A person interested in a career in information security analysis may want to know what the salary potential in information systems security is. This is important because it could help a person set personal financial goals and determine how much money they feel comfortable borrowing for student loans to earn a degree. This information also helps a person recognize if a job offer they get includes a fair salary.
Median Annual Salary for Information Systems Security
The median annual salary for information systems security professionals was $$118,370 in May 2018. The median refers to a number at which half of the workers earn less and half of the workers earn more. The lowest-paid 10 percent of these workers earned less than $69,230 per year, and the highest-paid 10 percent of professionals in information systems security earned more than $183,820 per year.
Median Annual Salary By Industry of Employment
Information systems security professionals work in many different industries of employment. The highest-paid professionals are in the software publishing industry, and their median annual salary was $140,220 as of May 2018. The professionals in information system security in the research and development in the physical, engineering, and life sciences industry earned a median salary of $128,570 per year as of May 2018. Those employed in the computer systems design and related services industry earned a median salary of $124,220 per year. Security professionals in information systems who are employed by the federal government earned a median salary of $109,810 per year. The lowest-paid industry for information system security professionals is colleges, universities, and professional schools, including state, local and private institutions. Their median annual salary was $82,660 per year.
Median Annual Salary By Metropolitan Area
Most information system security jobs are in metropolitan areas. Many metropolitan areas have a higher average cost of living compared to rural areas of the same state. The five highest-paying metropolitan areas for the information system security field are San Jose, Sunnyvale, and Santa Clara, California; Seattle, Tacoma, and Bellevue, Washington; Huntsville, Alabama; Palm Bay, Melbourne, and Titusville, Florida; and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Each of these cities had a median annual salary of $141,00 or more for specialists in the security of information systems, explains the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).
Median Annual Salary By State
The BLS also collects salary statistics for the information systems security occupation by state of employment. It is worth noting that some states have too few of these jobs to be included in aggregate statistics. The five states with the highest median annual salary for security professionals in information systems are Washington, with an annual median wage of $143,080; Alabama, at $138,510; Idaho, at $137,180; New Mexico, at $136,370; and California, at $136,310. Ten states had fewer than five people in this occupation and were not included in the BLS statistics.
Knowing the average and median pay for an information systems security specialist as well as the details on pay by state, industry, and years of employment helps a person know what to expect in this career. Salary is not the only factor that a person is likely to consider when choosing a major in college or a career, but it is important. The answer to “what is the salary potential in information systems security?” facilitates the decision-making process for students and new graduates.
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