Information Technology (IT) Career Paths
Support
Description: Entry-level, starter job that’s perfect to get your feet wet and learn about the field, get exposed to all aspects of IT, see how everything works together, and practice troubleshooting.
Careers: Help Desk Technician, Desktop Support Technician, IT Support Technician, Support Desk Manager
Education/Training/Certificates: CompTIA IT Fundamentals (ITF+), CompTIA A+
Systems
Description: Managing the operating system of company computers, maintaining software and hardware, creating system permissions and user accounts, and responsible for the operation of computer systems, especially multi-user computers, such as servers. Overlaps a lot with Network & Security.
Careers: IT Systems Technician, Systems Administrator, Computer Network Architect, Systems Analyst
Education/Training/Certificates: CompTIA Server+, see Network and Security Certs
Network
Description: Configure and install various network devices and services (routers, switches, firewalls). Perform network maintenance and system upgrades including patches and security configurations. Network Specialists analyze, troubleshoot, and evaluate computer network problems. May also be responsible for building and designing communication networks.
Careers: Network Administrator, Network Engineer, Network Technician, Network Security Architect
Education/Training/Certificates: CompTIA Network+, Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA), Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE)
Security
Description: Protecting company computers, devices, the network, and sensitive information from unauthorized access, breaches, and theft. Cybersecurity and cloud computing are in high demand and that is expected to grow exponentially.
Careers: IT Security Administrator, Security Engineer, Cybersecurity Analyst, Ethical Hacker
Education/Training/Certificates: CompTIA Security+, Certified Ethical Hacker (CEH), Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
Software
Description: Create computer programs that are used to accomplish any number of tasks—your internet browser, music streaming service, and online video conference app are all examples of software. Software development can open paths into a variety of different industries, including finance, video game development, and tech.
Careers: Software Engineer, Software Developer, Application Developer
Education/Training/Certificates: Common programming languages like Python, Java, Ruby, C, C++, Certified Software Development Professional (CSDP)
Web
Description: Responsible for creating and maintaining websites and phone apps. There’s front-end coding like what the users see (user interface), and there’s back-end like what the sites are doing behind the scenes (storing data).
Careers: Web Developer, Web Designer, Full Stack Developer, Front-end Engineer, Back-end Engineer
Education/Training/Certificates: Common coding languages like HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP. Tons of free courses, and videos online
Data
Description: Though data isn’t a traditional IT specialization, the increase in demand for data skills makes it a solid career option for those looking for IT-related work. Working with data can entail keeping up hardware and security as a data technician, or sifting through data to find patterns and insights as a data analyst or scientist.
Careers: Data Center Technician, Database Administrator, Data Analyst
Education/Training/Certificates: IBM Data Analyst Professional Certificate, Google Data Analytics Professional Certificate.
Cloud
Description: Along with cybersecurity, cloud computing was found to be the top technical area in IT seeing the most demand. A career in cloud technology generally includes some programming on cloud software platforms like Microsoft Azure, Amazon Web Services, or Google Cloud.
Careers: Cloud Engineer, Cloud Computing Programmer, Cloud Architect, Cloud Consultant
Education/Training/Certificates: Amazon Web Services (AWS) Solutions Architect, Microsoft Certified: Azure Fundamentals, Google Associate Cloud Engineer, IBM Certified Technical Advocate, Certificate of Cloud Security Knowledge (CCSK)
Sources
https://www.coursera.org/articles/it-career-paths-how-to-get-started
https://www.comptia.org/content/articles/what-is-information-technology
https://joinhandshake.com/blog/students/top-jobs-for-it-majors/