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ARMY · 25BCareer Guide · Operations · VWC.CG.25B.R.04

25B · ARMY · Enlisted

Information Technology
Specialist.

Army 25B (Information Technology Specialist). 880 hours of formal training translate to 4 validated civilian career pathways with salary bands of $72K–$105K. Sourced from DoD training data and Lightcast labor signals.

Training hours880DoD pipeline

ACE creditACEUp to 15 semester hours recommended

Tech roles4mapped to your code

Civilian pathways4validated

Cert coverage3/5direct + partial

/ 01 · Tech Roles

Roles your code maps to.

SOURCE · BLS + LIGHTCAST ROLES · 4

Industry tech roles your 25B background maps to — picked from BLS-anchored occupations using your training, cognitive skills, and systems experience.

Sort · Match descending

/ 02 · Skill Bridge

The gap, named.

What 25B training already gave you, and the specific gaps to close — not a generic checklist.

Already have08

01
Network administration→ Network engineering, systems administration
02
Server management (Windows Server, Linux)→ Cloud computing, DevOps
03
Cybersecurity fundamentals→ Security engineering, SOC analysis
04
Active Directory and Group Policy→ Identity and access management
05
System Modeling→ Cloud architecture, systems engineering
06
Degraded-Mode Operations→ Site reliability engineering
07
Procedural Compliance→ ITIL, SOC 2 auditing
08
Pattern Recognition→ Network security monitoring, QA testing

To learn06

The concrete gap to bridge — specific to the roles above, not a generic checklist.

+Cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud)+Configuration management tools (Ansible, Chef, or Puppet)+Scripting languages (Python, Bash)+SIEM tools (Splunk, QRadar)+Vulnerability management and penetration testing methodologies+Infrastructure-as-code tools (Terraform, CloudFormation)

How VWC fits

Vets Who Code is a free, full-time software engineering accelerator for veterans, active duty, and military spouses. We close the fundamentals — terminal, web platform, AI tooling, portfolio projects — so the rest of this list becomes specialization, not square one.

See VWC Programs →

/ 03 · Civilian Pathways

Where your code lands.

SOURCE · LIGHTCAST + CURATED PATHWAYS · 4

P.01

IT Systems Administrator

$88K

High match

Very high demand

Skills to develop

— Cloud platforms (AWS/Azure)
— Automation scripting

P.02

Network Administrator

$82K

High match

High demand

Skills to develop

— CCNA
— Cloud networking

P.03

Cybersecurity Analyst

$105K

Good match

Very high demand

Skills to develop

— CompTIA Security+
— SIEM tools
— Incident response

P.04

Help Desk Manager

$72K

Good match

High demand

Skills to develop

— ITIL certification

/ 04 · Hidden Strengths

What the code built.

Cognitive skills your 25B training built — and where they transfer in civilian work.

S.01

System Modeling

Building and maintaining mental models of complex network topologies across multiple sites and classification levels

Transfers to

Understanding how systems connect and fail — the same skill used in cloud architecture, systems engineering, and enterprise IT design

S.02

Degraded-Mode Operations

Restoring communications and network services in austere environments with limited parts and no vendor support

Transfers to

Troubleshooting without a manual — the mindset that makes great site reliability engineers, DevOps leads, and field service technicians

S.03

Procedural Compliance

Following strict COMSEC, INFOSEC, and change management procedures where a single deviation can compromise classified systems

Transfers to

Operating within compliance frameworks — directly transferable to ITIL, SOC 2 auditing, healthcare IT compliance, and financial systems governance

S.04

Pattern Recognition

Diagnosing network issues by recognizing patterns in traffic, error logs, and system behavior across distributed infrastructure

Transfers to

Detecting anomalies in complex systems — the same skill behind network security monitoring, QA testing, and data analysis

/ 05 · Non-Obvious Matches

Roles the recruiter won't suggest.

Adjacent civilian roles your training maps to that conventional military-to-civilian advice tends to miss.

Cloud Solutions Architect

SOC 15-1241

You've been designing resilient, multi-site network infrastructure in environments where downtime isn't an option. Cloud architecture is the same challenge with better tools.

Adjacent · Match

Site Reliability Engineer

SOC 15-1244

Keeping systems running in degraded conditions with minimal resources? That's SRE in a nutshell. Your experience with uptime under pressure is exactly what tech companies pay premium salaries for.

Adjacent · Match

Compliance Analyst (IT)

SOC 13-1041

You've lived and breathed COMSEC and information security protocols. SOC 2, HIPAA, and FedRAMP compliance work is the civilian version of what you've already mastered.

Adjacent · Match

/ 06 · Training & Certs

What you trained on.

SOURCE · DOD + ACE\nVALIDATED

Academy