Best Paying IT Certifications in 2018
The ‘best-paying IT certifications’ list published in 2018 included risk management, security leadership, information-security architecture, project management, IT auditing and IT service management. The quoted salaries were period-specific rankings, not direct promises to people who passed an exam. Old figures also mixed levels of experience, locations and industry sectors. This retrospective retains the six credentials and explains their professional roles without presenting 2018 averages as current compensation data.
For someone choosing a learning path today, the most important question is whether the certification corresponds to work the person can already perform or is realistically preparing to perform. A management credential may have experience prerequisites that cannot be satisfied by passing the associated exam alone.
1. ISACA Certified in Risk and Information Systems Control (CRISC)
CRISC addresses identifying, assessing and responding to enterprise IT risk. The ISACA CRISC examination is relevant to practitioners who help organizations connect technology uncertainty with business consequences. A useful example is evaluating a third-party payment integration: identify failure paths, determine who owns decisions and document feasible controls.
Risk cannot be eliminated by producing a spreadsheet. The professional must communicate likelihood, impact, residual exposure and situations in which management should accept or avoid a proposed activity.
2. ISACA Certified Information Security Manager (CISM)
The ISACA CISM exam focuses on leading security programs, governing information risk and managing incidents. This is different from configuring firewalls or exploiting vulnerabilities. Management competence includes deciding what to protect, how success will be measured, which controls are appropriate and when to escalate an incident.
The broader ISACA credentials portfolio includes governance and audit pathways, but those designations are not interchangeable with CISM. Review the latest issuer experience requirements before claiming the full credential.
3. ISC2 Certified Information Systems Security Professional (CISSP)
The ISC2 CISSP certification covers a broad security body of knowledge. The corresponding ISC2 CISSP exam tests decisions involving risk, architecture, engineering, networking, operations, identity and software security. A well-prepared candidate should be able to explain why one control helps a specific threat while creating other operational demands.
Passing the examination is not the only requirement for the full ISC2 designation. Appropriate professional experience, endorsement and maintenance rules also matter. A person with limited experience should plan a realistic route rather than assuming an exam receipt proves senior responsibility.
4. PMI Project Management Professional (PMP)
The PMI PMP examination assesses project delivery and leadership across approaches. Project managers must clarify objectives, work with stakeholders, manage risk, make changes responsibly and deliver useful outcomes. Exam study should include situations where several actions look plausible but sequencing and context determine the best decision.
For a portfolio, describe a project you helped lead: scope, dependencies, decisions, unexpected problems and evidence of delivered value. That record communicates more than a generic statement that PMP always increases pay.
5. ISACA Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
The ISACA CISA examination supports professionals who assess controls and evidence. An auditor’s responsibilities include understanding organizational objectives, reviewing governance and systems operations, testing control implementation and presenting findings fairly.
An effective audit recommendation explains both risk and feasible remediation. It should avoid prescribing unnecessary controls merely because a checklist contains them. Independent judgment and clear communication are core skills.
6. ITIL Foundation: service management
ITIL concerns managing IT services as a system of value creation, including incident response, change, service requests, reliability and continual improvement. PeopleCert has introduced ITIL (Version 5) gradually while ITIL 4 remains available during the transition. The older 2018 ITIL Foundation reference therefore should not be used to assume a current exam title or renewal rule.
Service management is not a lesser version of cybersecurity or project management. A service owner needs to balance customer impact, response time, quality, costs and dependencies across teams. A practical exercise could analyze a recurring incident and define an improvement measurable over several months.
What the 2018 compensation story can—and cannot—prove
The original salary table was not a controlled experiment. Higher average pay for credential holders could reflect years of experience, existing job responsibilities, seniority, employer size or geography. Certification may be one signal among many, but these figures cannot establish that earning the badge caused the salary difference.
Choose a path based on role, current experience and the evidence employers need. The historical list remains useful because its six disciplines—risk, security leadership, architecture, delivery, audit and service management—represent genuinely different career responsibilities. Verify present-day issuer rules and local compensation information before making a financial decision.