NCL Registration is Open; Let the Games Begin
Largo, Maryland (PRWEB) August 20, 2015 -- It is estimated that by 2017, there will be a global shortage of two million cybersecurity professionals. This statistic proves that the need to educate and train students to become cybersecurity specialists is greater than ever. The National Cyber League (NCL) provides an ongoing virtual training ground for participants to develop and validate cybersecurity skills using content aligned with professional certifications and industry recognized competencies. Registration is now open; let the games begin.
"Starting in October, individuals and teams from across the country will develop and validate cybersecurity knowledge and skills across a range of industry-recognized competencies in competitive exercises,” states Casey W. O’Brien, NCL Commissioner. “Companies looking to hire can get access to a national pool of talent, something many organizations today are clamoring for."
The NCL season integrates a performance-based curriculum aligned to the EC-Council Certified Ethical Hacker™ and CompTIA Security+™ certification exams and provides hosted lab exercises, game play, instructor syllabi and video tutorials.
Developing and validating cybersecurity knowledge and skills in students is a critical addition to traditional education and training programs. The NCL offers faculty from two and four-year colleges and universities free resources to integrate the games into the classroom and supplies a clear pathway of instruction.
“I was able to use the NCL as an assignment last fall in my undergraduate security course,” states Dr. Mark Shaneck, Online Department Chair for Cyber Security at Liberty University. “It was a great opportunity for the students to be able to not only use these exercises to learn a lot about security and cryptography, but also to exercise their skills alongside students from across the country. Competing on a national scale, with upwards of 1,000 students, can not only validate what the students have worked hard to learn but also show what areas are lacking and could use more help.”
Instructors receive a suggested course progression from NCL preparatory lab exercises to competition challenges to certifications. This allows students to use the NCL Cyber Gymnasium environment to develop knowledge and skills and then demonstrate these newly acquired skills in competitive individual and team play. It also allows the NCL to measure player’s game performance and produce an individualized Scouting Report on strengths and weakness amongst various learning objectives and industry-recognized competencies. Organizations looking to hire based on what participants can do, rather than simply what they know, can get access to the Scouting Report data.
Registration is now open through October 3rd. Regular season games are October 31st and November 14th – four hours each. To register, go to: nationalcyberleague.org/registration.shtml
About National Cyber League
The National Cyber League (NCL) provides a cybersecurity training ground in a game-like environment that requires participants to work individually in Regular Season and in teams during Postseason Games. The competition is designed for participants to solve real problems, with actual deadlines, under enormous time, technical and resource constraints. The NCL provides colleges and universities across the country curricula to assist in student preparation for the competitions and professional certifications. Companies seeking qualified talent can access the NCL’s Scouting Reports to evaluate potential cybersecurity professionals that have demonstrated skills in NCL game play. The NCL is where cybersecurity is a passion… for students, faculty and the workforce. To learn more, visit nationalcyberleague.org
Lynn Dohm, The Nelly Group, LLC, +1 (815) 717-6546, [email protected]
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