Cybersecurity Analyst Tier 1

Information Security Analysts

Announcement

Job Summary

The University of Utah has an opportunity for a Cybersecurity Analyst Tier 1 (Security Operations Center) to help support our Information Security and Compliance goals. The Tier 1 SOC analyst will serve as the first line of defense against cyber threats, responsible for real-time security monitoring, initial alert triage, and rapid containment using established playbooks. This role offers a structured career growth path with dedicated mentorship from Tier-2 and Tier-3 analysts to help you advance your technical skills in incident response, detection logic, and threat analysis.

About UIT: University Information Technology (UIT), the central IT service provider for the University of Utah, reports to the U's Chief Information Officer and is responsible for many of the U's shared IT services including the wired and wireless network; Campus Information Services (CIS) portal; UMail, telephone, and online collaboration; digital learning technologies; information security; software licensing; and a host of other IT systems and services.

About the University of Utah: Located in Salt Lake City, the U is the flagship institution of the State of Utah's system of higher education, home to arts and museum venues and a member of the BIG-12 Conference. Skiing and snowboarding opportunities are a short distance from campus, and opportunities to pursue activities from biking to hiking to fishing abound. Salt Lake City is home to the Utah Symphony and Opera, Ballet West, professional sports teams, and a wide range of other cultural and recreational activities.

Responsibilities

Incident Response:

• Perform initial triage, scoping, and evaluation of security alerts across endpoint, network, cloud, and identity domains.
• Execute established incident response playbooks for containment and remediation of low-to-medium complexity security alerts.
• Escalate complex, ambiguous, or high-severity security incidents to Tier-2 analysts with clear, detailed initial investigation notes.
• Accurately document incident details, triage steps, and remediation actions within the ticketing and case management systems.

Detection Operations & Feedback:

• Monitor SIEM, EDR, and cloud security platforms to ensure continuous operational visibility and alert hygiene.
• Identify recurring false positives or noisy alerts and flag them to Tier-2/3 analysts with contextual data for rule tuning.
• Utilize automated SOAR playbooks to perform basic enrichment and data collection during initial alert processing.

Threat Analysis:

• Review security alerts and threat feeds to recognize common adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).
• Map basic alert artifacts and findings to the MITRE ATT&CK framework during initial triage.
• Assist Tier-2 and Tier-3 analysts during major incidents by gathering supplemental logs, contextual artifacts, and host details.

Professional Development & Growth:

• Participate in regular investigation reviews to receive feedback, improve analytical rigor, and accelerate technical growth.
• Provide feedback on existing SOC playbooks and documentation to highlight operational gaps or outdated steps.
• Partner with Tier-2 analysts on escalated tickets to learn advanced investigation and response techniques.

Minimum Qualifications

EQUIVALENCY STATEMENT: 1 year of higher education can be substituted for 1 year of directly related work experience (Example: bachelor's degree = 4 years of directly related work experience).

Department may hire employee at one of the following job levels:

Information Security Analyst, I: Requires a bachelor's (or equivalency) + 2 years of directly related work experience or a master's (or equivalency) degree.

Information Security Analyst, II: Requires a bachelor's (or equivalency) + 4 years or a master's (or equivalency) + 2 years of directly related work experience.

Preferences

Experience: 1–2 years of experience in an IT, system administration, or junior cybersecurity role (or equivalent hands-on lab experience / degree).

Technical Knowledge: Basic understanding of networking fundamentals (TCP/IP, DNS, OSI model), operating system internals (Windows, Linux), and standard attack vectors (phishing, malware, web attacks).

Tooling Familiarity: Exposure to enterprise SIEM platforms, EDR solutions, or log management tools.Certifications (Preferred): CompTIA Security+, CySA+, Cisco CyberOps Associate, or Blue Team Level 1 (BTL1).

Soft Skills: Strong written communication skills for ticket documentation and a proactive desire to learn and grow within security operations.

Type

Benefited Staff

Additional Information

The University is a participating employer with Utah Retirement Systems (“URS”). Eligible new hires with prior URS service, may elect to enroll in URS if they make the election before they become eligible for retirement (usually the first day of work). Contact Human Resources at (801) 581-7447 for information. Individuals who previously retired and are receiving monthly retirement benefits from URS are subject to URS’ post-retirement rules and restrictions. Please contact Utah Retirement Systems at (801) 366-7770 or (800) 695-4877 or University Human Resource Management at (801) 581-7447 if you have questions regarding the post-retirement rules.

This position may require the successful completion of a criminal background check and/or drug screen.

The University of Utah values candidates who have experience working in settings with students and possess a strong commitment to improving access to higher education.

Veterans’ preference is extended to qualified applicants, upon request and consistent with University policy and Utah state law. Upon request, reasonable accommodations in the application process will be provided to individuals with disabilities.

Consistent with state and federal law, the University of Utah does not discriminate based upon race, ethnicity, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, or protected veteran’s status. The University does not discriminate on the basis of sex in the education program or activity that it operates, as required by Title IX and 34 CFR part 106. The requirement not to discriminate in education programs or activities extends to admission and employment. Inquiries about the application of Title IX and its regulations may be referred to the Title IX Coordinator, to the Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, or both.

To request a reasonable accommodation for a disability or if you or someone you know has experienced discrimination or sexual misconduct including sexual harassment, you may contact the Director/Title IX Coordinator in the Office of Equal Opportunity and Title IX (OEO). More information, including the Director/Title IX Coordinator’s office address, electronic mail address, and telephone number can be located at the: University of Utah Non‑Discrimination page.

Online reports may be submitted at https://oeo.utah.edu

https://publicsafety.utah.edu/safetyreport/ This report includes statistics about criminal offenses, hate crimes, arrests and referrals for disciplinary action, and Violence Against Women Act offenses. They also provide information about safety and security-related services offered by the University of Utah. A paper copy can be obtained by request at the Department of Public Safety located at 1658 East 500 South.

As per University of Utah policy 5-108: Transfer of Benefits Eligible Staff Members, a new hire to the University of Utah who is still serving a 12 month probationary period will not be hired into another University of Utah job (a transfer) until the successful completion of the probationary period.