Taking the First Steps towards a Great Career in Cyber Security

Overview

Cyber security can be defined as the practice of safeguarding electronic data, networks and computer systems from possible threats. Cyber security matters to everyone, right from government and large organizations to smaller companies, employees and even individuals who use a computer or mobile for their day to day operations. In fact, cyber-attacks have become a common phenomenon day in and day out and hence it has become immensely important to keep your hardware, software, and data secured than ever before.

With the growing importance of cybersecurity, it has become a necessity for organizations to hire professionals trained in this specific IT segment. However, the worrying trend is there is a significant shortage of professionals with these skills to fill up these jobs. As per a survey by Cybersecurity Ventures, it has been estimated that there will be around 3.5 million cyber security job openings by 2021.

Do you need to come from a technical background to get started in this area?

There is a misconception that only highly qualified technical people can enter into this specialized area, which is not the case. In fact, there are myriad of distinct paths within security that offer excellent opportunities for professionals from any background. But, the underlying concept is you need to have the passion to protect the cyber infrastructure with a penchant to learn new technologies. And the picture is really bright. The demand for security professionals is increasing day by day and we feel this is the right time to take a lead in this attractive career segment. 

Well, it's not necessary that you need to have a computer science degree with 10 to 15 years of experience to make a great career in this segment. To be precise, this profession requires interdisciplinary skills – the combination of law, psychology, sociology, technology, and organizational sciences. The beauty of this field is it offers immense scope for both technical and non-technical professionals.

From a technical perspective, there is a great demand for program managers, software engineers, professional communicators, data scientists, and system analysts. Also, people from non-technical backgrounds can enter this segment, particularly in areas related to marketing, public relations, and sales.

What are the skill sets you require?

As stated earlier, even if a person hails from a non-technical background, he/she can easily acquire certain skills to get started in this highly lucrative profession. Of course, it all depends on the type of the sub-domain you choose to get started in this area.

From a generic perspective, the following are the skill sets, which are required:

• Foundations of security and networking
• Logging and monitoring procedures
• Network defense tactics
• Cryptography
• Best practices in networking and troubleshooting

Whatever may be your specialization, the crux is to understand the systems. If you encounter any new technology or processes, try to view the system as a whole. In fact, you need to ask questions such as:

·         What’s wrong with the system that I am not unable to check?

·         What are the goals that the system designer or the owner has set?

·         What could be the quantum of unavoidable loss?

If you could get the right answers for all the above questions and many more insights from a security perspective, then you are on the first leg of a great career in cyber security.

Courses that provide a good head start in cyber security

Apart from the traditional courses offered by the reputed universities and institutes in the B.Tech, MCA or M.Tech curriculums, there are a host of certification courses available online. Check few online platforms such as Coursera, Udemy or FutureLearn. These platforms offer a lot of flexibility in choosing the right course format – short term or long term as per your career aspirations.

Piece of advice

If you are a student interested to enter this knowledge segment or a professional eyeing a lucrative place in this domain, there’s an immense potential out there. Apart from the right skill sets, the core prerequisites to make a successful career transition is to have the right attitude, passion and above all the confidence to make a difference, both to your organization and to the society as a whole.

Virtual Reality is the next big thing in the job market! Are you ready?

This tech is flourishing the marketplace like never before and many apparatus, especially phones, laptops, and handheld devices are lapping this up technology and supplying consumers to immerse themselves into real-world settings. It transports the consumer to some simulated environment that is different from a physical environment by allowing them to walk, explore fascinating things and experience events that are unique. Normally, there’s a misconception in the minds of those people that it’s just appropriate for gaming functions, which isn’t the situation. It’s finding increasing applicability in a variety of sections and continuously altering how we live — directly from health care to medication to leisure.

In reality, we’re blessed to remain in a fantastic 21st century of inventions. Digital reality, that is gaining fast ground, is becoming more and more popular as a livelihood choice on comparable lines such as analytics and data, artificial intelligence, machine learning, IoT and much more.

Since the business is maturing, so the requirement for VR programmers can also be flourishing like never before. Depending on the poll, the VR sector place to get an exponential boom within another few years, and this translates into more variety of occupations within this segment, especially for applications and VR programs.

