Follow the Choke Point

Can’t Find a Cybersecurity Job? The Work May Be Moving Somewhere Else. For recent college graduates, the cybersecurity labor market can feel contradictory: employers continue to talk about a skills shortage, yet breaking into the profession has become extraordinarily difficult. In Episode 15 of Core Sample, Sydnie looks at the problem from a different direction. What if cybersecurity jobs aren’t disappearing so much as the map of cybersecurity work is changing? Recent-college-graduate unemployment remains elevated, while it is estimated that more than four in ten recent graduates are underemployed. At the same time, traditional technology companies are restructuring even as the United States pours capital into critical minerals, energy infrastructure, advanced manufacturing and defense supply chains. Those physical industries are also rapidly becoming digital. Mines, factories, water systems, utilities and defense suppliers increasingly depend on connected equipment, industrial-control systems, remote maintenance, cloud platforms, third parties and software. That creates a different kind of cybersecurity opportunity. In This Episode * Why the entry-level cybersecurity market feels so difficult * What recent-college-graduate unemployment and underemployment tell us * Why OT and critical-infrastructure security are becoming increasingly important * How physical infrastructure changes the meaning of the cybersecurity attack surface * Why graduates should search beyond the title “Cybersecurity Analyst” * Why understanding an industry may become as valuable as understanding another cybersecurity tool Don’t just search for cybersecurity jobs. Find the systems America cannot afford to stop and learn how to protect them. About Core Sample Core Sample examines the intersection of cybersecurity, capital, critical minerals, industrial capacity, operational resilience, and national security. Pull up a chair. Grab a cup of tea. Keep watching the signals. Disclaimer Everything on Core Sample is provided for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing in this episode constitutes investment advice, financial advice, legal advice, cybersecurity advice for a particular system, or a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Sturnella LLC is a strategic-risk, capital-markets cybersecurity, and governance advisory firm. It is not a registered investment adviser, broker-dealer, financial institution, engineering firm, or safety assessor. Government loans, conditional commitments, tariffs, procurement programs, and industrial-policy initiatives involve substantial financial, political, technical, operational, and execution risks. Always conduct your own research and work with qualified professionals who understand your particular circumstances, operating environment, and security requirements. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit sturnellahq.substack.com