PC Security Forum

I want to one day pursue a network security field. I have to interview someone in the field for college, so I'm going to post 2 questions that need to be answered.
1. What courses(certifications/degrees) are required for this area? What courses(certifications) are beneficial, but not required?
2. How can I prepare myself for this career outside of class - extracurricular activities, internship, leadership roles, part-time work, anything else? What do you suggest?

Thank you for your time

In case you're planning to go in to information security or network security domain, I'd say you should take a serious look at being Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP) governed by (ISC)².

It is accredited by the ANSI American National Standards Institute to ISO (International Organization for Standardization) Standard 17024:2003.

Moreover, It's also approved by US department of defense. A CISSP is a globally recognized course and security professionals passing it are one of the most sought out professionals in the field of information security. More details here: - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Certified_I...ofessional

You can find benefits of CISSP certification here: - https://www.isc2.org/cissp-why-certify.aspx

Also, CEH from EC council is also a good choice. Details here:- https://www.eccouncil.org/certification/...acker.aspx

You can also begin with a Microsoft's MCSE certificate with specialisation in security.