Pikes Peak Community College will offer a cybersecurity degree beginning in the spring of 2018.
The Associate in Applied Science in Cybersecurity is being presented in addition to the preparatory courses for cybersecurity testing that PPCC has offered since 2016.
"We know how essential cybersecurity is for our country and our region," PPCC president Lance Bolton said in an email. "No one else is better positioned than Pikes Peak to get the number of trained professionals needed for those jobs and to grow that vital workforce."
According to a PPCC press release, there are currently 1,434 open positions for people with Security + certification in the Pikes Peak region, which makes it one of the regions with the highest demand for cybersecurity in the country.
The new degree program prepares students for the Cisco Certified Network Associate Security certification test (CCNA Security) or the Security + certification (CompTIA Security +) certification from the Computing Technology Industry Association, according to the statement, and graduates can follow careers as cyber security analysts, information systems, security engineers and systems design engineers, among others.
With two new cyber labs on its Rampart Range and Centennial Campus and a pending lease agreement for an additional cybersecurity lab facility on Catalyst Campus, PPCC can provide hands-on training to 75 qualified students, the statement said.
In addition, PPCC non-credit cybersecurity workshops are intended to provide IT enthusiasts and professionals with the skills and knowledge they need to pass the Network +, Security + and Hacker Certified Ethics (CEH) exams, which are the standards of the industry for professionals working in cybersecurity.
Using new cybersecurity ranges, students work in realistic settings in the lab. According to the statement, accelerated PPCC courses cost significantly less than most test preparation camps and, although they do not count toward a college degree, they come with a voucher to take the industry certification exam at no additional cost.
