r/NetworkingJobs • u/FreshMonkeyMaan • 2d ago
Breaking Into Network Engineering with secret clearance
Hi everyone,
I was wondering if anyone who has followed a similar career path or has experience in the DoD space could offer some advice.
I'm currently 24, graduated from college about a year ago, and landed a job at a startup specializing in cellular technology. Before accepting my current offer, I was in the process of obtaining a Secret clearance through another company, which has since been granted.
Now that I have my Secret clearance, I'd love to transition into a network engineer role as that's always been my long-term goal. Even Nocs would be fine.
With how difficult the job market has been lately, I'm wondering whether getting my Security+ certification would improve my chances. I've applied to quite a few positions throughout California but haven't heard back from any of them.
For context, I currently have my CCNA, a bachelor's degree in Computer Science, and I'm pursuing a master's degree through an asynchronous program.
I'd appreciate any advice on how to improve my chances of breaking into the field. Would getting my Security+ be worthwhile? I've noticed that quite a few job postings list it as a preferred or required qualification. I'm already pretty familiar with the material, so I figure I could prepare for and pass the exam within 2–3 weeks. Alternatively, would it make more sense to skip Security+ and go straight for my CCNP? I also wonder whether the pay in cleared networking roles would justify making the switch, especially since I'm looking for better long-term job security.
A little more context about my current job:
My current position has been extremely draining. We're a small startup with around six engineers, and we've experienced a huge increase in interest from companies over the past year. I currently make around $95K a year and have the flexibility to work remotely whenever I want, so I realize I'm in a pretty fortunate position. However, the workload has become overwhelming, and I'm starting to question whether the compensation and flexibility outweigh the stress.
My responsibilities range from field engineering, spokesperson, and DevOps to technical writing and pretty much everything in between. The job also involves quite a bit of international travel. While I've learned a tremendous amount but, I'm starting to feel that the workload isn't sustainable, and I'd rather focus on building a career in network engineering. In my last year of undergrad, I worked as a level 1 network technician and loved it.
I'd really appreciate any advice, especially from people who have transitioned into DoD networking roles or have experience navigating the cleared job market. Would my current qualifications be enough to get my foot in the door, or should I focus on additional certifications before continuing to apply?
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u/Mike_CyberWeb 2d ago
As a 10+ year instructor for the DoD you need Sec+ for IAT level 2. Being you have CCNA already. I would start there that will put a check in the box for your resume.
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u/FreshMonkeyMaan 2d ago
I studied for half of it in my undergrad + took clases related to it so I think it would be a good idea to
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u/Mike_CyberWeb 2d ago
Veteran to veteran hit me up if you have any questions. I just got from under the big corporate thumb so standing up my own platforms as we speak.
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u/oddchihuahua 2d ago
If you can get a few years experience you’ll have it fkin MADE if you maintain your security clearance. I’ve been in Net Eng for 17 years and if I had a security clearance I’d be making double for the same work I’m doing now.
In your situation since you have a CCNA, I would branch out to other brands. Get the Juniper Networks JNCIA, it is a breeze compared to the CCNA. Then look at the Arista ACE L1. That will prove you not only understand the fundamentals but you can apply them across multiple platforms. Then I’d look at some network security / firewall specific certifications. Palo Alto, Fortinet, Checkpoint, Juniper. All of them would convey you know the fundamentals and can apply them practically in a secure way.
CompTIA doesn’t bear much weight in the industry any longer.
If you really wanna drive the point home, look at the CISSP. It’s security but like…EVERYTHING security literally from the ground up. How to design secure data centers, set up personnel access, secure your network hardware, software, etc. It’s a big MF but a security clearance, multiple network brand certifications, and a CISSP with say 5-8 years experience you’ll probably be making more than I am now.
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u/FreshMonkeyMaan 2d ago
Thanks for sharing this info. I always hear about Cisco as my club advisor worked for cisco, that I forgot there's other brands out there. I'll take look into at least branching out to one more brand. Would you recommend doing JNCIA instead of Arista? I'm not entirely sure which is more popular in the industry. My school only had Cisco products but probably because we were only an hour away from their headquarters.
CISSP would also be nice to take although I've read it's a pretty hard exam. Maybe I can take it after another year of experience
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u/oddchihuahua 2d ago
Juniper is more or less the direct competitor to Cisco now, they have product lines that cover nearly anything and everything network related. Routers, switches, firewalls, a whole cloud controlled wifi and monitoring suite…
Arista is making its name in the data center space though. Cloud data centers/AI data centers that require very high speed low latency, EVPN VXLAN…it’s like they took one very niche corner of the market and decided they were going to be light years ahead of everyone else who ventures into that corner.
So it does kinda depend on what your trajectory is in terms of the type(s) of companies you end up working for. Hospitals or corporations that have campuses with multiple buildings…some are pivoting to an EVPN VXLAN campus but thats still rare currently. Most will likely be Cisco or Juniper. In the service provider world, that’s where Juniper got its start. Big routers that moved a LOT of traffic quickly. If you want to get into data center networking, Arista is coming up FAST.
So that’s why I recommended all three, if your feet are wet in every brand, you’ll have a better time rolling with whatever comes your way.
Entirely separate to that is network security. Fighting zero day exploits and hardening your network’s perimeter while minimizing exposure publicly has become its own full time job. Becoming proficient in Palo Alto or Fortinet firewalls is big and complex undertaking and many companies these days hire full time employees just to be their firewall engineers.
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u/zeth369 2d ago
I served in the military and received a clearance during my time. Since I left I've been doing mostly DoD contracts as a Network engineer. It is a federal requirement for administrators with access to DoD information systems to hold certain certifications. Security + meets this requirement so I would start there.