Turn a Security Job into a Security Career
June 4, 2015 By Condor’s Team
A career in the security field is often misunderstood. The demands of more secure environments in private sectors and public places keep increasing, therefore security has now grown into a multi million dollar industry, providing multitudes of opportunities for anyone pursuing a career in this particular field. As opposed to the general public’s view of security careers, this job does not only revolve around physical security, but also a myriad of other fields including but not limited to security of information, economic crime, terrorism, and fraud. Each field requires professionals in order to prevent potential misuse or attacks from anyone or crime organizations.
Each field also requires a different set of skills that professionals must acquire. Those who are pursuing careers in security fields are facing challenges to improve their overall knowledge and understanding of how security works. Every type of security pathway requires broad knowledge of how the business works in order to prevent potential crimes. In retail organizations, for example, shoplifting is an increasing problem, as well as internal employee theft. Cyber and information industries also face increasing challenges by hackers; identity theft, leaked company information, and the possibility of information trading are some of the greatest obstacles. Medical environments such as hospitals also need to implement better privacy security, the same thing can be said to hotels. Even the government and public areas need better security professionals to prevent and handle potential security concerns.
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Depending on the field, there is a different path to take to advance your career. In general, security professions can be divided into three major categories including:
- Contract Security or Proprietary Security: the main concerns in this particular field are assets protection. Professional security guards/officers who possess the necessary skills to handle the tasks are greatly needed by many different institutions, agencies, and business.
- Private or Public Places: it is true that security positions are mainly required by the private sector, but government agencies especially at federal levels also need security professionals to do the equivalent task of their proprietary counterparts.
- Law enforcement: government has its own law enforcement officers, but security professionals are almost always the first to be at the crime scene. Moreover, professional security people are required to prevent and handle critical situations and implement security plans and programs before government’s law enforcement arrive.
To actually stand out from the crowd of security professionals, anyone should always learn all the necessary skills and broaden their knowledge about every specific field that he/she works on. As mentioned earlier, security is not always about physical-oriented power, but also privacy concerns and even economic-related issues. Based on that, courseworks in security are not merely about physical strength and the ability to prevent physical crime, but also involve computer science, business management, psychology, philosophy, political science, police science, electronics, information management, etc.
Specific Security Fields
Based on the aforementioned three major divisions, security careers are spread across a multitude of industrial sectors as briefly outlined below.
- Banking or Financial: a security professional has to deal with financial institutions and related fields such as credit cards, mortgage, internet banking, insurance companies, and more. The potential earnings for entry-level personnel range from $35,000 – $65,000 annually. Certified personnel can earn up to $100,000.
- Commercial Real Estate: security professionals in this field manage physical environments such as residential buildings and shopping malls. Salary for entry-level ranges from $40,000 to $50,000
- Cultural Properties: the perfect examples of cultural properties are museums and art galleries. Security personnel are responsible for visitors’ health & safety, fire protection, technical services, and even administrative. Salary for entry level starts from $20,000 to $40,000 per year.
- Educational Institution: security professionals operate in educational institutions such as private schools, universities, and colleges. Entry level salary reaches $40,000 to $50,000 annually.
- Gaming Security: security professions in the increasing number of gaming and gambling facilities. Entry level salary is approximately $8 to $15 per hour.
- Government/Industrial: this is probably the most challenging, and usually requires academic degrees from accredited institutions and strict background checks. Proven track record is required as well. Entry level salary ranges from $55,000 to $75,000.
- Healthcare Security: this field involves responsibilities ranging from asset protection to employee investigations. Bachelor degree is usually a minimum requirement and experience in health care service is desired. Entry level salary ranges from $30,000 to $50,000.
- Information Systems: security professionals in this field are required to provide safety protection for hardware, software, and all related processes. It is necessary to allow authorized users to have access while maintaining security procedures. Certifications such as CISSP are required. Entry level salary starts from $40,000 to $80,000.
- Investigations: this field involves plenty of specialty knowledge such as computer forensics, crime analysis, potential workplace violence, and more. Degrees in criminal justice, criminology, and business are desired. Entry level salary starts from $35,000 to $55,000. Certified professionals can earn up to $85,000.