Shortage of Trained Cybersecurity Experts
The world’s largest not-for-profit association of cybersecurity professionals, (ISC)2, estimated a worldwide skill gap of almost 3 million with approximately two million of the gap in APAC region. Recruiter Hays conducted a study of cybersecurity talent market in Australia and New Zealand, which found that over 60 percent of organizations found recruiting for cybersecurity talent either ‘difficult’ or ‘very difficult.’ Dila Beisembayeva, an academic program manager at Unitec’s school of computing and information technology said, “In an industry stymied by an increasing skills shortage, we’re helping develop our own homegrown talent and ensuring we deliver what industry needs.”
New Zealand’s first Cybersecurity Qualification in Pre-Degree Space
The largest Technology institute in Auckland, New Zealand, Unitec Institute of Technology has collaborated with Datacom Group, New Zealand’s biggest tech company, to launch a one-year vocational diploma in cybersecurity. Datacom will host 10 students at its security operations center in Auckland. Moreover, the course developed by the two will offer the first New Zealand cybersecurity qualification in the pre-degree space. One of the most significant challenges in front of businesses is the global shortage of cybersecurity experts.
Bridging the Gap between Education and Industry
This collaboration aims to overcome the problem of the global shortage of cybersecurity experts. Starting at Unitec in February, the program which is a 120-credit, Level 6 program is expected to complete in one year full-time or over 18 months to four years part-time. Unitec’s two years planning while working closely with NZQA, ITP New Zealand and Industry resulted in this innovation. “We’re bridging the gap between education and industry, while at the same time providing employment opportunities for students and equipping them with skills for jobs,” said Beisembayeva. “The company has created a strongly mentored training environment,” said David Eaton, associate director of cybersecurity Services at Datacom and a part of ministerial cybersecurity skills task-force. “This is the living embodiment of the future of work- we train them as they study,” he further added.
