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INDIANAPOLIS — Since 2010, cyber jobs have increased by more than 75 percent, outpacing the talent pool and resulting in more than 1 million unfilled cyber positions nationwide.
High school girls are now being encouraged to pursue cyber-based opportunities, helping them crack the code to career success.
"Cybersecurity is more than just keeping computers protected, keeping your passwords protected," David Hosick, a public information officer for the Indiana Department of Homeland Security, said. "Cybersecurity is cyber skills, computer science skills, [it] helps you develop problem-solving skills, critical-thinking skills, that are what employers are looking for today."
Demand will only grow as technology continues to evolve.
"Cybersecurity is such a growing field that really touches every aspect of the workforce across the country," Hosick said. "Indiana, as it grows in its technology, and it really becomes a center for the country, these roles are becoming more and more available, and those companies are seeing the value in filling those roles with diverse, talented people.”
At Park Tudor, high school students on the cyber defense team are working to become part of that pool.
“I think it’s important for students to know how these technologies work so they can be safer consumers of technology, first and foremost, and beyond that, that there’s a great opportunity in making these systems safer,” Bryon Realey, Park Tudor’s support specialist, said.
LEARN MORE | Girls Go CyberStart
While the cyber defense team competes with others from across the country, they’re also adding expertise to their resumes. They’re on the right track as there’s a shortage of people who can fill these roles, not only nationally but in the Hoosier state.
"In Indiana alone its estimated there is about 2,300 jobs that are left unfilled in the cybersecurity and cyber fields, and that’s due large in part that people do not have the skill sets and the education to fill those roles," Hosick said. "These are skills that make quality employees in any industry. So cybersecurity really develops those skills and helps maximize the potential a young person can have coming into a company and hitting the ground running."
