CompTIA IT Certification Roadmap: A Guide for Establishing a Strong IT Career
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Information Technology has planted its roots all across the world, giving aspirants major domains to break through and start a thrilling career. However, if you’re not sure where and how to step in your choice of career, you can surely get help from the CompTIA IT certification roadmap. The extensive roadmap is designed to help IT professionals achieve their career goals effectively and efficiently.
Starting a new career, moving forward for a good opportunity, or changing career might be an intimidating endeavor, especially, in the IT field but why fret when you have an extensive roadmap? Explore the possibilities with the IT certification roadmap and the best CompTIA certification to aid you in establishing a strong career.Â
Discover the Possibilities with the CompTIA IT Certification Roadmap
You can understand the diverse roadmap with the below infographics. The infographics also suggest which certification to take at which level for a certain domain.Â
Let’s deep dive into the CompTIA certifications that are designed for particular levels and aid you in carrying forward your choice of career
Information Security
If you want to step into the information security career or want to advance your career in it, your go-to approach is to start with CompTIA A+ or CompTIA ITF+. The below table will explain which certification is best for a certain level. (Made infographics according to your choice)
Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert |
CompTIA A+ | CompTIA Network+ | CompTIA CYSA+ | CompTIA CASP+ |
CompTIA ITF+ | CompTIA Security+ | CompTIA PenTest+ | Â |
| Â | CompTIA Server+ | Â | Â |
Network and Cloud
Many candidates are seeking careers in networking and cloud because of the increasing demand for cloud usage. You can take several certifications to get acquainted with the latest cloud and networking skills. However, the CompTIA IT certification roadmap suggests certifications for beginner, intermediate, advanced, and expert levels that are given below:
Career Level | Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert |
Certifications | CompTIA A+ CompTIA Cloud Essentials+ CompTIA ITF+ | CompTIA Linux+ CompTIA Network+ CompTIA Server+ | CompTIA Cloud+ | CompTIA CASP+ |
IT Service Management
If you’re interested in focusing on customer needs and how to manage the design, plan, and delivery of services, IT service management is the best domain to establish a career in. You can develop proficiency in this domain with the trending CompTIA certifications.Â
Career Level | Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert |
Certifications | CompTIA A+ CompTIA Cloud Essentials+ CompTIA ITF+ CompTIA Project+ | CompTIA Network+ CompTIA Security+ | – | CompTIA CASP+ |
Data and AI
Artificial intelligence and big data are some of the latest advancements in tech and are linked together to support and improve decision-making capabilities, taking businesses to new heights. Candidates are pursuing careers in AI because of the demand that will continue to rise as this innovation is the present and future of IT.Â
Career Level | Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert |
Certifications | CompTIA ITF+ CompTIA Project+ | CompTIA Data+ CompTIA DataSys+ CompTIA Linux+ CompTIA Security+ | – | – |
Software Development
Software development is also a trending field in which you can pursue a career. If you love to write code and develop software, this field can prove beneficial and lucrative to you. CompTIA IT certification roadmap suggests the following certifications in the field of software development.Â
Career Level | Beginner | Intermediate | Advanced | Expert |
Certifications | CompTIA Project+ | CompTIA Linux+ CompTIA Security+ | – | – |
All Recommended CompTIA Certifications
CompTIA ITF+
CompTIA IT Fundamentals (ITF+) is the most introductory-level certification that gives you basic IT knowledge and skills to help you determine whether you have what it takes to enter the IT field. The certification will teach you basic tech competencies and tough skills required for many IT job roles.Â
 Moreover, the CompTIA IT Fundamentals (ITF+) exam tests your knowledge and skills required to identify and explain the basics of computing, IT infrastructure, software development, and database use.
CompTIA A+
CompTIA A+ is considered an industry standard for establishing a good IT career in today’s fast-paced digital world. The certification requires two core exams to pass that cover new content, technological advancement, and skills IT professionals need to support a hybrid workforce.Â
CompTIA A+ 220-1101 (core 1) exam demonstrates your knowledge of mobile devices, networking technology, hardware, virtualization, and cloud computing. In addition, CompTIA A+ 220-1102 (core 2) covers operating systems, security, software, and operational procedures.
Read more: CompTIA A+ Certification Cost
CompTIA Network+
CompTIA Network+ certification aids you in starting a career in networking and taking your IT infrastructure to the next level, covering troubleshooting, configuring, and managing networks. The certification is considered a benchmark for establishing a career and also a qualifying credential for technical support and operation job roles.
