Apparition Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 Hello all! I am new to the forum and also new to the security industry. I am in school for informations security, soon to graduate. My question, I am 33yrs old making a career change, is it too late for me to get into IT security? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooper Posted August 2, 2015 Share Posted August 2, 2015 (edited) TL;DR - NO! Bit of a strange question to ask now that you're finishing up the scholary bits of your education to get you into this alternate career. This question would've been more relevant when you began your education (and the answer would've been the same). Fact of the matter is that you're only too old for infosec when you can't remember things anymore and when learning new stuff is tedious rather than exciting. Manage to remain motivated and curious and you could be 90 without being 'too old' for this. Now, a company might think twice about hiring you over a young 'un fresh outta high school given that you both have the same level of knowledge, basically, and the young 'un's cheaper to hire. So you do have to work a bit harder to get where you want to be, but until you reach something like 45 do things start to become kinda tough. But even then, you could go the self-employed route and earn a very decent living that way. Keep in mind that graduation is where school stops, but actually where the real learning begins. The one big mistake you could make at this point is to lean back in your chair, send your resume to a metric shit-ton of companies and wait for their reply. Sending your resume is fine, but even when nobody is hiring you should get to work on further educating yourself within this field. Go to OWASP meetings. Go to cons. Set up a home lab and further hone your skills. Remember, in the job market you're up against some pimply-faced youth who will be cheaper to hire, so you need to make sure you look better than him/her. Doing these things shows to a company that you're motivated and actively trying to expand your knowledge and skillset. Stuff like that goes a long way. Meeting people in the industry allows you to create a professional network of people who could get you work, point out or even explain things you didn't know about yet and potentially simply become good friends. If you notice nobody's hiring, look into what it would take to start your own business. Again, go to the various meets for the industry and talk to people who have walked this path. Ask for advice and learn from there mistakes. Even if you'd prefer to work for a boss, this is a great way to get some experience under your belt. And who knows, you just might prefer being your own boss. And finally, if anybody that says you can't do something because you're 33, kindly inform him/her that he/she can consume your excrement. Edited August 2, 2015 by Cooper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Apparition Posted August 3, 2015 Author Share Posted August 3, 2015 Thanks Cooper! Yea I agree it was a strange question to ask when I am near my graduation. I was watching a hak5 vid or maybe it was tek and it started making me think about my age. I have been proactively trying to get ahead and learn as much as a can. I am in the process of studying for my CompTia security+ so I can get it before I graduate. Hopefully my hard work will pay off. Thank for the reply! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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