Introduction
The continuously evolving nature of cybersecurity demands an agile and tactical approach to learning and skill development. One method of meeting this demand is through work-based learning. Work-based learning is a type of educational programming that exposes students to the knowledge and skills required for a given career or industry and occurs in a workplace setting through on-the-job training or an environment that closely resembles the workplace.1 It includes internships, apprenticeships, youth employment programs, project-based learning, and experiential learning.
Work-based learning is not unique to the cybersecurity field, but it is part of a broader workforce ecosystem shift to embrace practices such as skills-based hiring and leveraging alternative educational pathways. For example, the U.S. Office of the National Cyber Director’s (ONCD) 2023 National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy (NCWES) contains lines of effort specifically aimed at work-based learning under “Strategic Objective 3.2: Promoting Skills-Based Hiring and Workforce Development.”2 The NCWES calls upon employers to focus on skills needed for cyber jobs rather than college degrees or experience as indicators of qualification, and also to increase on-ramps into the workforce through work-based learning opportunities.
Quantitative research shows that work-based learning is an effective learning mechanism, but little qualitative research exists for the cybersecurity workforce specifically. This roundtable discussion provides insight from 16 academics, practitioners, and educators into what makes work-based learning unique, effective, and valuable for the cyber workforce. Participants are not named as the roundtable was conducted under the Chatham House Rule.
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The Future of Work-Based Learning for Cyber Jobs- The Project on Workforce, “Stakeholder Brief 2: Expanding Equitable Work-Based Learning Opportunities” (Malcolm Wiener Center for Social Policy, Harvard Kennedy School, 2024), https://college-to-jobs-initiative.netlify.app/workforce-stakeholder-brief-02.pdf.
- Office of the National Cyber Director, National Cyber Workforce and Education Strategy (Washington, DC: Executive Office of the President, July 31, 2023), https://bidenwhitehouse.archives.gov/wpcontent/ uploads/2023/07/NCWES-2023.07.31.pdf.