The CompTIA Network+ certification verifies that a candidate has the knowledge and skills required to:
- Maintain network connectivity by developing wired and wireless devices
- Understand and maintain network documentationÂ
- Recognize the purpose of the network services, basic data center, cloud, and virtual networking concepts
- Monitor network activity, identifying performance and availability issuesÂ
- Implement network hardening techniques
- Manage, configure, and troubleshoot network infrastructure
Read more: How Hard is CompTIA Network+
CompTIA Cloud+
If you’re looking to have a breakthrough in cloud computing, CompTIA Cloud+ is the way to go. The certification demonstrates that you have the abilities needed to deploy and build secure cloud environments and protect mission-critical applications and data.Â
The exam requires you to have proficiency in deploying and automating secure cloud and managing cloud infrastructure. The exam tests your knowledge of cloud architecture and design, cloud security, cloud deployment, operations, support, and troubleshooting.
Read more: Is CompTIA cloud+ Certification worth itÂ
CompTIA Linux+
The CompTIA Linux+ certification validates the capabilities required for system administrator job roles supporting Linux systems. The certification covers an evolving job role that focuses more on how Linux powers the cloud. The exam includes and tests innovative technologies that help automate and orchestrate business processes, including infrastructure such as code and containers.
CompTIA Security+
The significant increase in cyber threats in the last few years has been a great concern for all businesses and organizations. For that reason, the demand for cybersecurity professionals has surged. To enter the gigantic field of cybersecurity, it is essential to have basic-level skills that can help you pursue an IT security career. Â
The CompTIA Security+ is a widely accepted certification that demonstrates the baseline skills essential to perform the core security function. The certification covers most in-demand skills related to current threats, automation, zero trust, IoT, risk, and more.Â
The certification exam tests candidates’ knowledge and skills to assess the security posture of an enterprise environment and recommend and implement the best security solutions: monitor and secure hybrid environments, operate with an awareness of applicable law and policies, including principles of governance, risks, and compliance; identify, analyze and respond to security events and incidents.
Follow up: CompTIA Security+ Certification Cost
CompTIA Server+
The CompTIA Server+ demonstrates skills such as installing, deploying, managing, and troubleshooting servers. The certification covers essential hardware and software technologies including high availability, cloud computing, and scripting.Â
The exam requires hands-on skills of IT professionals who can install, manage, and troubleshoot servers in data centers as well as on-premises and hybrid environments.
CompTIA DataSys+
The CompTIA DataSys+ is the basic level data management certification that proves your competency in building, supporting, and securing growing data systems. The certification data administration validates skills regardless of vendor tools, hence it is the only option available for vendor-neutral data management certification.Â
The CompTIA DataSys+ certification exam requires a comprehensive set of skills for the successful management and securing of data assets. The exam tests your knowledge of database fundamentals, database deployment, database management and maintenance, data and database security, and business continuity.
CompTIA Project+
Project management is the need of every organization as every organization wants to achieve business outcomes and goals effectively. So for that business, you require a project manager that have in-demand skills to carry out goals efficiently. The CompTIA Project+ is the only industry certification to teach candidates entry-level skills needed to successfully manage small to medium-sized projects.Â
CompTIA project+ covers the methodologies, frameworks, and Agile skills necessary to competently manage and deliver IT projects while taking into account new topics like change management and compliance. The CompTIA project+ is ideal for IT professionals who need to manage smaller, less complex projects that their job requires but still have foundational project management skills. Moreover, the exam covers project basics, project constraints, communication and change management, project tools, and documentation.
CompTIA CySA+
The CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) is an advanced-level certification for cyber professionals that builds your proficiency with incident detection, prevention, and response through continuous security monitoring. The certification demonstrates your skills in detecting and analyzing indicators of malicious activity using the latest methods and tools such as threat intelligence, security information and event management (SIEM), endpoint detection and response (EDR), and extended detection and response (XDR).
To accomplish the certification, you need to perform exceptionally well on the exam. The exam tests your knowledge and skills in detecting and analyzing cyber threats and ransomware attacks, describes threat intelligence and threat management, responds to attacks and vulnerabilities, performs incident response, and reports and communicates related activity.
