Salary Survey Extra is a series of dispatches that give added insight into the findings of our annual Salary Survey. These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

Over the past 25 years, Israel-based Check Point has built a reputation for providing stable and effective cybersecurity solutions. Individuals who gain a Check Point Certified Security Administrator (CCSA) credential, No. 4 on this year’s Salary Survey 75 list, can anticipate climbing into a high-salaried cybersecurity niche.

Here’s what the salary picture looks like for CCSA holders who responded to the Salary Survey:

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $144,580
Median Annual Salary: $145,600
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: 8.5 percent
Very Satisfied: 23.8 percent
Satisfied: 38.5 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 6.9 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 22.3 percent

All Non-U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $65,840
Median Annual Salary: $60,000
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: [No responses]
Very Satisfied: [No responses]
Satisfied: 70.5 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 19 percent
Not At All Satisfied: 9.5 percent

The largest single body of CCSA holders who responded to the survey is made up of U.S. residents (59.3 percent), but we also heard from certified professionals in 9 other countries:  Canada, Finland, India, Indonesia, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

As is the norm in cybersecurity, almost all of our CCSA-certified survey participants are men (96.3 percent), with a tiny number of women in the mix. Almost all of those we heard from are solidy middle-aged, either between the ages of 35 and 44 (43.5 percent of respondents) or between the ages of 45 and 54 (34.8 percent). The outliers are the 8.7 percent of respondents between the ages of 25 and 34, and the 13 percent between the ages of 55 and 64.

In terms of the highest level of formal education completed by CCSA holders, almost everyone has some level of college degree. For most, that means topping out at a bachelor’s degree (34.8 percent of respondents) or master’s degree (39.1 percent), with peak attainment for others represented by either a doctorate (2.2 percent) or an associate’s degree (6.5 percent). Everyone else we tracked completed some level of technical training (17.4 percent) after high school.

Full-time employment among CCSA holders is solid at 88.5 percent, with 3.8 percent of those surveyed having part-time jobs, and 7.7 percent currently out of work. Among those who have jobs, most put in either a standard 40-hour work week (26.1 percent of those surveyed) or put in between 41 and 50 hours per week (52.2 percent). The rest either work more than 50 hours per week (13 percent of respondents) or between 31 and 39 hours per week (8.7 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of CCSA holders, 48.3 percent of those surveyed, are at the senior specialist level. The rest, in descending order, are either directors (13.8 percent), specialists (10.3 percent), managers (9 percent), senior managers (7.6 percent), rank-and-file employees (6.2 percent), and executives (4.8 percent).

More than half of those surveyed — 58.7 percent — are IT veterans, having worked in a role that directly utilizes one or more of their certified skills for more than a decade. The rest have been plying their certified skills for either between zero years (1 to 11 months) and 2 years (3.4 percent of respondents), between 3 and 5 years (13.8 percent), between 6 and 8 years (10.3 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (13.8 percent).

Finally, here’s the view of CCSA holders on key questions from the survey about how certification impacts job performance:

At my current job I use skills learned or enhanced through certification:
Several times a day: 58.6 percent
Several times a week: 27.6 percent
Several times a month: 4.1 percent
Occasionally: 5.9 percent
Rarely: 3.8 percent

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 62.1 percent
Agree: 24.1 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 7 percent
Disagree: 3.4 percent
Strongly Disagree: 3.4 percent

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 37.9 percent
Agree: 34.5 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 13.8 percent
Disagree: 6.9 percent
Strongly Disagree: 6.9 percent

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 31 percent
Agree: 34.7 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 20.7 percent
Disagree: 7.2 percent
Strongly Disagree: 6.6 percent