Don't Get a Cybersecurity Degree First in 2026

Join TotalThreat Free and start the 7-Day Portfolio Challenge: https://www.skool.com/totalthreat-free I have a bachelor's degree in Computer Networks and Cybersecurity and a master's degree in Cybersecurity Technologies. Those degrees helped expand the jobs I could qualify for, and employers in my career have verified my education. But if I had to start cybersecurity from zero again in 2026, I still would not start with the degree. The problem is not education. The problem is doing the right things in the wrong order. In this video, I break down the Cybersecurity Order of Operations I would follow today: 1. Build hands-on proof 2. Earn the certification that matches the jobs you actually want 3. Land the widest relevant first IT or cybersecurity-adjacent job 4. Complete the degree while you are already working 5. Use the degree as a multiplier for better opportunities later I also explain how my own path developed from a bachelor's degree in 2019, to an IT role at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission in 2020, to IT / cybersecurity work at the Department of Justice, a cybersecurity master's in 2021, and later INFOSEC work at the Defense Intelligence Agency. The goal is not to avoid education. It is to start the experience clock as early as possible and let education compound on top of real work. Join TotalThreat Free: build your first cybersecurity home lab step by step, with our Security+ course and the 7-Day Portfolio Challenge. https://www.skool.com/totalthreat-free On this channel I show you how to break into IT and cybersecurity in the U.S. with hands-on projects, relevant certifications, portfolio proof, and a smarter path to your first tech job. Subscribe for new videos every week.