Career Advice

Good evening, I Hope you all are in good health. I have been a long time lurker and want to say i have been Impressed with the
forums here, the advice, resources and help i have seen the more experienced guys give to others seeking guidance. Well a little bit about myself. 25 year old graduated college this past december with a bachelors degree in accounting. I just completed an internship with an accounting firm, and that has made me reconsider if i want to do that for the rest of my life. I always enjoyed learning about anything technology and wanted to have a career in IT right before i got into college but decided to go the accounting route because my parents talked me into it (Job security, Good salary...). I was accepted to a school here in GA for a masters in information technology to begin classes in two weeks. So my questions to the more experienced people... how is the job market for IT right now ?. is going for a masters in IT with no previous experience(Newbie) a good move ? are there other areas in IT i could go into combination with my accounting degree.? I have been looking into IT audit. out of all my accounting classes i enjoyed auditing the most. I just started studying for the MTA security fundamentals exam to get a basic idea of what security is all about. So far i have found the material really interesting. I am also looking to get the net+, sec+ and CISA certs if i eventually choose to go the IT audit career path. I am not looking to make a final decision off what ever pointers here, just looking for advice, guidance, input from the more experienced people here. Hoping to hear back from some of you.

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Comments

kohr-ah

I live near Chicago and our market is a booming.

One thing I would suggest, especially going for masters which isn't a bad idea, is have you considered possibly doing PM work?

Financial and IT knowledge goes far there and then you can break into security or auditing that way.

nanochillbot

Interesting combination that one would not think a common ground exists.
I kinda keyed in on this
"I just completed an internship with an accounting firm, and that has made me reconsider if i want to do that for the rest of my life
is going for a masters in IT with no previous experience(Newbie) a good move ? are there other areas in IT i could go into combination with my accounting degree.?"

You never know, I encountered at the SEC an Attorney, with a CISSP on the Enforcement division. A Lawyer with a badge and a gun? How dangerous is that?
With a Security background and a Masters in IT? Certain parts of the country would probably swallow you whole, in one gulp.
You'd be following the Money in a way non-financial Security pro's are not versant with.I just dropped out of a Corporate Finance class simply because I need focus on taking an exam within the next 30.PV's, FV's, NPV's, IRR's, Bonds, Stocks, compounding, etc were interesting things to contend with.
On the Nuts and Bolts and Software side of the house financial knowledge would be useless. We have enough dry text-book material to read on any Weekend or trip to the powder room.
From certain IT Consultant, Management, Security perspectives and perhaps others, (I slipped on the mind-set of Managerial Stakeholders, the Financial decision makers at the District level and up) you get a different perspective.

Here's what I'd suggest as you've done an internship with an accounting firm. You now have better insight, especially if they were/are at "Management Consultant firm". (In my neck of the woods the BAH's, Accentures's, the other Big 6 or 8 or whatever they're called now)
I know these guy's are / have to be doing, what you're contemplating in some form or another.
Take a look at the Consultant positions they are advertising, especially the ones requiring Clearances.
You know what Auditors do where IT folks don't, I'll bet you'll find the cross combinations of Security,Ethical hacking,Pen testing,and Show-me-the-money auditors.
Having identified those position types, if you have not already, get a LinkedIn account.
Hopefully networking with those who are doing this, or the pieces of it, can help you shape your Career/Learning/Consulting path.
At 25 ? You could set the Sky on fire with your parents hard-earned money.

Hope this helps

lumenite

Thanks Guys, I have been occupied lately. Really appreciate your Input. I also talked to a few professionals about it, most of them suggested transitioning to IT Audit would be a great idea. I was told i can decide to move into a security position after some years of experience as an IT Auditor. I am currently studying for the sec+ to gain some knowledge on information security, Hopefully that would help me when it's time to prepare for the CISA which i intend to take sometime next year. I am also looking out for internship,entry level positions right now. I know with hardwork and dedication i will be able to achieve my goals. Really excited about what the future holds. Thanks again for the advice.

TheFORCE

You will need sometype of experience as an IT auditor in order to be granted the CISA. I beleive it's 2 years, could be wrong. Usually the higher certifications have a hands on experience requirement. You might want to look into getting some experience before you spend the money on a certification.