What Kind of Jobs Do you Anticipate in a VR Career Course?

To begin a career for a virtual reality programmer, you have to be a specialist in a couple of programming languages. Additionally, the platform that you select has a remarkable effect on VR layout.

You have to recognize that you’re creating proprietary applications. Rather than creating for cellular or a platform, you’ll be creating it for a VR system. On the other hand, the evolution process is practically exactly the exact same for both VR and AR. Aside from entertainment and gambling, you will find different businesses, which may definitely deliver real-time price. By way of instance, in the health care sector, certain businesses are delivering VR encounters. Healthcare professionals like physicians, nurses, students, and other professionals may educate and practice in live and immersive environments that offer them hands-on time together with resources, techniques, and scenarios that they may experience in real life. Other industries in which VR is creating effect include development and construction, structure, retail, retail, and hardware servicing. This suggests that programmers have enormous potential in a variety of realms of the field.

Present Job Possible for VR

Although the job marketplace isn’t too aggressive right now, with a growing number of businesses investing in this section, you can anticipate decent job opportunities in the not too distant future. It is not a cakewalk to leap into any VR livelihood with minimal knowledge or experience. First of all, the majority of the VR growth businesses, anticipate a decent restart for your candidates that they hire such as direct experience with all the technology such as a fantastic portfolio of software that they had grown.

Pre-requisites into Commence a Career at VR

The main pre-requisite to enter this profession is that you demand a software development background to be successful in this region. For pupils, who are yet to consume this region of interest, it’s better to opt for a computer science major in any one of their college or university. This will place you the ideal path. In case you’ve got a penchant for applications development, it’s preferable to have expertise in 3D modeling and design applications.

If you’re interested in the hardware section like creating new programs, headsets or apparatus, you want to mandatorily be familiar with hardware engineering and contemporary electronics. Another important section that VR specialist can come across the location is networking since many AR and VR platforms are involved with connectivity and networking. Obviously, you can’t ignore the most essential cybersecurity and information handling areas since these platforms accumulate a massive number of information, which must stay private and secure.

However, the most rewarding segment is your mobile program and program development path. The majority of the VR headphones, that are sold worldwide, are based on cellular technologies.

Are there some Particular Courses or Certifications?

The upcoming big question is are there some significant virtual reality classes on the sector or is there some faculty or institution that may educate me these classes? Essentially, it’s the passion and imagination that principles over any qualifications or courses. Even though there are many schools and universities that have recently introduced VR for a topic in their own CS curriculums, nevertheless, there are numerous personal and internet platforms, which provide lucrative classes to begin in this region. Attempt to research such classes.

Aside from the classes you attend, it’s always a good idea for beginners to get in contact with specialists as soon as you can get a solid foothold in this business, much before the coworkers and friends. In addition, it might take years of training and dedication to obtain the ideal chances or the gratification you expect. So, simply don’t get frustrated.

Few tips to take the right steps towards a great IT career

Overview

The technology industry is a great place to work – we can call it one of the progressive places to work, where you get an opportunity to work on solutions to problems that impact millions of people, apart from having loads of fun. In fact, it is the dream of every fresher or even a professional, who has spent a couple of years in non-IT sectors to get a foothold in the IT industry. But, the big question is how do you make the final cut? Here are a few tips, which we had underlined to get started. Of course, the biggest success factor would always be your motivation to get into this industry, apart from having the penchant for technology, innovation, and passion to make a difference in the lives of millions of people.

1. Be active in social media sites

Social media is all about connections and making new acquaintances – not just personal, but also professional. So, the first step is to create your own persona in any or all of the social media sites – Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr and FaceBook, which creates the first impression on the employer who might be willing to consider you. Also, ensure that your profile is up to date, apart from following interesting people to learn how they leverage the platforms.

These aspects are important because employers will search and explore facts about you, as your social media profile might not be linked to your resume or website. Another important aspect to adhere is to avoid pornographic or obsessive content on your social media handles, as employers might shy away and may not turn up again.

