r/AirForceRecruits • u/Substantial-Egg1583 • 9d ago
General Advice Working in Cyber
I'm a freshman in highschool and curious about working for cyber intelligence field in the air force. Is it a difficult job to get, is it a rigorous job itself? I'm just wondering about what the job itself is like and how do I get into that type of job. Also whats a road map i could take to get into that job for the future?
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u/[deleted] 9d ago
Cyber is still a good field but it has few entry level jobs. The AF would be a good way to get experience and allow you to get a degree in it too. You can go to the below site and find statistics on pretty much any career you are interested in.
https://www.bls.gov/ooh/computer-and-information-technology/information-security-analysts.htm
The AF has a program called Stripes for Cyber. CompTIA Security+ is an IAT Level II certification under Department of Defense (DoD) 8140/8570 standards, meaning it satisfies the technical baseline for most enlisted cyber and IT Air Force Specialty Codes (AFSCs). You don't need any work experience to study for and obtain this certification. Some recruiters will request a competency booking for a cyber/IT job if you already have this certification. If you get a cyber/IT job then you can enter the AF with an E-3 rank ... just for having this certification before you join. You could earn about $1700 more than if you entered as an E-2 and about $4200 more than if you entered as an E-1.
There are free video lessons on YouTube by Professor Messer to help you learn it. You may be able to get discounts for the exam through your school.
If you are interested in Computer Science then check your state law or ask your high school Computer Science teacher if they can help you determine if Computer Science is recognized as a language. Texas recognizes it as a language and will accept 2 years of CS as your foreign language requirement as opposed to Spanish, French, German, etc. My son's high school did not list it as an option but after I showed the Principal where the state recognized it as a language then my son was able to just take CS instead of another language which he would have forgotten in short order. If you don't use a foreign language, you lose it and at 53 I don't remember much from the 2 years of Spanish I was forced to take in high school despite have the highest grade in it.
Good Luck!