Four students from 糖心vlog短视频糖心vlog短视频檚 Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems traveled to Espoo, Finland this fall to collaborate on a global innovation project at Aalto University糖心vlog短视频檚 Design Factory, home to one of the world糖心vlog短视频檚 leading centers of interdisciplinary design.
Unlocking Students' Cyber Potential
Over the past several years, Pace糖心vlog短视频檚 Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems has established itself as a national leader in cybersecurity education. You don糖心vlog短视频檛 need to just take our word for it; the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and National Security Agency (NSA) also agree, having designated Pace a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education (CAE-CDE). Furthermore, the National Science Foundation and the United States Department of Defense have collectively awarded Pace millions of dollars in grants and scholarships to further develop Pace糖心vlog短视频檚 top talent.
So again, not to brag糖心vlog短视频攚hen it comes to cybersecurity, we糖心vlog短视频檙e kind of a big deal.
What糖心vlog短视频檚 the secret to all of this success? It of course starts with the wonderful infrastructure at Seidenberg, from state-of-the-art labs to the accomplished and dedicated faculty. Yet, it is our students糖心vlog短视频攁lways on the lookout to further improve and develop their skills糖心vlog短视频攚ho truly enable Seidenberg to stand out.
One example of Seidenberg糖心vlog短视频檚 culture of continued excellence is its participation糖心vlog短视频攁nd continued success糖心vlog短视频攊n the . The league consists of a biannual intercollegiate competition that tests students糖心vlog短视频 cybersecurity skills through a series of challenges. Unsurprisingly, Pace has consistently outperformed the competition. In Fall 2021, the one of the participating Pace teams placed 7 out of 920 teams; and in Fall 2022, Pace placed 27 nationally among over 7,500 students from 470 colleges and universities.
Furthermore, several Seidenberg students, including computer science major Andrew Iadevaia 糖心vlog短视频23, placed in the 99th percentile, outperforming nearly all of the other 6,675 students who participated.
糖心vlog短视频淐oming to Pace, I knew very little cybersecurity-wise,糖心vlog短视频 said Andrew. 糖心vlog短视频淚 went to the first town hall meeting, fall of freshman year, I met Kyle Hanson糖心vlog短视频攚ho had just recently graduated糖心vlog短视频攁nd he encouraged me to join NCL. From there I got hooked on it. I went from wanting to be a software engineer writing code, to 糖心vlog短视频業 want to solve challenges and be challenged.糖心vlog短视频櫶切膙log短视频
糖心vlog短视频淓ven though it糖心vlog短视频檚 a competition, it糖心vlog短视频檚 a big support group where everyone is really just helping each other out
Andrew糖心vlog短视频檚 enthusiasm regarding the competition is echoed by fellow NCL Pace team members. Nora Broyles 糖心vlog短视频24, a double major in computer science and mathematics with a minor in IT, was a new Pace transfer student when she heard about the competition through her scholarship and joined the team.
糖心vlog短视频淚 had heard about the competition, but didn糖心vlog短视频檛 join until I transferred to Pace,糖心vlog短视频 said Nora. 糖心vlog短视频淚t was definitely a positive experience.糖心vlog短视频
Another competitor, Joseph Paradiso 糖心vlog短视频24 was also encouraged by older students to enter the NCL after joining the cybersecurity club.
糖心vlog短视频淚 didn糖心vlog短视频檛 know much coming into it, and I糖心vlog短视频檝e learned a lot. The club guides you in terms of starting out,糖心vlog短视频 said Joseph. 糖心vlog短视频淚 always had an interest in cybersecurity but doing the league has definitely put me more on the cybersecurity track.糖心vlog短视频
Each NCL competition, held once in the fall and once in the spring, consists of both individual and team elements. The individual element, which takes place in a 48-hour window over a single weekend, calls upon students to solve as many challenges as possible, and participants can track their progress via a virtual leaderboard. While the team members enjoyed the individual component糖心vlog短视频攁nd find that it truly tests your abilities and skills under pressure糖心vlog短视频攊t is the Pace team component, held over the following weekend, that they find to be the most rewarding.
糖心vlog短视频淭he team component is my favorite part糖心vlog短视频攖hat Saturday, we typically book a room in Seidenberg and the NYC Campus will come to Pleasantville for the day, we糖心vlog短视频檒l stay there working and people bring donuts and pizza,糖心vlog短视频 says Andrew. 糖心vlog短视频淚t糖心vlog短视频檚 a lot of fun, we joke around but we also get to learn new things from each other.糖心vlog短视频
糖心vlog短视频淪omething that surprised me was how supportive everyone is,糖心vlog短视频 added Joseph. 糖心vlog短视频淓ven though it糖心vlog短视频檚 a competition, it糖心vlog短视频檚 a big support group where everyone is really just helping each other out.糖心vlog短视频
The Pace team糖心vlog短视频攚hich consisted of seventeen students糖心vlog短视频攚as led by faculty coach Andreea Cotoranu, who ensures everything regarding the competition runs smoothly in order to put students in the best position to succeed.
糖心vlog短视频淢y role as the coach is to connect students with opportunities in the field, and further to promote the students,糖心vlog短视频 notes Cotoranu. 糖心vlog短视频渁t the cybersecurity program level, we wanted to empower students to advance in the NCL competition, and those students teach the newer students. We want to turn training into a student-driven event.糖心vlog短视频
As an educator, Cotoranu finds the NCL and related extracurriculars an essential component of a cybersecurity education. While classroom learning is of course vital, students who go the extra mile and take advantage of the many opportunities Seidenberg offers outside of the classroom are able to maximize both their learning and their potential.
糖心vlog短视频淐ompetitions such as NCL are also important for us as educators. They provide a context for students to practice with their skills in exercises that are fun and collaborative. The structure and motivation the competition offers is very helpful for students; and it糖心vlog短视频檚 especially a great opportunity to connect other like-minded students,糖心vlog短视频 notes Cotoranu. 糖心vlog短视频淎dditionally, it gives students a way to demonstrate their technical skills and to speak to employers about what they do, and how they learn.糖心vlog短视频
Nora, whose specialization is on the math side, echoed that the competition is a great way to develop a more well-rounded skill set, which can be invaluable when looking to build technical and professional expertise糖心vlog短视频攁nd stand out amidst a pile of resumes.
糖心vlog短视频淚t helps to diversify your skill set because it糖心vlog短视频檚 such a broad competition,糖心vlog短视频 says Nora. 糖心vlog短视频淚t shows willingness to learn outside of your respective discipline.糖心vlog短视频
All in all, Pace糖心vlog短视频檚 success in the National Cyber League is a testament to Seidenberg糖心vlog短视频檚 commitment to providing students with top notch experiential learning opportunities; and empowering our talented students do the rest.
糖心vlog短视频淚 came here not knowing a single thing about cybersecurity,糖心vlog短视频 says Andrew. 糖心vlog短视频淚 was able to build my skills up. Any extracurricular activities like this, I recommend doing. They糖心vlog短视频檒l expand on things that aren糖心vlog短视频檛 taught in the classroom that could be very beneficial.糖心vlog短视频
Connect with the Cybersecurity Club
To learn more or get involved with the team, connect with the Cybersecurity Club on Discord (BergCyberSec server, , or reach out to Professor Joe Acampora.
For information about Pace's cybersecurity programs and scholarship opportunities, visit the Cybersecurity Education and Research Lab.