2. Showcase your skills

This world is full of advertising and even the minutest detail need to be advertised or highlighted to draw the attention of someone. Hence, if you are a developer, then showcase your skills on Github. In case you are a designer, create an account on Dribble or Behance account. Another good way to highlight your skills is to write a blog or a couple of blogs in Medium or Wordpress that can create a positive impression on your candidature that lets you stand out among the crowd.

3. Have a project that talks about your expertise

Having a project that you can show it to a potential employer can go a long way in building a good rapport with your prospective company or the boss, who is going to hire you. Exhibit your skills in such a way that you enjoy doing things, thereby exuding confidence that you have the requisite skills that you had showcased in your resume. The bottom line is always doing some homework on your skillsets or collaborate with your peers to develop a project, say a student body website, while still pursuing your course. Remember, you need not be a developer or a designer to get started. Even if you are a marketing guy, try and enhance the marketing for small business online. Also, if you want to get into content writing, improve the content on a brand website. If you have done this before you attend the first interview, you would definitely make the first cut among thousands of applicants for sure.

4. Develop contacts with interesting people

One of the easiest ways to get into the tech industry is by forging new contacts and connections. Such connections greatly help you to get the right job.

5. Have a good resume

Prepare a good resume that highlights all your important attributes that can make a difference to the employer. If you are a fresher, you may not have much to showcase on the experience front and hence it’s better to highlight your school or college projects, achievements, awards and other aspects that can catch the attention of the recruiters. Also, it's a good practice to keep your resume as black and white, since most of the companies would print the resume before they call you for an interview. Ensure a standard 2-page rule for your resume and have a readable typeface that is comfortable on the reader’s eyes. Also, it is better to have a good photo on your resume if you are submitting the resume in a job fair, as people tend to remember faces better when they have hundreds of resumes to go through.

6. Send a good email to catch the attention of the recruiters

Once you are fine with your resume, compose your first mail which should sound polite and assertive. Be friendly in your emails. Avoid writing ‘Dear’ or ‘Yours Sincerely’; compose the mail in such a way that you know and respect them. Your focus should be more on how you can help the company, rather than highlighting how good you are.

7. Good dress etiquette is important

Don’t be too formal in dressing. Just smart-casual should be fine if the company is small. Wear formal shoes and always be at ease with the interviewers.

8. Ace the interview perfectly

Before you get into the interview mode, research and understand the company thoroughly, rather than showing off your blank face at the interview. Always expect some open questions in the interview. If you think that user experience is important for a project, highlight that aspect and gauge their expectations. It’s also a good idea to ask questions such as the company culture, business model and the team members you would be working with to check whether you are the right fit for the company or not. If you think there is a mismatch, it's better not to pursue the job further.

9. Lastly, if you cannot make it, don’t get disappointed

IT industry is quite dynamic with changing priorities and expectations. So, don't get disappointed if you cannot make the final cut or still worse if the job you had applied does no longer exist, though you had qualified for the interview. Always have a positive mindset, assuming that there are a lot of many opportunities to fish out in the IT Ocean. Try to work on some technology projects to improve your professional credibility. Be updated constantly and keep looking for the IT trends that are shaping the job market. We are sure you would definitely make it one day.

How to apply for Android job as a fresher in India?

Mobility and mobile technologies are literally ruling the planet like never before. Now mobile has become an indispensable tool for everyone and no more an item of luxury. More so, the job of a mobile developer has become quite enriching and enticing, commanding high respect in the software industry in terms of packages and benefits. The mobile applications we use have literally transformed how we execute our day to day tasks – be it personal or business. So, what makes this profession tick and how can one become a mobile developer or precisely an Android developer. This article talks about a few key indicators that help you to set your foot in this booming career segment.

What is so great about Android?

Android enjoys the highest market share among all the operating systems across the globe. With dominance in the mobile segment, jobs in Android offer high-level job security. And above all, the Android platform is open source, enabling the developer community to share knowledge including tips, tricks, and tutorials. In fact, developers can focus on building core apps that are in day to day use. With the booming market and myriad Android applications, this is the right time to start a career in Android development. There’s a constant flow of good jobs, wherein the demand for Android apps is soaring like never before with technology being the key driver.

