Saint Augustine’s Univesity (SAU) has partnered with the International Informational System Security Certification Consortium, Inc. (ISC)² to prepare students for careers in cybersecurity.
(ISC)² is the world’s leading and most prominent non-profit organization that provides security training and certificates for cybersecurity professionals.
“This partnership is a critical step forward in reimagining the core competencies of an SAU graduate in the areas of Science, Technology, Research, Arts, and Mathematics,” said SAU President Dr. Christine Johnson McPhail.
“We are now positioned to meet the diversity, equity, and inclusion needs of a rapidly growing cybersecurity workforce.”
– Dr. Christine Johnson McPhail, SAU President
This partnership will help grow the cybersecurity workforce as it is experiencing a critical shortage of highly trained and certified professionals.
Veronica Creech, Vice President for Economic Development & External Engagement at SAU said “According to (ISC)²’s 2021 Cybersecurity Workforce Study, the Cybersecurity Workforce Estimate and Cybersecurity Workforce Gap suggest the global cybersecurity workforce needs to grow 65% to effectively defend organizations’ critical assets.”
“Saint Augustine’s University is uniquely positioned to train today’s talent for today’s cybersecurity workforce. Our leadership is honored to be blazing a trail in closing these gaps in partnership with (ISC)².”
According to the university, SAU students can receive any (ISC)² certification to diversify the talent pipeline of cybersecurity professionals and the skill and validation needed for the field. This certification will also demonstrate to employers that they have the necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities for an entry-level cybersecurity job.
This partnership comes as a precursor for SAU’s relaunching of their Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science. Students will have an opportunity to focus their degree in four key areas: Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, and Simulation and Game Design.
“Cybersecurity is national security,” said Dr. Terry Kidd, Vice President of Strategic Planning, Research, Technology and Innovation. “With this synergistic partnership, SAU will equip students with the knowledge, research, and skills needed not only for their careers, but for making a lasting impact on the nation’s security across industries and organizations. We, at SAU, are proud to announce this initiative alongside so many others who share a strong commitment to addressing our cybersecurity workforce challenges. We look forward to building more public-private partnerships needed to accomplish this shared goal.”
