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 These posts contain previously unpublished Salary Survey data.

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‍If a website is like a casserole, then security is one of the most important ingredients that needs to be "baked in." You can't pull your new website out of the oven and then just sort of sprinkle some security on top. You need to have security in the mix from the beginning.

That's where CIW Web Security Associate (No. 28 on our most recent Salary Survey 75 list) comes in. If you're interested in the work of securing and defending a website or network against attack, then this is one certification (admittedly among many) that can help you get started.

Here's what the salary picture looks like for the CIW Web Security Associate holders who responded to the Salary Survey:‍

All U.S. Respondents
Average Annual Salary: $117,270
Median Annual Salary: $110,000
How satisfied are you with your current salary?
Completely Satisfied: [No responses]
Very Satisfied: 27.3 percent
Satisfied: 50 percent
Not Very Satisfied: 22.7 percent
Not At All Satisfied: [No responses]

As is the case with a number of credentials in the Salary Survey 75, we didn't field a strong international response here. Hence, we only have data to report from U.S. credential holders.

Most of the CIW Web Security Associate holders who responded to the survey — 88.4 percent of them, to be exact — are men. Everyone else who responded identified their gender as female. Somewhat contrary to the Deep Focus norm, 72 percent of survey respondents are younger than 45, either between the ages of 25 and 34 (13.6 percent) or between the ages of 35 and 44 (59.1 percent). That leaves the 22.5 percent of respondents who are between the ages of 45 and 54, and the 4.8 percent who are between the ages of 55 and 64.

More than 90 percent the of CIW Web Security Associate holders who participated in the survey have an educational background that includes time spent at a college or university. The highest level of education completed by most is either a bachelor's degree (31.8 percent of those surveyed), master's degree (45.5 percent), associate's degree (13.6 percent), or professional degree (4.5 percent). The rest are currently in school (8.9 percent of respondents).

A sturdy 88 percent of CIW Web Security Associate holders who participated in the survey have full-time jobs, with 8.2 percent employed part-time, and 3.8 percent who are students. Among those who have full-time jobs, most are at work either for the standard 40 hours per week (23 percent of respondents) or for between 41 and 50 hours per week (45.5 percent). The rest have a full-time work schedule of either between 31 and 39 hours per week (22.5 percent of respondents) or more than 50 hours per week (9 percent).

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic redrew a lot of traditional workplace boundaries, and there's an interesting split among CIW Web Security Associate holders. A notable 45 percent of CIW-certified survey respondents are spending their entire week working from home, putting in either 40 hours per week at the dining room table (9.5 percent) or more than 40 hours from the screened-in back porch (35.9 percent). After that, there's no middle ground — everyone else is at home either for between 10 and 20 hours per week (18 percent) or fewer than 10 hours per week (36.6 percent).

In terms of workplace standing, the largest single group of CIW Web Security Associate holders we heard from are employed at the senior specialist level (28.2 percent of those surveyed). The rest, in descending order, are either executives (24 percent), specialists (23.8 percent), managers (12 percent), senior managers (8.2 percent), or directors (3.8 percent).

On the career experience front, the largest single group of CIW Web Security Associate holders who responded to the survey — 28.2  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 (20 percent of respondents), between 3 and 5 years (23.8 percent), between 6 and 8 years (7.8 percent), or between 9 and 10 years (9.7 percent).

Finally, here's the view of CIW Web Security Associate 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: 48.1 percent
Several times a week: 28.6 percent
Several times a month: 11 percent
Occasionally: 8.4 percent
Rarely: 3.9 percent‍

Since becoming certified, I feel there is greater demand for my skills.
Strongly agree: 37 percent
Agree: 39.6 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 15 percent
Disagree: 5.8 percent
Strongly Disagree: 2.6 percent‍

Becoming certified has increased my problem-solving skills.
Strongly agree: 32.2 percent
Agree: 44 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 15.8 percent
Disagree: 4 percent
Strongly Disagree: 4 percent‍

Becoming certified has increased my workplace productivity.
Strongly agree: 31.8 percent
Agree: 36.2 percent
Neither Agree nor Disagree: 16 percent
Disagree: 12 percent
Strongly Disagree: 4 percent

PAST CIW WEB SECURITY ASSOCIATE DEEP FOCUS FEATURES

2020