Google Cybersecurity Professional Certificate

on Coursera

Why did I choose the Google Certificate

As mentioned previously, I was going trough the Comptia A+ material but I wasn’t sure to participate to the exam…
And after looking into Comptia path I decided that wasn’t for me, as after the A+ I will probably had to do (or at least study the material for) the Network+ and Security+.
Which means almost a full year of study and not a small amount in term of price, just to figure out what I want to pursue in cybersecurity.

I understand Comptia it’s very popular with employers and I’m not discredit the path but it just wasn’t for me. Comptia cert also have 3 year expiration date…

Anyway, after looking at many other certification I eventually select Google as it promised a general basic understanding of the cyber sector and practical labs in it’s program, covering also Linux and Python.
The certificate has no expiration date and it is available on the Coursera website, which it gives you 7 days free trial and after a monthly fee; or if you already use the platform you basically can get it for free.

The Certification

I’m not going to explain every single details but just a general overview of it: to pass you need to score more than 80%, and the full course is divided in 8 smaller courses,of which each has 4 modules.

For me was the first time on Coursera website but as far as I understood all the online certification follow the same protocol, some video, some reading,practical labs in some modules, a quiz on each module and a bigger quiz at the end of each course.

The subjects it self are basic but well explained, and you are able to move forward quite fast trough the subjects, I managed to complete the full course in the free trial period and Coursera, once I finished it, automatically cancelled my subscription which was nice. Although you need to wait the end of the Trial to obtain the certification.

The courses enjoy the most where Linux, Python, SQL and malware. As promised from Google, you have the chance to use labs.
I know I already mentioned about it but was a big plus for me. Something that is not available from Comptia unfortunately.

Conclusion

I decided that the best way to for me to judge a certification would have to be by answering a set of question:

– Did I learned something new?
Yes, I definitely learned something new. From some small topic to a all brand new topic such as SQL

– Did I enjoy the Course?
Yes and No, Some topic where more interesting than other and there are too many video of Google employee that repeat the same life-story.

– Did It cover everything?
Yes but…, it is true that it did cover everything that was stated but I feel that they could have touch on windows during the program.

– Was it worth it’s price?
Yes, considering the fact that i managed to have it for free by putting a lot of hours in my 7 days and it last forever I can’t complain.

– Would I recommend the course?
Yes, as a starting point.

Overall, it is a good entry level certificate. It comes with many positive such as price, time to complete, no expiration date, fully online hosted on Coursera and aside from the lack of Microsoft, it covers a lot of different topics.

Again I’m not an expert but looks to me that with this certificate you still have low probability of getting hired compare to more established certification such as Comptia or Cisco.
But to me this certification is more for you than for your potential employer. What I mean by that  is that helps you to figure out which topics you like the most and it gives you a general basic understanding of the Cybersecurity landscape. For me was very good as I’m from a different industry…

Besides you can still do Comptia certification after this one if you wish so I don’t see why it would be bad starting whit this one anyway.
For myself though this cert made me focus on a couple of path inside the cybersecurity, so I decided to subscribe to Try Hack Me and/or Hack the Box and keep studying pen-test and digital forensic.
Once I figure out the one that suit me most, I will then take a more focused Certification.