A Skills-Based Path to Cyber Employment

According to a recent press release by the White House Office of the National Cyber Director, the federal government and several private contractors will expand employment opportunities for Americans in the cybersphere starting in the summer of 2025.

The announcement included information on this hiring overhaul, saying the current administration is looking to fill the more than 500,000 open cybersecurity positions nationwide by implementing the Information Technology Management 2210 series to institute skills-based hiring principles and practices.

Using the 2210 series means employment with companies like Cisco, Motorola, SANS, and ArcBest is possible through apprenticeships and training programs. Educational certificates like those earnable through the Cowley College Software, Security, and Development pathway are exactly the kind of qualifications the federal government and its private partners are looking for. 

Certificates can be obtained instead in addition to two-year degrees, saving thousands of dollars in tuition and enabling you to enter the workforce sooner than within a standard four-year degree. Cowley has recognized this need and collaborated with Microsoft via the Technology Education and Learning Support (TEALS) for Community College program to develop computer networking and cyber security pathways. Microsoft indicated the classes and certifications necessary for a top-quality program, and we developed classes accordingly.

Cowley Mathematics and Computer Science Instructor David Hays said, “I have never witnessed an opportunity like this. One where high employment demand, substantial wages, and nearly free education (with the Kansas Promise Act) converge. This change in hiring is truly a life-changing moment for many individuals!”  

For more information on this pathway, see the Computer Science Program page.

Hunter Ferguson | Integrated Communications Specialist
Cowley College
125 S. 2nd Street
Arkansas City, KS 67005
hunter.ferguson@cowley.edu