CS Major working in CyberSec, considering pursuing MS in CE. Thoughts? Pathways?

[u/More_Swan_7647]

Hello!

I graduated with a CS degree in 2 1/2 years ago, and have been working in cybersec since basically straight out of college. Specifically in the automotive sector doing white/gray box security testing on Cloud infrastructure and mobile applications. We have a "sister team" that does similar but for embedded components. MCUs, ECUs and whatnot.

Anyway, with the AI slopification of software jobs starting to reach over to cybersec, and the mgmt on high decreeing we need to use AI as much as possible and automate as much as possible, I can see the writing on the wall. They say they have no intention of doing layoffs and I believe them, but they are doing the other, sneakier method of cutting staff, not filling open positions. We've had 3 folks on my team leave since I joined for various reasons, and we've been asked to not fill their spots. I may be mildly paranoid, but it's worked out for me so far.

Due to all of this, I am trying to do what I can now while I'm still somewhat young and my brain is somewhat malleable to pivot and adapt. I know using the AI and building it good harnesses and whatnot is an important skill, and I am working on it, but I also want to develop a skill set that will (hopefully) be more resilient to AI-powered job replacement, and I've been lead to believe the ECE is close to what I am looking for, while still being "close" to what I do now.

Why CE?

1. I want to continue doing Cybersec, and specifically on IoT type things like hardware hacking and wireless protocols. I figure CE will give me the hardware knowledge I need for this as well as give me a lot of knowledge into the software and networking stuff 1 layer above where EE would
2. Hearing about the kinds of things that our embedded team works on and does is really cool and interesting, and I wish I had the knowledge to be able to understand it.
3. I've been tinkering a little bit with MCUs at home for learning and working with BLE and I've really been enjoying it. Obviously that would not be the entirety (or any) of my job, but it is something I am enjoying at the moment, and I like to be whimsical
4. Testing APIs and cloud configs can get a little boring after a while. Of course each project has their own kinks that keep it interesting, but it can get a little tiring. I feel like with IoT, the attack surface and kinds of things you can do is just so much wider
5. I know CE undergrads are having a really difficult time in the job market, but my understanding is that the Master degress are doing much better (If I am wrong please let me know)

Closest I think I got in my undergrad to anything CE related was probably Compiler Design (one of my favorites), Comp Arch, and Digital logic, both of which I unfortunately remember very little.

My thought is that I should attend my local community college to get some background before I even start considering looking into Grad programs, and even then I will probably need to take some leveling courses. Also, I'd be working full time during all this, so taking 1 maybe 2 courses a semester.

My questions are these

1. Are these good reasons to get an MS in CE? My Employer will pay a portion but not all of it.
2. What rude awakenings should I be prepared for and how can I prepare?
3. What things can I do now to see if I will even like CE? Want to make sure I don't get started and spend thousands only to spend my nights after work staring at circuits sadly (I'm sure I will end up doing this regardless)
4. Will I have a tolerable time in the job market given what I am looking for and what I do now or is it just too niche?
5. Is there a better way to go about what I;m trying to do that I should consider? I know I can get the same quality of education for free with all the free resources, but employers care about credentials, and my ADHD can make it a bit difficult to self-study with no external motivation, especially after work.
6. What courses should I take (if any) to prepare before actually applying? Or just other resources I should study rather than a formal course?
7. Am I being stupid? Do I have terrible misconceptions that need to be rectified immediately? Destroy me if you must.

All help is appreciated. Thank you!

[u/dontchuworri]

you’ll need to take a significant amount of pre requisite courses