Here are the few important tips that can help you land a good job in Android development:

1.     Acquire the right skill sets

Android development can be executed on any of the systems, be it Mac, Windows PC or the Linux computer. Here are some of the technologies, which you need to gain hands-on to become a right fit in Android development.

·        Java

This is the basic building block for Android development. Hence, if you need to be successful, you need to know the concepts of Java including loops, variables, lists and control structures.

·        SQL

You need to gain a basic knowledge of SQL to know how to organize the databases within the Android apps.

·        Android Software Development Kit (SDK) and Android Studio

The excellent point about Android development is that all the required tools are free of cost and easy to get. You can easily download the Android SDK for free and even the Android Studio, which is the integrated development environment (IDE) for Android app development. Of course, the best part is you can easily submit your apps to Google Play Store – simply register for a Google play publisher account, follow the checklist of Android, submit it via Google Play Developer Console, let Google approve your app and you are done.

·        XML

If you want to describe data, you need XML. Knowledge of XML syntax helps in designing user interface (UI) layouts, apart from parsing data feeds from the internet.

2.     Be a constant learner

As this is a highly competitive and rewarding field, you need to constantly hone up your skills. Good news is that you have a number of platforms including Stack Overflow, YouTube, Android Weekly and Android Developer’s site to help you learn new tips and tricks or even help you build apps. Another good source of knowledge is to read popular Android books including Head First Java and Android Programming: Pushing the Limits.

3.     Showcase your skills on popular social media sites

This is one of the popular strategies to market your skills and expertise. Showcase your Android portfolio on LinkedIn groups, Twitter chats and GitHub. This will definitely draw the attention of the prospective companies or the hiring consultants to call you for a technical meet up or even may go a one step ahead – offer you the first android programming assignment. Remember, the more you network, the more you improve the prospects of getting hired. So, always stay connected, follow the tips of the seniors and stay updated.

4.     Focus on communication skills

As for any job, having good communication skills makes a huge difference at the time of hiring. Even if you are well equipped with great technical skill sets and knowledge that can even compete with the veterans in the industry, it becomes a waste, if you are not able to project your skills properly. Hence, you need to be good at communication; both oral and written that lets you describe yourself – your personality, traits and skill sets. If you still lack confidence in expressing yourself, we recommend you to join some spoken English language courses or the best way is to start communicating with your friends, colleagues to overcome the fear of the English language. Also, develop the habit of reading good books, periodicals, and newspapers regularly to improve your vocabulary and language skills.

5.     Prepare and post a good resume in networking sites and job portals

Prepare a good resume that projects all your important skill sets and qualities that can catch the attention of the recruiter. If you are a fresher, you may not have much to showcase on the experience front and it would be practical to highlight only your school or college projects, achievements, awards or even extracurricular activities. Remember that your resume should not exceed more than 2 pages and is legible to read and understand. Also, it is preferable to post your latest photo on your resume, though not mandatory.

The next step is to post your resume in popular professional networking sites (Ex: LinkedIn) and job portals such as TapResume to help you get noticed among thousands of applicants. Unlike other job portals, TapResume is an exclusive job portal for technology jobs, focused on any IT domain or sub-domain.

6.     Apply for the right companies

Apart from posting your resume in a job portal or a networking site, you also need to be proactive to look for opportunities matching your skill sets. Shortlist the available opportunities and do a brief research about the companies, where you intend to apply. Before you actually hit the send button to email your resume, it is mandatory to prepare a good covering letter or a note. Rather than focusing more on your skill sets, your covering email should focus more on the value you would bring to the organization and how best you are suited to work in their organizations. This would create a positive impression on the minds of the recruiters before they actually look into your resume.

7.     Prepare a good question bank

Though you are yet to receive a call from prospective companies or face the actual interviews, it is better to understand the current mobility trends and prepare a good bank of probable interview questions that you might expect for the position you had applied. Take the help of the seniors in this regard and be prepared, before you actually ace the interview.

These are some of the important tips that we feel are important for you to take those first steps towards a great Android career. So, be confident, stay focused and put your heart and soul to make the best out of the opportunities to knock your door anytime.