Hood College Cybersecurity Program Gets Federal Designation
(TNS) — Hood College cybersecurity students can apply for scholarships and research grants from the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal agencies as a result of a new designation from the National Security Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.
The National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense label lasts through 2027, after which Hood will have to reapply. To get the designation, schools have to complete a lengthy accreditation process, said George Dimitoglou, director of Hood's cybersecurity program.
"It's a validation of the rigor of our cybersecurity program," Dimitoglou said. "It demonstrates our institutional commitment to academic excellence in the area of cybersecurity."
Students who graduate from Hood's cybersecurity program will now have a leg up in the job market, Dimitoglou said. Plus, it opens up new research opportunities for them while they're still in school.
The federal Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 33 percent increase in cybersecurity jobs over the next 10 years — a rate much steeper than the average. The NSA and DHS program aims to encourage similar growth in the amount of programs that can prepare qualified applicants for those jobs, Dimitoglou said.
Hood's cybersecurity program launched in 2017. Schools aren't eligible for the Academic Excellence designation until their programs are at least three years old, Dimitoglou said, and it took faculty about a year and a half to complete their application.
Students don't need a computing background to enter Hood's program, Dimitoglou said. They take courses in computer forensics, cryptography and ethical hacking, which is the process of searching for vulnerabilities in a network so it can be better protected.
Dimitoglou said the program's recognition was the "gold standard."
"It opens many, many doors," he said.
©2022 The Frederick News-Post (Frederick, Md.). Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Gloss