Page 33 - Cybersecurity Career Guide for UT Austin

CYBERSECURITY CAREER GUIDE 33
The Nation’s Military
Academies Lead the Way
Winning the war of the future will take more than better codes
and faster digital hardware. The U.S. needs leaders to fend off
mounting cyberattacks and to launch cyberattacks on our enemies.
The U.S. Military Academy, Air Force Academy, Naval Academy,
and Coast Guard Academy all offer accredited CAE-CO cybersecurity
degree programs. Cadets and Midshipmen take courses in technol-
ogy, such as computer architecture, networks, database systems,
and cryptography, but also develop leadership skills. Programs also
require coursework in policy, law, and ethics to ensure that each
student gains understanding of the nuances of cyber warfare. Each
academy’s cybersecurity program prepares future officers for cyber-
related assignments, including in all the military cyber commands,
and for advanced studies.
While learning the tools of cyber craft in the classroom is an impor-
tant first step, students need as much real-world experience as
possible. That’s why in 2001 the National Security Agency launched
the Cyber Defense Exercise competition specifically for teams from
the military academies, plus teams from the U.S. Coast Guard Acad-
emy, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, and the Royal Military College
of Canada. Modeled on Red Team/Blue Team simulations, NSA cyber
professionals attack the networks of each of the teams. The team
that most effectively defends their computer network wins the com-
petition. In 2021, the U.S. Naval Academy won the competition, but
all the competitors were able to learn what they did wrong and how
better to defend the nation’s computer networks.
The U.S. Naval
Academy’s new
center for cybersecurity
studies, in
Annapolis, MD
suggest that students celebrate any op-
portunity to work on a team project.”
Another key component to maximize
your post-grad job opportunities: extra-
curricular activities. “Cybersecurity, like
any technical field, is mastered by doing
and not passive reading,” says Babak
Beheshti, dean of the College of Engi-
neering and Computing Sciences at New
York Institute of Technology. He sug-
gests getting involved in “hackathons,”
competitions, and student club activi-
ties. “You will learn by doing and will
start building a network of like-minded
friends.” Build your own network, install
virtual machines on a spare PC or laptop
to experiment with it, and be willing to
intern in a company or business to learn
the day-to-day needs of organizations
and how you can make yourself indis-
pensable to them.
For a state-by state listing of schools
offering four-year degree programs, go to
start-engineering.com/4year-degrees.
The Georgia Cyber
Center at Augusta
University,
Augusta, GA
Bismarck
State College,
Bismarck, ND
PHOTOS COURTESY THE SCHOOLS