Top 5 IT Certifications for 2020

With the passing of the years 2017, 18 and now 2019, few great years so far for the IT as several new technologies gained popularity over these years and will continue to do so in the year 2020. The future is bright for IT students in few specific core fields in IT. With the advancement in Internet of Things (IOT), Cloud Computing, Cyber Security, Blockchain Technology have tremendously created a huge impact and taking the evolution of technology to a whole new level. 

According to the statistics of U.S. Bureau of Labor, in the year 2017, the average annual income for an IT professional was around $85,000. This is more than double (and increasing over the years), the average annual income for all other professions combined.

This might look like it being a little insane or exaggerated, but think about it, almost every profession depends upon computers which results in the demand for IT professionals to take care of. With the advancement of technologies and increasing complexities in dealing with, is expanding the field of IT exponentially.  Some of the highest income gigs in IT require certifications with the expanding of IT in order to pinpoint as to what career you could possibly pursue. Let’s jump into some top certifications that will be on trending in 2020.

1.CISSP

CISSP (Certified Information Systems Security Professional) is a certification considered in IT as quality standard in the branch of information security. It was introduced and is one of the highly required certifications on security on Linkedin. This Cyber certification is accredited by the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium or (ISC) which is one of the largest nonprofit IT security organizations in the world with over 200,000+ certified members. Certified professionals of CISSP are trust as specialists on most security related issues. Some of these issues may include risk management, cloud computing, mobile security, application development security.  To acquire this certification, you have to pass the test which takes over 5 years minimum with relevant experience and is available in 8 languages in more than 800+ locations in over 110 countries. 

This certification fulfils the standard of ISO. Even after completing the certification you would still need to acquire the Education continuing credits each year to stay updated and have your credentials maintained. According to Cybercrime Magazine, damages that cybercrime costs the world over $6 Trillion annually with the expanding population, to deal with that there would be more than 3 million jobs in cyber security globally until 2021 and an average income for CISSP is over $170k.

2. CRISC 

CRISC or Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control certified professionals are evaluated in four distinct areas that are

• Assessment
• Identification
• Mitigation 
• Response
• Reporting and
• Control Monitoring

Requirements for appearing for the exam are a minimum of three years of practical experience and should be able to identify and manage risks. If you hold these required skills then you could pursuit for the CRISC certification as the experts in this certification earn an income of $110k average annually.

3. CISM

CISM or Certified Information Security Manager is a certification offered by (ISACA) or Information Systems Audit and Control Association. This certification enterprises of information security. To be able to appear for the exam, the applicant must have a verification of five years in completion of experience in infosec field. According to the reports of ziprecuriter.com, CISM professionals earn up to $210k annually.

They are over four domains that are to be focused on to complete CISM Certification. This includes Information like …

• Risk Management.
•  Security Program Development and Management.
• Security Incident Management.
• Security Governance.

4. PMP

PMP or Project Management Professional is a certification offered by the Project Management Institute (PMI) & it administers the exams. PMP is a well recognized and respected project management in the IT field to date. It audits one’s potential in the mechanics of managing projects and teams. To quality for PMP certification, one must fulfill the criteria of having a minimum of 35 hours in project management training and must have a Bachelor degree with at least 4,500 hours of experience, without degree at least 7500 hours. Five different areas are covered in this certification which are,

• Initiate
• Plan
• Execute
• Monitor and control
• Close

It offers an average annual income of over $100k and ensures that you are able to speak and understand global language of project management.

5. CEH

CEH or Certified Ethical Hacker is a certification that aims over a broad range of IT professionals which includes security offices, auditors and data related specialists and also network security of organizations. With the increasing cyber security threats that most companies and businesses face, CEH equips its professionals with an exceptional head start in the industry. To appear for the exam one has to pay a fee of over $3800, but after you complete the certification you can earn over $100K annually. There is not much high eligibility requirements to appear for CEH only basis of TCP/IP is advised.