microsoft certs.  They 
crank out too many people who can't get out of their own way much less 
actually accomplish anything.

> Thanks in advance,
> John
>
>
>
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>  

HTH,

Jimi

>  


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