Meet Sophie Powell: Cyber PATH Student.
Sophie is a final-year Cyber Security undergraduate student at Warwick University. In addition to her studies, Sophie enrolled into the Cyber PATH programme and joined forces with the West Midlands Cyber Resilience Centre. Their shared goal: to educate SMEs about the dangers of increasing cyber-attacks and to provide an array of training that is tailored to best protecting businesses and their customers.
We spoke with Sophie about her Cyber PATH journey and how the experience has benefited her personal work as well as her studies.
To begin, tell us how did you first hear about the Cyber PATH programme?
The Cyber PATH programme was recommended to me via one of my university lecturers, who saw the advertisement and believed it to be an incredible opportunity for me to gain more experience in the Cyber field outside my degree.
Prior to Cyber PATH, what experience did you have?
At the time, I was extremely new to Cyber, especially surrounding the more technical concepts, and the only real experience I had that could be related to the job was some public speaking. Despite this, I was accepted for the position, and can safely say the knowledge and expertise I have gained have been reflected in my own personal work, as well as my degree work.
Since joining, what services have you been trained in?
I have been trained in First-Step Web assessments and SAT training, with my main focus currently being on delivering SATs to a range of clients both online and in-person. It has been incredible for my self-confidence and presenting skills, as I have been able to modify these presentations to suit my newly founded presenting style.
How has the support been from your supervisors?
One of the key benefits of the program are the supervisors, and I cannot sing their praises enough. They are consistently looking to further our experiences by encouraging new jobs and opportunities, as well as being there to speak to about personal on-goings, which I have been especially grateful through the ‘finding a job’ and dissertation processes! They have our best interests at heart, which has made this process what it is. Not only this but meeting a whole community of students with similar interests has been inspirational, as they provide a number of opportunities to learn from each other via presentations and group meetups.
Lastly, what are your plans for after graduation?
I will be moving into a Cyber-based job when I leave, specifically focusing on blue-teaming. I feel very lucky to be part of this community, and I strongly believe my time as a student on the Cyber PATH programme will continue to benefit me in later prospects.