What the job actually is, not just the job title
Career Paths in IT & Cybersecurity
Thirteen real roles, what they actually do day to day, the skills and tech to learn, home-lab projects to build a portfolio, and where each path leads next. We don't promise employment or certification outcomes — this is a map, not a guarantee.
Entry level
Help Desk Technician
The first point of contact for IT problems — resetting passwords, troubleshooting hardware and software, and triaging tickets before escalating what they can't solve.
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Skills required Clear communication under pressure Basic Windows/macOS troubleshooting Ticketing system discipline Patience with non-technical users Technologies to learn Windows 10/11 Active Directory basics A ticketing system (Zendesk, Freshdesk, ServiceNow) Remote support tools Suggested course order IT Fundamentals / Help Desk Windows Administration Networking Fundamentals Home-lab projects Set up a small home network and document its topology Build a personal ticket log for every tech problem you personally solve, in professional format
Entry to junior
Desktop Support Technician
Hands-on support for end-user devices — imaging machines, deploying software, managing peripherals, and handling issues help desk couldn't resolve remotely.
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Skills required Hardware diagnostics and repair OS imaging and deployment Basic scripting for repetitive tasks Asset tracking Technologies to learn Windows/macOS deployment tools PowerShell basics Mobile device management (Intune, Jamf) Printer and peripheral management Suggested course order Computer Hardware Windows Administration PowerShell Home-lab projects Image a test machine from scratch using a deployment tool Write a PowerShell script that automates a repetitive setup task
Junior to mid
Network Administrator
Keeps the network running day to day — configuring switches and routers, managing Wi-Fi, monitoring performance, and responding to outages.
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Skills required Routing and switching fundamentals VLAN design and troubleshooting Firewall rule management Network monitoring Technologies to learn Cisco IOS or equivalent VLANs and trunking DHCP/DNS administration A monitoring tool (PRTG, Nagios, Zabbix) Suggested course order Networking Fundamentals Advanced Networking Routing and Switching Firewalls Home-lab projects Build a multi-VLAN network in a virtual lab (GNS3, EVE-NG, or Packet Tracer) Set up a firewall and write rules for a segmented network
Mid to senior
Network Engineer
Designs and builds network infrastructure rather than just maintaining it — capacity planning, redundancy, and architecture decisions for growing organizations.
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Skills required Network design and capacity planning Redundancy and failover architecture Advanced routing protocols (OSPF, BGP) Automation for network config Technologies to learn Advanced Cisco/Juniper configuration BGP/OSPF Network automation (Python, Ansible) SD-WAN concepts Suggested course order Advanced Networking Routing and Switching Cloud Computing Python Home-lab projects Design and build a redundant network topology with failover Automate a repetitive network config task with a Python or Ansible script
Junior to mid
System Administrator
Keeps servers, identity systems, and core infrastructure running — patching, backups, Active Directory, and the unglamorous work that keeps everything else functioning.
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Skills required Windows Server / Linux administration Active Directory management Backup and disaster recovery Scripting for automation Technologies to learn Windows Server Active Directory / Entra ID Virtualization (VMware, Hyper-V) PowerShell or Bash Suggested course order Windows Server Linux Administration Active Directory Virtualization Home-lab projects Build a domain controller and join client machines to it Configure Group Policy for a realistic set of business requirements Set up and test a backup/restore process
Mid
Cloud Engineer
Builds and manages infrastructure in AWS, Azure, or GCP — provisioning resources, managing costs, and increasingly doing it all through code rather than click-ops.
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Skills required Cloud provider fundamentals (AWS/Azure/GCP) Infrastructure as code Containers and orchestration Cost and security management in the cloud Technologies to learn AWS or Azure core services Docker and Kubernetes Terraform or equivalent IaC CI/CD pipelines Suggested course order Cloud Computing AWS or Microsoft Azure Docker Kubernetes Home-lab projects Deploy a small application to the cloud using infrastructure as code Containerize an app and deploy it to a Kubernetes cluster (even a local one like minikube)
Entry to junior
Cybersecurity Analyst
Monitors for and responds to security events — reviewing alerts, investigating suspicious activity, and escalating real incidents.
