What if you could help your students get real industry experience before graduation?
Most students face a conundrum: a daunting job market that requires experience for entry level positions and no way to gain experience without that first-step job. It’s a situation that’s bolstered the drive for universities to prove the value of degree programs.
For Bob C. Barret, a cybersecurity instructor at the Maryville University School of Business, partnering with Propeller gave his students career-launching experience in every facet of cybersecurity and ethical hacking. His students gain more than academic exercises –– they walk away with a portfolio of real work samples to present to future employers.
Overcoming Obstacles to Teach Cybersecurity
Bob wanted to create more interactive courses to prepare students to get in front of employers. Students who learn only through textbooks might be ready to pass a test, but can they impress a prospective hiring manager?
With skills like cybersecurity, penetration testing, ethical hacking, audits, and even preparing reports, real-world experience speaks volumes. But Bob ran into major issues with technology — his students needed access to digital environments where they could dig into hands-on training, instead of just reading about scenarios in a textbook. That’s where virtual desktops came in.
With the centralized environment, students gain the ability to reset their environments, making them truly self-sufficient. If they need more resources, Propeller customizes the environment to meet their needs. Bob said without Propeller, “I’d have to go to 20 laptops and change configurations manually.”
“Propeller’s flexibility and capabilities have enabled me to significantly enhance the practical, hands-on learning experiences I can provide to my cybersecurity students,” Bob explained. “The isolated nature of the Propeller environment also allows students to safely experiment and learn without fear of damaging real systems.”
And the Propeller platform made high level education much more accessible for students because they didn’t need to worry about purchasing expensive hardware to complete their coursework.
“We can learn Windows, create an Active Directory, and do all the key things you need to learn in your first level job,” Bob said. The students get the foundational skills they need, but more than that, they gain confidence through the experience.
Gaining Skills and Increasing Student Engagement
Since teaming up with Propeller, Bob has developed several popular courses on cybersecurity and operating systems. He’s also relaunched Maryville’s Security Operations Center.
The Center offers an educational environment that’s run like a business—Bob and his students carry out real-world security operations for companies, giving students the chance to meet, and overcome, the risks and challenges unique to live security testing. The Center’s students currently supporting five clients by:
- Providing security operations
- Conducting monitoring
- Carrying out penetration testing
- Performing audits
- Sending security awareness messaging
- Training employees in security management
Students maintain all facets of services for the center and the clients check all the boxes for their cybersecurity insurance provider. “I’ve had half a dozen students tell me that employers were very interested in this class,” Bob said. “They can put it on their resumes. The ones who work hard are seeing success—I just had three or four students hired into their first technical jobs.”
We originally covered Maryville’s cybersecurity and ethical hacking program on our blog last year. It’s amazing to see how far they’ve come.
If you’re interested in learning about how Propeller’s virtual environment can support your courses and students, contact us today.
