As a student in the Seidenberg School you have ample opportunities for professional and personal development, and adventure! Along these lines, a Seidenberg team attended the 2016 Women in Cybersecurity Conference (WiCyS) in Dallas, TX last week. The team, comprised of amazing students pursuing degrees with a cybersecurity focus, included Alexa Piccoli (MS/CS’16), Norissa Lamaute (MS/CS’17), Siobhan Kiernan (BS/IT’17) and Adriana Aluia (BS/IT’18). In addition, the team also included Lindsay Peckham (AAS/Cybersecurity’17) and Sara DaCosta (AAS/Cybersecurity’18) from Westchester Community College, a Pace Cybersecurity Academic partner.
Not only are women underrepresented in the IT field, but a report sponsored by ISC2 and Booz Allen Hamilton found that in 2013 women made up just 11 percent of global cybersecurity workforce and only nine percent were in senior leadership roles. It is in this context that WiCyS aims to bring together female students, faculty, researchers, and professionals in cybersecurity for knowledge sharing, networking and mentoring. The conference aims to raise awareness about the importance and nature of cybersecurity careers and to generate interest among students to consider cybersecurity as a viable career option.
2016 WiCyS had great energy and blended both academic and professional speakers and content. The conference gathered more than 700 attendees! The tech talks included reverse engineering, cyber criminology, perspectives on research, exploit development, cyber-physical system security. Other professional talks covered tools and strategies for education as well as workshops oriented toward specific career tracks in cyber security. A job fair with over 30 prominent employers and numerous “networking socials” provided students with the opportunity to learn specifics about the skills in need in the industry, and in many cases get job offers on the spot.
Here is what the some of the participants had to say about the conference experience:
One take away from the WiCyS conference was the ample opportunity and support for women in cybersecurity. While the statistic showcase the dramatic lack of women in this field, it felt great to be in a place where women in cyber were encouraged to do great things. I really enjoyed the key note speakers from various top companies and felt empowered and driven to one day be at the level they are at. I got to meet many academics and professionals who offered guidance and reassurance that this is what I want to do as a lifelong career. I learned that it is okay to feel confused at times, and that if you keep working hard, you can reach your goals. I was inspired to take on new opportunities and dig deeper into my school work and cyber related topics.
Alexa Piccoli (MS/CS’16)
Lindsay Peckham (AAS/Cybersecurity ‘17, Westchester Community College): There were so many inspiring moments that it’s difficult to choose only one so I would love to share two items that have stuck with me since returning home.
First, the field of cyber security offers everything I desire in a career: technology, cutting-edge ideas, innovations and helping others but there are many specialties within the field that I had to be exposed to and barely understood in the real-world sense. Personally, the conference offered me a way to navigate the many career opportunities in this field. Through anecdotes, insightful speeches, networking opportunities and plentiful resources, I spent nearly 3 days putting myself in the shoes of others and thinking about how that career specialty may suit me in the future.
Second, one of my hopes for attending WiCyS was to learn about what other schools are doing for their cyber security clubs. It’s been one of my passions at WCC to improve and grow our club in meaningful and exciting ways. Attending the “CyberSecurity Club: 101 from Inception to Installment and Beyond” workshop gave me an opportunity to see what other colleges, both community and university, are doing in their clubs. […] I am very excited for 2016-2017 school year because I think some really neat changes are going to be made!
Many thanks to Dr. Li-Chiou Chen and Andreea Cotoranu for making this experience possible!
Are you working on cybersecurity related projects and have an interest in attending the next edition of WiCyS? Submit a research poster or just apply for a scholarship to attend the conference! Contact Andreea Cotoranu for questions related to future participation in this event.
Interested in learning more about cybersecurity? No problem! The Seidenberg School invites you to take cybersecurity courses, join the Pace Cyber Team, or apply for the CyberCorps scholarship program!