So I just graduated this past saturday with my BA in Network Security & Forensics  I am thinking of not going applying at any jobs for the time being.

Reason I decided on this is because in the past the jobs that I have applied for have gotten no either response to my resume or just contacted at all about it.

My resume isn't impressive (one reason why I am waiting) is because I only have my Security+.  So most IT jobs want certs and experience. I have an internship for the past yr doing Forensics as well as having a clearance from my time in the Navy.  But still no hits, no offers for an interview, nothing.

So until I get the certs I am aiming for i have no reason to apply at any jobs.  Is this a bad decision on my part?

I am able to move anywhere within the dop of a hat for a job but nobody is giving me a chance...yet.

Here are the certs I wil l get by October..then I will apply at every job I can find

CEH & CPT(attending the Infosec class in Aug/Sept)
Network+ (should get this one by Aug 101th
CCE
CHFI (last one to get)
GCFE have to take the test by Sept 19th

Once I have these I feel I will be better suited to apply at jobs than I currently am now

putting your degree on your resume will help, and might get you some hits.

I read this and immediately thought of infosecleaders.com.  Mike Murray and Lee Kushner run the site over there, post lots of good info on getting into an infosec career and answering email questions.  Good knowledge between those two with Mike having many years working in the industry and Lee being an infosec recruiter for many years.  Sending them your question might be beneficial to you also.

But yeah, I really don't like that vicious cycle: to get hired you need the experience, but to get the experience you need to be hired...ugh.  Maybe getting into a lower level IT job would help.  Although, it sounds like you're trying to get into the forensics side of the house and I'm not sure of the "job ladder" there, if there are "lower level" positions (I'm in networking).

I will definetly check the link out.  My internship is unpaid and a hell of a drive 35 miles.  In CO that's a far drive...LOL for a job that is.


I've checked with the local law enforcement offices already such as the RCFL Rocky Forensics Labs and independant Police stations.  ya good luck getting in contact with them...they never respond to emails or pick up the phones posted on their site.

Since my degree is Network Security and Forensics I am open to either one and I know that they  overlap each other considerably.  But if I wanted to only go for Forensics then it mkaes my job much harder cause there is less jobs and a smaller community.  SO I am open to anything, anywhere in the world.

Funny part is I have applied at help desk jobs, entry level jobs, networking jobs...Nothing.  I am a bit frustrated but not to the poing of giving up.  I have these certs to keep me occupied and then once I have them if I still don't get a job then I will be upset and move into middle managemnt at Target.  LOL.

My family needs me to have a full time job so quitting my job and going to a unpaid internship is out of the question.  I have two jobs technically.  My FT job doing tech support for a company that does lasers but then I have my intership when I get off work I go there for a few hrs....Then up until I grauated I was goin to school full time also.

Oh ya, got an A in that class, it was called Career Development.  Even did a mock interview.  Career services helps me and my school has tons of job, mostly programming but other jobs.  I just looked at their boards yesterday and have 173 pages of jobs in the US but only 30 jobs in Colorado where I live, mostly programming.  I will not take a programming job under any circumstance..

It's soemthing I will utilize more once I have more certifications but as of now, the feedback I have gotten has been negative or none at all.  What I mean by negative was "your reusme is impressive but we are going with someone else".

So the only way that I can beat out you (other college grad) is to have more certs than them, making me look better and then getting my foot in the door with an interview.

programming jobs aren't all that bad. I lived as a database report programmer for a year.

Depending on the type of programming it will help you hone your business skills. Remember, being able to hire people capable of only tech is easy. They're a dime a dozen. A person that can understand what's driving the business and make the tech fit, worth their weight in platinum.

Sorry, I hate programming so much. I struggled with it so much and have no desire to do it at all.  Besides I have a good job where I never will get fired, paid benfits so why would I go to a job where programmers are a dime a dozen and get fired a month after getting hired for not being able to make a program run properly.  Just not a smart finanacial move with a family.

In regards to networking.  What other suggestions do suggest?  I am a recent member to Infagard (the FBI's network Security group), Linkedin is on my profile. I send random invites to people I don't know to network with them.  So what other types can I do.  I've heard of blogging about me and my stuff.  But I am studyingfor the NET+ so why blog about it and it seems silly but may work.

The reason I took the intern with the one man show is the other intern I had didnt work with my hours.  I tried working with their hrs but they didn;t want to return my calls to come down or my emails so I don;t know happened so I found another one through my brother in law who is an investigator in for the DA's office. I work FT Mon-Fri 8-5 and since it was a Forensics intern I could not touch anything or work alone without being certified in CCE.  Which I took the test and failed miserably.

The reason I am trying to get my NET+ is there are more jobs that are looking for this cert and then that will allow me to get a better job with different hours that I can then do my internship on a more regular basis while getting the on hands experience I so desire.

Yes I will be taking the cce again. Actually shortly. It was rough to study for as there is very limited stuff they tell you and the written exam has nothing to do with the material they said to study.. then there is the 3 practical which you cant study for. It's either you know the stuff it you don't. It all about doing an investigation. My intern was not the same one that i have now and no they didnt teach me anything to help me.

So what your saying is, that you think me not applying for jobs until September is a bad idea. That's the question I asked in the beginning.