A lot of people always wonder what cybersecurity cert they should get first. In this article I’m going to explain why I chose the Google Cybersecurity Certificate first before I did everything else.

So when I started this journey, I originally was working towards the CompTIA Security+, as every YouTuber and blogger had said, the Security+ was a fundamental certification that I needed to get. I began working on that and the concepts were new to me. The theory was challenging at times and it just wasn’t making sense. At some point in my studies, I found the Google Cybersecurity Certificate.

Now some people may ask, will having the Google Cybersecurity Certificate get you a job? Will it get you an internship? The answer is most likely no. What it does provide is a solid foundation in a lot of different aspects of cybersecurity. When I took it, I don’t know if it’s still the same way now, you actually got a discount on your Security+ from having completed the Google Cybersecurity Certificate because they’re so closely linked. A lot of the concepts that were in the Google Cybersecurity Certificate are similar concepts that were in the Security+ information.

Now to be fair, perhaps I didn’t use the right study materials for how I learn when I was preparing for the Security+. Perhaps I should have done more to get the fundamentals of cybersecurity before attempting Security+. I’ll take some ownership of all of that. What I do believe is that the Google Cybersecurity Certificate gave me a broad understanding of many different things. We did:

  • SQL queries
  • Python
  • used a SIEM
  • Linux
  • Were exposed to cybersecurity frameworks
  • Incident Detection and Response
  • Network Security Fundamentals

And a lot more

Once having some of that hands-on practice (because let’s not forget the Google Cybersecurity Certificate does also offer hands-on labs to go with the theory), then it all made sense. A lot of the topics that I was struggling with when I was just studying the text of the Security+ were making much more sense after having put hands on the keyboard and actually performing some of the tasks that I had been reading about.

So who is the Google Cyber Security Certificate for? I would say anybody who’s just getting started. If you’re a beginner, you’re new to cyber, you’re new to tech in general, the Google Cyber Security Certificate is for you. I think you’re going to get an introduction to so many different aspects of cyber. You’re also going to get hands-on, practical, labs that help connect the dots between the theoretical and the practical.

For that reason if you’re just starting out and the thought of doing Security+ or even Network+ is daunting, I recommend doing this Google Cybersecurity certificate first. Like I said, you’re not going to get hired for having it. You’re not going to get an internship because you have it, but the confidence and the baseline knowledge that you will gain from it will definitely set you up for the future. Too often in cyber there is a ton of emphasis on gaining the next cert and not as much on actually gaining skills. I think the Google Cybersecurity Certificate is a great start to your journey because it’s not just about gaining a cert. It’s about actually learning the entry-level things that are required for cyber security because it introduces you to so many different facets of cyber. You can then start to tailor your learning based off of your interests. If you want to be a pentester, a SOC analyst or even a developer, there’s enough of an introduction that will help guide you to what you are interested in.

But hey what do I know? I’m still trying to break into the industry myself. What I do know is that I’ve gotten this far based off of the foundational work that I was able to do taking the Google Cybersecurity Certificate. If you want to lay down a solid foundation to build from, I can’t recommend this certificate enough.

Cheers and I’ll see you in the next one!