Nearly 600,000 open cybersecurity-related jobs were listed over 12 months

New CyberSeek data reveals that there were 597,767 online job listings for cybersecurity-related positions in the 12 months from October 2020 through September 2021.

Employers are seeking cybersecurity professionals at all stops on the career pathway; from entry-level cybersecurity specialists (8,889 job openings) to mid-level cybersecurity analysts (27,919) to advanced-level cybersecurity engineers (61,579).

“Filling cybersecurity job positions is a critical pain point for employers,” Will Markow, vice president of applied research at Emsi Burning Glass, said. “Closing this talent gap is vital for our economic and national security, but you can’t close a talent gap you don’t understand. That’s why it is essential for employers, educators, policy makers, and individuals to have actionable data about their local cybersecurity workforce.”

The new data shows the supply of cybersecurity workers is only enough to fill 68% of cybersecurity jobs demanded. On average, cybersecurity roles take 21% longer to fill than other IT jobs.

“Most alarming is the disparity between the few numbers of entry-level positions as compared to the growth in mid- to advanced-level hiring by employers,” said Rodney Petersen, Director of the National Initiative for Cybersecurity Education (NICE) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the U.S. Department of Commerce. “The NICE Strategic Plan emphasizes the objective to Promote the establishment of more entry-level positions and opportunities that provide avenues for growth and advancement, so we need more employers to commit to career entry roles to recalibrate the availability of supply to the growth in demand.”

“The persistent and growing gap between job openings and candidates should be a warning sign that we need to rethink how we educate or train, recruit and hire cybersecurity workers,” said Randi Parker, senior director for partner engagement with CompTIA’s Creating IT Futures.

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