What’s up everyone! I’m about to turn 18 and finish high school in a few months. I’ve been putting together a game plan to get into cybersecurity with the end goal of becoming a Cloud Security Architect and then moving into independent consulting work down the road. I want the freedom and higher income that comes with consulting.
I’ve mapped out my learning path in 4 main stages:
- Building core security engineering skills
- Getting deep into cloud platforms (focusing on AWS and Azure)
- Moving into advanced security architecture concepts
- Transitioning to consulting and freelance projects
Right now I’m grinding through Security+ study materials and working my way through TryHackMe modules covering basics, networking fundamentals, and Linux systems. My cert strategy includes AWS Cloud Practitioner first, then AWS Security Specialty, followed by Solutions Architect Professional and Microsoft SC-200.
Full transparency - I have zero professional experience and no college degree. I’m planning to skip university for now and jump straight into work while studying 1-2 hours on weekdays and longer sessions on weekends.
What’s driving me:
- I want to build serious income potential (targeting $200K+ as an established consultant)
- Freedom and flexibility matter more to me than traditional corporate structure
- I prefer hands-on skill building over theoretical coursework
- I want a clear progression path where I can measure my advancement
Questions for the community:
- Does this roadmap make sense for someone with no background?
- What would you modify or prioritize differently?
- Should I reconsider the no-college approach?
- Any lessons learned from current cloud security pros or consultants?
Looking for honest feedback from people who’ve actually walked this path. Don’t want to spend years spinning my wheels if there’s a better approach. Thanks for any insights you can share!
your drive is awesome, but don’t underestimate networking in this field. most consulting gigs come from connections, not just skills. skipping college means you’ll miss alumni networks and internships that open doors. maybe grab an associate’s degree from community college while grinding certs? focus on one cloud platform first - spreading yourself thin early won’t help. get hands dirty with real projects, even volunteer work for small businesses needing security help.
Look kid, everyone’s avoiding the obvious - you want to skip straight to executive-level work. The cloud architects I know got there through production outages, compliance audits, and dealing with enterprise politics. You can’t cert your way into that experience. And clients aren’t handing their critical systems to a teenager with AWS badges, no matter how many you have. Start with helpdesk or junior analyst roles like the rest of us did. Skipping college works if you’re genuinely exceptional, but most people who push that just don’t want to do the work.
Love the ambition, but let’s be real about the timeline. Cloud security architecture isn’t entry-level - you need deep knowledge of enterprise environments, compliance frameworks, and risk management that only comes from years of hands-on work. Companies want proven track records for critical security decisions. Skipping college? Not required, but it’ll hurt your consulting credibility. Enterprise clients care about credentials when hiring independent consultants. Without a degree, you’ll need killer certifications and skills to make up for it. Start as a junior security analyst or cloud engineer first. Build your foundation with incident response, monitoring tools, and infrastructure management. That $200K consulting goal is doable, but expect 7-10 years of progressive experience, including senior architect roles at solid companies. Your cert strategy looks good, but get practical experience alongside it. Set up a homelab to show off your skills. This path works, just expect it to take way longer than you think.