Cyber security career advice is to be given to secondary school children in a latest effort to boost the sector.
According to the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, special learning materials for 11 to 14 year-olds and plans for a new higher-level and advanced apprenticeships are among new Government plans to increase the cyber security skills of our nation.
Among the materials are training for teachers to enable them to teach pupils about cyber security, with support available for universities that come up with innovative proposals to improve cyber security teaching.
The plans include new e-skills UK employer-led cyber security higher and advanced level apprenticeship schemes. A new e-skills UK cyber security internship scheme will enable students to gain the work experience demanded by employers and support for mass audience training, for Centres for Doctoral training and development of a certification process for masters degrees in cyber security.
Extended support for the Cyber Security Challenge also continues. Universities and science minister David Willetts said: “Today countries that can manage cyber security risks have a clear competitive advantage. By ensuring cyber security is integral to education at all ages, we will help equip the UK with the professional and technical skills we need for long-term economic growth.”
Peter Armstrong, director of cyber security at Thales UK, said: “This incentive to push cyber security education into schools should be welcomed by the security industry and government.
“Any initiative that aims to increase the general capability and awareness in the cyber defence space and ultimately strengthen the UK’s overall cyber defence posture, should be implemented as soon as possible to continually address the evolving cyber threat we face. It is important that schools are able to start supporting organisations by training up the next generation of cyber security experts from a young age, giving them the necessary tools and skills to deal with the latest cyber threats in the workplace.”
