Presented at
CactusCon 11 (2023),
Jan. 27, 2023, 7 p.m.
(60 minutes).
There is a tug-o-war going on between academia and employers on how to properly prepare interested cybersecurity professionals for the workforce. It's time we hacked the process...
Let's face it...Academia, in general, has been unable to provide a "Ready for Work" workforce. This is due (in part) to a lack of real-world experience work models, improper program placement, ivory tower research trumping industry needs, and the "gold rush" grab of tuition dollars by simply hanging a "Cybersecurity Degree" program on a website.
On the other side, employers are "unicorn hunting." They clamor for entry-level roles to have "real-world experience" before they will consider someone. Talent engagement (HR) doesn't understand the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed so job posts look like copy/paste efforts (which they are). If you do find a way in, unrealistic expectations await you vs. the training you received at your college or university.
This leaves our community members (e.g., you) in a likely place of quiet despair and frustration. Entry-level roles don't match what was promised by most academic recruiters and faculty. Recruiting imagery presents "cool, sexy, fun" aspects of our industry (pentesting) without a willingness to discuss the "cyber first responder" burnout that awaits many entry-level professionals. All this leading to the question, "Is this better than working at (insert your dream job here)?"
Our efforts have to shift and this talk will present new pathways and approaches that are trying to address these issues. By presenting methods to understand, prepare and overcome the employer gates in front of them, and what awaits them on the other side, this talk also hopes to enable early-career professionals to present themselves as "Ready to Work" to employers and, more effectively, land a role that they want, and are prepared to undertake.
Presenters:
-
Ed Vasko
- Director, Institute for Pervasive Cybersecurity at Boise State University
Edward Vasko, CISSP, is the Director of Boise State University’s Institute of Pervasive Cybersecurity. He is a cybersecurity leader and entrepreneur with over 30-years of experience in the cybersecurity industry. Prior to joining Boise State University, Edward established and was a Senior Vice President at Avertium, a leading national managed security and consulting provider. Before establishing Avertium, he was the co-Founder and CEO of Terra Verde, based in Phoenix, Arizona. Prior to being acquired by growth equity in 2018, Terra Verde was one of the nation’s largest providers of cybersecurity advisory and managed security services, with over 2,000 active clients around the world.
Edward’s other passion is tackling the challenge of cyber workforce development. He has served on over 20 education advisory boards providing expertise around cybersecurity
industry needs. He was appointed by Arizona’s Governor Ducey to a Commissioner role in Arizona’s Commission for Post-Secondary Education from 2015-2019. He was also appointed as the co-Chair of Arizona’s Cyber Team (ACT) Workforce Development Committee. He was the Industry Co-Chair for the 2019 NIST NICE Conference.
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