I decided to get some information on the master’s program at NYU dealing with cybercrime issues and attended a zoom meeting today.
I listened to the presentation given by program faculty and came away with some thoughts…
First and foremost is that, like any higher education program, it involves tuition that is surely not cheap, which would only be an issue, I gather, if I were to not get employment after matriculating.
Second…A big takeaway for me was that cybersecurity jobs are in abundance as the field seems to have difficulty filling the positions, and it seems like those positions would actually pay a living wage to keep up with the cost of living…a rare find nowadays!
Third, let’s say I decide to apply… My hope is that I have the discipline to continue rigorous study when I return to working regular hours. I am assuming that the online curriculum is self-paced, but naturally, I don’t want the pace to stretch out forever because that means more tuition! I did that once before and am still paying for it. I am truly hesitant to put myself through that again.
As much I love continuous learning about different subjects, I admit that I haven’t structured my financial life enough to accommodate. Best-case scenario for me would be that I go through the program, even as I am working full-time, and come out of it straight into a career opportunity to where I can begin to have better financial structure. Worst-case scenario would be me borrowing more money on top of that which I have already borrowed and struggling to matriculate (more so, now that I am older) as I work to barely stay afloat.
I know…personal decisions that don’t really belong on a blog designed to inform… Maybe someone reading this has some real good real-life suggestions… I know I can’t be alone in this!
Henry Matthew Benison 