Columbus State University’s Cybersecurity nexus program is all about providing its students with real-world industry experiences fending off network attacks seated behind state-of-the-art technology. On July 29, its cyber students sat in the hot seat of a different sort as they participated in mock job interviews with actual industry cybersecurity, information security, and recruiting professionals representing local and international companies.
Patrick Aiken, director of the university’s TSYS Center for Cybersecurity, created this immersive beneficial exercise so students can get a feel for what they will experience when they interview for jobs post-graduation. All interviews were conducted in CSU’s Synovus Center for Commerce and Technology, which also houses the cyber range, a training facility for industry professionals to practice live-fire exercises.
“I thought the event was spectacular,” Aiken said. “We had a great outpouring of support from our partners out in the industry. There were a lot of organizations from local businesses, big consulting firms, and start-ups from all over the nation. The notoriety that our nexus program has on LinkedIn brought a lot of industry people here.”
Students “interviewed” for entry-level internships with the interviewers for positions in the company’s technology division. Most of these fictional opportunities included various general entry-level technology tasks, similar to most internships.
“This mock event allowed students to practice their interviewing skills, and there’s no better way to practice and develop something than to actually do it—especially with chief information security officers, chief information officers, senior executives, technical employees, and first-line managers with nothing at stake,” Aiken explained.
Each interview lasted approximately 30 minutes, and following each, the interviewers completed a written feedback form assessing how well students performed and providing them with specific, constructive feedback on how they could improve in future interviews. The exercise consisted of two groups: first-semester students and second-semester students.
In all, 24 students from the program participated in the event, including returning nexus student, Ben Price.
“The feedback was amazing from the interviews because I was told what I did really well on, what I fell short on, and what exactly I need to work on,” Price said. “I learned that it’s important to understand that just knowing the answers to questions in interviews isn’t the primary aspect of interviews.”
Price interviewed with various employees from Global Payments and was able to gain insightful information about the industry, as well as advice for future interviews.
“One of the biggest pieces of advice I got today is when employers are interviewing candidates, they’re looking for those who can fit into the environment and team well because the culture of the company is more important to them, rather than the most technical and experienced person,” he recalled. Employers are looking for candidates who can communicate and be cohesive with the team.”
Fernando Cabello was another Columbus State nexus student who has been in the program for several months and was very impressed with industry and community representation at the event.
“The fact that the community came together to bring in not just people that hire positions, but actual leaders in the industry, is amazing,” Cabello emphasized. “It’s very rare to pop into an office with executives and get direct feedback on the climate and employment structure in cybersecurity right now.”
Cabello explained that he came to the mock interviews very confident and walked away from them with a broad belief and understanding that everyone in this industry wants to advocate for continued education and continue to push the dialogue for continued training.
“From my interviews, I learned that I said more than I needed to, and when you deal with employers who have been in an industry for 15 to 20 years, they know the nuances of being able to speak effectively and how to communicate a lot cleaner,” he noted. “I learned how to simplify technical aspects for future interviews.”
The mock interviewers played various roles, from hiring managers to human resources representatives and co-workers. More than 70 recruiters represented 18 different companies including Aflac, TSYS, Synovus, CyberSecurity Solutions, Global Payments, Voya Financial, Cognizant, the U.S. Army, In The Door Now, Nice Healthcare, Columbus State’s University Information & Technology Services, Tanner Health System, TEK Systems, Waystar, EY-Parthenon, Toronto Dominion (TD), Crawford & Co, and SecurityStudio.
Corporate interviewers included Tera Ladner, Global Practice Lead and Vice President of Information Risk Management and Governance of Fortune 500, Columbus-headquartered Aflac: “The students came well prepared with their resumes and answers to our questions,” she said. “Within Aflac U.S. there are 80 jobs in cybersecurity, so we have a pretty large security program.”
Ladner emphasized that this is not her first encounter with Columbus State students, as Aflac employs many Columbus State alums.
“We love to support Columbus State and its students because we really have had great success with the hires we have had from CSU,” said Ladner. “The cyber market is huge and the fight for talent these days is real. We are begging people to come interview with us and trying to give away jobs, which is very hard with the stiff competition from other companies to identify and retain talent.”
Voya Financial Chief Information Security Officer Stacy Hughes commented on the great opportunity this event was for CSU students, as well as touched on the overall cybersecurity market nationwide.
“Today was an excellent opportunity,” she said. “It allowed the students to articulate what they were doing. The students at Columbus State University come to the cybersecurity program with a number of different backgrounds and are able to take those backgrounds and tie them into what they are doing in information security.”
Hughes mentioned that there are over 100 cybersecurity jobs within her scope at Voya Financial and that cybersecurity is continuing to grow.
“We’re continuing to see in the cyber industry a shortage of good candidates who are ready, willing and able to start their cybersecurity journey,” she noted. “We need to invest in getting everyone excited about cybersecurity and the programs that come with it.”
The mock interviews were a homecoming of sorts for one interviewer—Jason Parker, who graduated from Columbus State’s Cybersecurity Nexus Program in December 2021 and who is now in a cybersecurity role with Global Payments. Global Payments, a Fortune 500 parent company of TSYS, whose past philanthropic gift made the TSYS Center for Cybersecurity possible.
“Last time I did this I was on the other side of the table as an interviewee, so it’s great to be the interviewer this time,” Parker reminisced. “There are a very number of jobs and different areas in cybersecurity that people can go into. This event provides a lot of help to students and it’s obvious they came prepared, have been studying and are ready for the workforce.”
Aiken concluded that this event impacts not only Columbus State students, but also the organizations that participated, the university, and the community.
“Everybody wins because it gives individuals in the industry the opportunity to give back to the community,” he noted. “Organizations were able to get a sneak peek at students who will be entering the cybersecurity field in the coming months. The thing we didn’t expect was that several of our students actually got some offers to apply for jobs that are currently open. It was an unexpected benefit and I’m thrilled for them.”
Columbus State launched its Cybersecurity Nexus degree in August 2020 with feedback from industry partners to address a tremendous shortage of cybersecurity professionals. The nexus program is designed to fast-track future professionals to those career opportunities through a 60-hour course of study: 18 hours in cybersecurity-specific classes and an additional 42 in general education courses. An 18-credit-hour practitioner certification is also available, which students can earn in a 12-month, cohort-based model.
For more information on Columbus State’s cybersecurity academic programs, visit www.columbusstate.edu/turner/cybersecurity-center.
Original source can be found here.
Alerts Sign-up