Most career paths don’t begin with a single book, but Marc can point to one: The Red Web: The Struggle between Russia’s Digital Dictators and the New Online Revolutionaries.
That book (borrowed through the library’s interlibrary loan/purchase suggestion service) and Marc’s educational background in Russian studies sparked his initial interest in cybersecurity.
“I ultimately chose to pursue cybersecurity because of that book, what was going on in 2016, and the fact that the field is open to anyone with the knowledge, a few certifications, and some luck,” Marc explains.
Once he knew where he wanted to go, library resources also helped him get there. Marc has been an active user of the Yardley-Makefield branch of Bucks County Free Library for over a decade.
“A wide array of books helped me,” he says. “The availability of library resources saved me a ton of money and made it possible to shift into something new without having to take on more student debt to reskill myself.”
Marc earned several cybersecurity certifications with help from library books and The Great Courses materials, as well as cybersecurity video courses available through LinkedIn Learning – another library resource.
He now has over three years of experience in cybersecurity and currently works as a cyber threat analyst for DXC Technology.
“When I drive up to the library in a car I purchased thanks to my cybersecurity salary, I sometimes think, ‘I’m in this particular car because of this place!’” Marc says. “There were many other sources and factors that influenced where I got, but the library was absolutely a keystone.”
