Forensic Computer Analyst Careers Guide - Cybersecurity Careers

Cyber crime is all around us. It’s your job to investigate computer-based crime. Hacking, child abuse, spies and politics… your work isn’t always pretty, but it’s VERY important.

The computers we use every day need to be kept crime-free. Your job as a forensic computer analyst is to uncover mysteries that other detectives would find impossible to solve.

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Useful skills to put in your CV:

• Self-belief skills – it takes trial and error to catch criminals, because cyber crime never sleeps. So you need to have the confidence to persevere and keep on top of the latest trends.
• Good communication skills and teamworking skills – you’ll be working as part of a team, keeping everyone in the loop about what you’re doing. Sometimes you may have to keep a positive attitude as you’re faced with horrendous crimes or working hard to catch a criminal before they strike again.
• Good problem solving skills – as a forensic computer analyst it’s your job to research data evidence, and you could face all kinds of problems, from locating the source of a hack to getting evidence from a computer that someone has tried to destroy! You need a creative approach as well as a logical one.
• Good organisation skills – You need a logical approach to what you do, and your work will consist of lots of data analysis and breaking big problems down into manageable chunks. Good organisation will help with this.

Top Skills-boosting Tip

It’s good to work on your Self-management skills, which is another way of saying being organised.

You’ll often receive training from your employer, but it’s up to you to have a keen interest in all things digital and have the passion to top up your anaylsis and tech skills.

How Do You Get These Skills?

Vocational qualifications and work experience will help you build these skills over time.

Build Your Skills With the FREE Young Professional Programme

School, college and training

There are three typical ways into this career – do a university degree, apply for an apprenticeship, or get on-the-job training while you work.

Whichever route you take, you’ll normally need five GCSEs at grade 4 (C) or above, or their equivalents. Your GCSEs will need to include English and maths. You may also find it useful to include a science or technology subject.

If you want to do a degree or higher apprenticeship, you will also need two or three A-levels or their equivalent.

Some course providers or employers will let you use equivalent level qualifications.

T-Levels

T-Levels are a choice for learners after GCSEs alongside apprenticeships and A-levels.

You can do Digital T Levels in Digital Support Services and Digital Business Services. Digital T levels are a high-quality, work-focused alternative to A Levels for young people once they’ve completed their GCSEs. Launched in September 2021, they offer new routes to employment or further learning for young people looking to begin a career in the digital sector.

BTECs

As an alternative to GCSEs and A-Levels, you can do BTECs from the age of 16. The BTEC Tech Award in Digital Information Technology gives you the specialist knowledge and technical skills to progress into, for example, an apprenticeship or employment. The Pearson BTEC Level 1/Level 2 Tech Award in Digital Information Technology is ideal for you if you are a pre-16 student working at level 1 or level 2 and would like to find out more about the IT industry. This course offers a practical introduction to life and work in the digital sector. The qualification is the same size and level as a GCSE.

Apprenticeships

An apprenticeship is a scheme where you train while earning a starting salary.

With an apprenticeship (or advanced apprenticeship) you’ll have a paid job with an employer that includes structured training and learning. This training leads to an official qualification that’s recognised by employers as an industry standard.

There are lots of cyber security apprenticeships available in the UK. For example, you could apply for:

• Cyber security apprenticeships (including some at degree level)
• Infrastructure technician advanced apprenticeship (one year)
• Data analysis higher apprenticeship (two years)

You can seek out cyber security apprenticeships with organisations like Find an Apprenticeship.

University degrees and graduates

If you are planning to go to university, the following foundation degree and degree subjects may be useful to a cybersecurity career:

• Computer forensics degree
• Cybersecurity degree
• Computer science degree
• Criminal justice degree

UCAS has more information on degree courses and entry requirements.

Some courses include a year in industry – or you could organise your own work placement in a company. You might also be able to join a company’s graduate trainee scheme if you have a degree in a relevant subject.

With time and experience, you can progress from an apprenticeship or junior role into a more specialised analyst or security role. For example, you could go on to become a senior analyst leading a team, a head of security or a security consultant who is self-employed and advises all kinds of top-level clients.

You can move into forensic computer analysist from the following early career roles, with further training:

• Database administrator
• IT support technician

Work Experience Tips

It can help you decide if this is the right career for you if you have previously done work experience in a digital. Work experience in a security or legal environment can also help you build useful skills.

Any work experience where you have demonstrated your cybersecurity skills or digital/design skills can help your application.

Examples of relevant work experience include:

• Work shadowing (even if it’s just for a day)
• Work placements in a company
• Work experience placements on a college or university course

Work experience tips

Volunteering Tips

Having a keen interest in digital software and how computers do things is important in this career, because you’ll need to stay up with the latest tech trends to keep up with hackers and other cyber criminals.

Extra-curricular activities could involve:

• Learning about computer network administration (like firewalls)
• Setting up and looking after operating systems like Windows, MacOS and Linux
• Building up your programming and web development skills (e.g. hosting your own WordPress blog could help you see if you’ve got a taste for exploring what goes on behind the websites that users see!)

If you’re still at school, one way to expand a range of digital skills is to join a school STEM club. They might have hackathons!

Volunteering tips

Where could you work?

• Police force
• Government
• Security services
• Bank
• IT firm specialising in computer security

What could you work on?

• Industrial fraud
• Online scams
• Hacking
• Political or business-related espionage (spying)
• Terrorist communications
• Possession of illegal pornography

Example daily job responsibilities

• Securing IT systems or hardware so criminals can’t tamper with them
• Finding, recovering and copying data from disks that have been hidden, encrypted or damaged
• Analysing mobile phone communications to trace devices
• Following digital data trails to link people or groups
• Documenting everything you do
• Cleaning digital images to reveal the identity of a person or place
• Presenting your technical findings to managers, the police or clients
• Giving evidence in court as an expert technical witness.

To find jobs for young people in this role, search on jobs boards for early career roles and opportunities with these words in the title:

• Cyber security apprenticeship
• Junior cyber security analyst
• Junior security content engineer
• Junior cyber intel analyst
• Junior threat researcher
• Junior Incident Response Analyst
• Junior forensic computer analyst

These websites might be able to help you find digital experience or a role that’s a good fit for you:

• Find an Apprenticeship
• Institute for the Management of Information Systems (IMIS)
• British Computer Society – Chartered Institute for IT (BCS)
• Tech Partnership
• Code First: Girls

You can also take a look at our database of local opportunities to see if there are any relevant jobs, work placements, or careers events and workshops to help you get started.

These employers all carry our Youth Friendly Employer Mark. We work with them to make sure that they are providing great support and opportunities to young people.

Click on an employer to find out more about them and the youth-friendly opportunities they offer, from work experience and apprenticeships through to graduate schemes.