Creating Cybersecurity Career Pathways for Veterans with the Office of the National Cybersecurity Director (ONCD)

Earlier this week, members of the EC Council team, including CEO Jay Bavisi, attended the White House’s “Workshop on Good Paying Cyber ​​Jobs for Veterans and Military Spouses.” Hosted by Director Harry Coker of the Office of the National Cybersecurity Director and co-hosted by the Department of Labor’s Veterans Employment and Training Service, the workshop focused on expanding meaningful cyber job opportunities for service members, veterans, and military-connected families.

At a time when the cybersecurity industry faces an ongoing skills gap and veterans sometimes struggle to find sustainable, meaningful careers after leaving the military, providing pathways to cybersecurity jobs is a win-win scenario. Not only will it reward veterans with meaningful employment after their military service, it will also increase the pipeline of critical cybersecurity talent we need today to protect the world from cyberattacks.

During the workshop, participants discussed the unique challenges veterans and military spouses face in pursuing long-term, rewarding careers after completing their service, and how careers in cybersecurity can help address these challenges. All participants agreed that providing real, meaningful educational opportunities that lead to real potential jobs with willing employers, and providing funding for this training to ensure it is low-cost or no-cost to the military, are critical to solving this challenge at scale.

Cybersecurity jobs require skilled professionals in the field, which means that competency-based learning approaches like those offered by the EC-Council must be a critical part of this effort going forward. By creating pathways for veterans to gain cybersecurity skills, from core competencies to more advanced skills like penetration testing, digital forensics, and incident management, the EC-Council is helping ONCD achieve this goal.

As an organization, we are more committed than ever to democratizing cybersecurity education, closing the cybersecurity skills gap, and building the cybersecurity workforce we desperately need for tomorrow.

We are proud to have joined ONCD in this discussion and look forward to working with them and all others who share our vision of a safer world, free from cybercrime.