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Skills required Log analysis Understanding common attack patterns SIEM tool usage Clear incident documentation Technologies to learn A SIEM (Splunk, Sentinel, Elastic) Endpoint detection tools Basic scripting for log parsing Networking fundamentals Suggested course order Cybersecurity Fundamentals Network Security Security Monitoring SIEM Home-lab projects Set up a free-tier SIEM and feed it logs from a home-lab VM Simulate and investigate a fake phishing email using the Knowledge Base format
Entry to mid
SOC Analyst
Works within a Security Operations Center monitoring alerts in real time, triaging severity, and following documented playbooks to contain incidents.
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Skills required Alert triage under time pressure Playbook-driven incident response Threat intelligence basics Clear shift-handoff documentation Technologies to learn SIEM/SOAR platforms Threat intelligence feeds Endpoint detection and response (EDR) Ticketing/case management tools Suggested course order Security Monitoring SIEM Incident Response Threat Hunting Home-lab projects Build a detection rule for a simulated attack pattern in a free-tier SIEM Write a one-page incident response playbook for a common scenario (e.g. phishing)
Mid (rarely entry-level)
Penetration Tester
Legally and ethically attacks systems the organization owns or has authorized testing on, to find vulnerabilities before real attackers do.
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Skills required Web application security Network penetration testing methodology Reporting written for both technical and executive audiences Strict adherence to scope and authorization Technologies to learn Burp Suite, Nmap, Metasploit Scripting (Python) for custom tooling Active Directory attack paths Cloud penetration testing basics Suggested course order Ethical Hacking Penetration Testing Fundamentals Web Application Security Python Home-lab projects Complete structured labs on legal platforms like PortSwigger Web Security Academy or Hack The Box Academy Write a full penetration test report for a lab environment, exactly as you would for a client
Mid to senior
Security Engineer
Builds and maintains the security infrastructure itself — firewalls, identity systems, endpoint protection, and the architecture other security roles rely on.
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Skills required Security architecture and design Identity and access management Automation for security operations Cross-team collaboration Technologies to learn Firewalls and network security tools IAM platforms (Entra ID, Okta) Infrastructure as code EDR/XDR platforms Suggested course order Network Security Identity and Access Management Zero Trust Automation for System Administrators Home-lab projects Design and implement a zero-trust network segment in a lab Automate a security response action (e.g. auto-isolating a flagged endpoint) with a script
Mid
DevOps Engineer
Bridges development and operations — building CI/CD pipelines, automating infrastructure, and making deployment fast and reliable.
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Skills required CI/CD pipeline design Infrastructure as code Container orchestration Monitoring and observability Technologies to learn Docker and Kubernetes Git and GitHub Actions (or similar) Terraform Cloud platforms (AWS/Azure/GCP) Suggested course order Git and GitHub Docker Kubernetes DevOps Home-lab projects Build a full CI/CD pipeline for a small personal project, from commit to deployment Containerize and orchestrate a multi-service app locally
Mid
AI Engineer
Builds applications and systems that use AI/ML models — integrating APIs, fine-tuning models, and increasingly building on top of large language models.
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Skills required Python programming Understanding of ML fundamentals API integration Prompt engineering for LLM-based systems Technologies to learn Python, PyTorch or TensorFlow LLM APIs (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.) Vector databases MLOps basics Suggested course order Python Artificial Intelligence Generative AI Prompt Engineering Home-lab projects Build a small application that integrates an LLM API for a real task Fine-tune or prompt-engineer a model for a specific, measurable use case
Senior
IT Manager
Leads an IT team, sets priorities, manages budgets, and translates business needs into technical direction — less hands-on, more strategic.
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Skills required People management Budgeting and vendor management Risk and priority tradeoffs Communicating technical issues to non-technical leadership Technologies to learn Broad familiarity across the stack, rather than deep in one area Project management tools and methodology ITSM frameworks (ITIL) Suggested course order Broad technical foundation across support, networking, and security Then focus on leadership/process, which this platform does not directly teach Home-lab projects Lead a real (even volunteer) small project end to end: scope, plan, execute, and report on it Practice writing a technical decision up for a non-technical audience