Are you a college student majoring in Computer Engineering (CE), Computer Science (CS), Computer Information Systems (CIS), Management Information Systems (MIS), Network Engineering or other computer related field?  Have you taken any classes yet where IT risk management, information security, privacy or regulatory compliance has been the focus?  Do you know what SOX, HIPAA, PCI and FISMA are?

If not, you need to.  Large portions of your first job out of college could be spent on issues such as writing secure code, designing a network to meet regulatory compliance, implementing 2 factor authentication and other security related duties.  Do you feel prepared for this?

I just did some very quick and informal research on undergrad programs in Computer Science at large public research universities across the country.  Shockingly one had an information security course in the core requirements.  Even then it was one of 3 courses in a "pick 2" category so it wasn't required for graduation.

If you are a college student and you haven't spent at least 1/2 of a semester dealing with information security and privacy principles you are ill prepared to face the challenges that will come at you full throttle after graduation.  Use one of your electives to get these necessary skills and be a leg up when you go to interview for that first job.  If your school doesn't offer any courses on information security then This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .  I'll be happy to mentor you to help you find some high quality (and in most cases free) resources.