CompTIA Cloud Essential+
The CompTIA Cloud Essential+ is the best certification to give you the basic level of cloud knowledge required to make informed cloud service decisions. The certification is for both IT and non-technical professionals as it gives you the knowledge and understanding of the foundational business and technical aspects included in the cloud assessment.Â
The certification exam confirms that candidates have the knowledge and skills required to make a precise and accurate decision about cloud technologies and how they impact the business by assessing business use cases, financial impacts, cloud technologies, and deployment models with knowledge of cloud computing. The domains the exam covers are cloud concepts, business principles of cloud environments, management and technical operations, government, risk, compliance, and security for the cloud.
CompTIA PenTest+
The CompTIA PenTest+ is for professionals who are interested in penetration testing. The certification is the best way to build knowledge of penetration testing and vulnerability management. Other penetration certification exam consists portion of essay questions and hands-on, but CompTIA PenTest+ uses both performance-based and knowledge-based questions to ensure all stages are addressed.Â
The certification requires a candidate to showcase the most relevant and essential pen testing skills for the cloud, hybrid environments, web applications, Internet of Things (IoT), and traditional on-premises.
CompTIA Data+
The CompTIA data+ is a fundamental or early-level certification in the field of data analytics. The certification will assess that the successful candidate has the knowledge and skills required to transform business requirements in support of data-driven decisions through mining and manipulating data, applying basic statistical methods, and analyzing complex datasets while sticking to governance and quality standards throughout the entire data life cycle.Â
CompTIA CTT+
CompTIA Certified Technical Trainer (CTT+) certification is for trainers and instructors who want to demonstrate that they have attained a certain level of expertise in the training field. The certification validates the knowledge and use of tools and techniques essential for effective teaching in today’s learning environments. It also shows that you have proven expertise in preparing, presenting, facilitating, and evaluating a training session.Â
The exam covers and tests your knowledge in and out of class teaching expertise, including preparation, facilitation, and physical or virtual classroom evaluation. To get this certification, you have to pass TK0-202 or TK0-203, in addition to TK0-201.
CompTIA CASP+
One of the trendiest CompTIA certifications is CASP+. The CompTIA Advanced Security Practitioner (CASP+) is an expert-level cybersecurity certification for senior cybersecurity job roles to increase organization cybersecurity promptness. The certification is the only hands-on, performance-based certification for advanced practitioners at the advanced skill level of cybersecurity.Â
The certification covers the latest cybersecurity policies and frameworks and tells you how to implement best practices and solutions within those policies and frameworks. The certification demonstrates your knowledge in both security architectures and engineering. The CASP+ exam covers the technical knowledge and skills required to architect, engineer, integrate, and implement secure solutions across complex environments to support a robust system.
CompTIA Certification Exam Cost In the United States
Certification | Cost |
IT Fundamentals+ | $134 |
A+ | $246 |
Network+ | $358 |
Security+ | $392 |
Cloud+ | $358 |
Linux+ | $358 |
Server+ | $358 |
CySA+ | $392 |
PenTest+ | $392 |
CASP+ | $494 |
Project+ | $358 |
Cloud Essentials+ | $134 |
Data+ | $246 |
DataSys+ | $358 |
Read more: CompTIA Certification Salary
Frequently Asked Questions
CompTIA’s IT certification roadmap is a path or planning tool to help individuals decide and create in their mind their next move from beginner to intermediate to advanced IT job in five categories such as IT support, IT networking, cybersecurity, software, and web development.
Well, it depends on the person, their experience, learning speed, knowledge, and the preparation resources. Though, CompTIA A+ certification requires two series of exams which seems a hard game, however, it is not. The certification is one of the easiest to attain and pass through. However, if you’re starting from the beginning level and taking training classes, you can prepare in 3 weeks. On the other side, if you have some experience and knowledge before, you can prepare for the exam in less than 3 weeks. Many authentic and reliable resources are present to aid your preparation, including CompTIA live classroom training, practice tests, and other resources. Besides this, Edurely offers a wide range of exam dumps for CompTIA A+ exams for effective and thorough preparation.
If you’re just starting your career in IT or want to switch your career in it, you should start with the most basic level certification such as ITF+ or A+. It also depends on your career goals and in which domain you want to specialize in. ITF+ is the absolute fundamental certification that confirms basic-level computer skills and the ability to perform basic tasks.
Primarily, both certification enhances your networking skills and certifies skills in implementing secure networks. However, the difference comes in being vendor-neutral. If you’re interested in working with any type of equipment and providing support for it, CompTIA Network+ is the best choice. However, if you want to work specifically in Cisco products, technologies, and implementing Cisco networks, CCNA is your way to go.