The VU Cyber Security Team of 7 competed very well despite the challenges of being short one team member and having another team member compete from his home in Fowler, Indiana. 

During the competition, teams were awarded points for how well they handle injects, which are attempts to breach network security as well as other challenges that test their Cyber Security knowledge. The VU team successfully handled 27 out of 28 security injects and maintained 100% up time of availability for the corporate webserver, email server, and e-commerce site. Indiana Tech placed first.

Hands-on work prepares VU students for the future. They’re not only talking about problems. They are solving them with the skills they’re learning in the highly-respected degree programs VU offers, including a bachelor’s degree in Homeland Security and Public Safety – Cyber Information Technology and Security Concentration. 

VU has forged partnerships in support of developing cybersecurity talent. The University is a partner with Indianapolis-based Eleven Fifty Academy, which was the first coding bootcamp in Indiana and has been consistently named by Course Report as one of the best coding bootcamps in the nation. VU also provides associate degrees and a certificate for students registered in Purdue University’s Cyber Apprenticeship Program (P-CAP). VU is the only university providing the opportunity to earn stackable degree programs at the one-year or two-year degree programs level as part of the innovative apprenticeship program. 

VU was represented in the Mid-West Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition by students in the Cybersecurity Associate Degree and Information Technology Baccalaureate Degree programs. The team was composed of Evan Klingle, Gabe McCarter, Zach Lanier, Colton Eide, Brayden Rexing, Zac Beard, and Dylan Mollo.

“Our students competed very well in this competition and have demonstrated that they have the skill set needed to work as a team and provide Cyber Security at a professional level to organizations,” Associate Professor of Information Technology Greg Hirsch said. “There is no better way for students to prove and demonstrate their skill sets than through these types of exercises. There is no doubt that this team of students has a very bright future in the world of Information Technology.”

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