Where are you starting from?

Entry pathways vs experienced roles

Most people start in one of the entry pathways. The experienced roles are later steps.

• Entry pathway

  SOC Analyst

  Watch security alerts, check whether they are real and escalate the ones that matter.

• Entry pathway

  IT/Network Security Support

  Keep office systems patched, manage user access and fix firewall or VPN issues.

• Entry pathway

  GRC / Compliance Analyst

  Check that the company follows security rules, collect evidence and track risks.

• Entry pathway

  Junior Penetration Tester

  Test websites and systems with permission to find weaknesses before attackers do.

• Entry pathway

  Cloud Security (entry)

  Check cloud accounts for risky settings such as public storage or over-powered users.

• Experienced · usually 2–4 years in IT, networking or SOC work

  Security Engineer

  Build and tune security tools across the company.

• Experienced · usually 2–4 years in cloud or infrastructure

  Cloud Security Engineer

  Design guardrails and secure architectures in cloud platforms.

• Experienced · usually 2–3 years in SOC work

  Incident Responder

  Lead investigations when a real breach happens.

• Experienced · usually 3+ years in a security specialism

  Security Consultant

  Advise clients on security programmes and assessments.

• Experienced · usually 6+ years across engineering roles

  Security Architect

  Design how security fits into whole systems and programmes.