New Cybersecurity program at Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College to be available online and in local high schools

Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College will be offering a brand new Cybersecurity program beginning in the Fall 2024 semester. The program will include options to earn a two-year associate’s degree, a one-year certificate, and two micro-credentials.

According to an article on Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College’s website, Dr. Tom Striplin, who serves as the college’s president, recently attended the National Governors Association Meeting on Cyber Security in Washington, D.C. He was quoted as saying of the event, “What I heard overwhelmingly from major employers in the industry that presented on various cyber security topics was a need to focus on skills and competencies and a decreased focus on degree attainments. Eighteen states have now removed degree requirements for working in state agencies and employer polls are indicating managers are favoring experience to education.”

Striplin went on to say, “There is an incredible need for cyber intelligence experts worldwide with an estimated 700,000 jobs and growing. Cyber security is now a critical component of the national defense strategy of the country, and we are looking for students interested in helping protect the United States against this growing threat.” 

Specifically of the program the school is implementing, Striplin commented, “We have been working on the development of this fully online program over the past year and are excited about the options and opportunities the program will provide to prospective students and employers.”

The program has been designed to be a completely online program, including any general education requirements. In addition to being able to complete the program online, local high school students can earn a micro-credential in cybersecurity by completing four core courses within the program. 

Jonathan Williams, who is the Cyber Security Program Coordinator and a member of the IT faculty, said of the new program, “We created the program to be scalable so that students could earn micro-credentials, an academic certificate, or a degree in cyber intelligence. The program is also going to be competency-based, with a focus on the attainment of cyber intelligence skills that employers are looking for in prospective employees.”

Williams went on to discuss the specifics of the program, including what the program will teach students and what employers will appreciate new potential employees having the knowledge and skills to do: “Industry-level certification coupled with micro-credentials and hands-on training are what employers are looking for and we plan to deliver that in the program. The cyber intelligence program will leverage a competency-based approach with practical experience by partnering with several cyber companies. Our plan is for our students in the program to have practical experience in simulated cyber-attacks and participate in cyber competitions. We have virtual servers that students can safely participate in these simulated environments providing hands-on experience that employers are looking for. Coupling simulated training with Learn and Earn opportunities where students can have paid internships while in the program increasing their advantages in the job market.”

In partnership with the Cyber Defense and Intelligence Center, which is a nonprofit organization, Eastern has designed the courses within its Cybersecurity program to be thorough on a wide range of topics within the industry, including digital forensics and malware.

Williams said the program won’t be shying away from Artificial Intelligence: “We are also embracing the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and are developing an AI Tutor-bot that will be trained on cyber intelligence information that will be available 24/7 for students in the program that will help them with topics anytime and anywhere.”

For more information about Eastern West Virginia Community and Technical College, visit the school’s website.