Want to confirm your interest for free first? Cybersecurity Fundamentals on edX is auditable at no cost — you get the core concepts free and only pay if you want the Verified Certificate. It's a low-commitment way to find out whether this work grabs you before spending anything.
Stage 2 — Earn the CompTIA trifecta
For an entry-level security résumé, three CompTIA certifications form a well-worn ladder: A+ proves broad IT competence, Network+ proves you understand how networks work, and Security+ proves the security foundation itself. Many hiring filters look for at least Security+, and the full set makes a no-degree candidate hard to ignore. Study for the current exam versions — the objectives get refreshed and older courses drift.
CompTIA A+ (the IT foundation)
A+ is the classic entry point, and it's two exams — Core 1 and Core 2 — covering hardware, operating systems, troubleshooting, and basic security. TOTAL: CompTIA A+ Core 1 (220-1201) Course + Practice Exam covers the current Core 1 objectives with a practice exam attached. If you already have solid general IT experience you can sometimes skip A+, but for a true beginner it builds the base everything else rests on.
CompTIA Network+ (N10-009)
Security is applied networking, and Network+ (current version N10-009) is where you learn how traffic really moves — addressing, routing, ports and protocols, and common network attacks. TOTAL: CompTIA Network+ (N10-009) + Practice Exam walks the full blueprint with practice questions. Plenty of people sit this before Security+ precisely because it removes the networking gaps that otherwise cost exam points.
CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701)
Security+ is the credential most commonly named on entry-level security postings, and SY0-701 is the version to target. The exam runs up to 90 minutes with a maximum of 90 questions — including performance-based tasks that make you solve a scenario, not just choose a letter — and needs 750 on an 100–900 scale to pass. CompTIA Security+ (SY0-701) Complete Course & Practice Exam maps to the current objectives and pairs instruction with the practice questions that get people over the line. It's a one-time Udemy purchase, discounted regularly.
Certifications get your résumé past the filter. Hands-on skills get you through the interview. You need both, in that order.
Stage 3 — Get hands-on in a lab
Certifications prove you know the concepts; a home lab proves you can use them, and it gives you real things to discuss when an interviewer asks what you can actually do.
Understand the attacker's mindset
Learn Ethical Hacking From Scratch shows you how to stand up a safe practice lab and run genuine techniques against machines you own — reconnaissance, exploitation, and what happens after a foothold. Seeing an attack from the offensive side makes defensive concepts click in a way no slide can. Keep it strictly ethical and practise only on systems you're authorised to test.
Read the traffic
Being able to open a packet capture and explain what's happening is a standout skill for a junior analyst. Getting Started with Wireshark: The Ultimate Hands-On Course teaches you to capture and interpret network traffic at the packet level — a natural reinforcement of your Network+ study and a concrete talking point in interviews. When a hiring manager asks how you'd investigate a suspicious connection, being able to describe what you'd look for in a capture is the kind of answer that separates you from candidates who only memorised definitions.
Putting it together
- Confirm the fit with the free edX fundamentals or the opening modules of the Google certificate.
- Build the base by completing the Google certificate and shoring up networking.
- Earn the certifications in ladder order — A+ if you're truly new, then Network+, then Security+.
- Practise in a lab with ethical hacking and Wireshark so you have demonstrable skills.
- Apply early and widely for SOC analyst, help-desk-to-security, and junior security roles while you finish the later stages.
Keep it affordable
The CompTIA prep courses here are one-time Udemy buys you own forever and are discounted so often that full price is a mistake — check the live deal card first. Browse the current deals to compare today's prices, and start free where you can: the free courses hub, including the edX fundamentals, lets you begin today at no cost. Pick your first exam, set a date, and the roadmap turns into a schedule you can actually follow.
