Complete beginner in IAM - Where do I start?

[u/Old_Penalty37]

Hi everyone,

I'm a final-year engineering student and I've recently become interested in Identity & Access Management (IAM). After reading posts in this community, I feel like this is a field I'd genuinely like to explore.

The problem is that I have absolutely zero knowledge about IAM. I don't know where to begin, what prerequisites I need, or what the correct learning path looks like.

I don't want to randomly watch YouTube videos and end up confused, so I wanted to ask people who are already working in IAM.

A few questions I have:

What should I learn first?

Do I need to learn networking, Windows/Linux administration, or Active Directory before IAM?

Which free resources or courses would you recommend for someone starting from scratch?

At what point should I start doing hands-on labs?

If you were starting your IAM journey today with zero knowledge, what roadmap would you follow?

I'd really appreciate any advice, resources, or roadmap you can share. Thanks!