Launch event Q&A

The questions below were taken from our Slido poll during our launch event. Sadly we did not have time to answer all of these questions on the night so have compiled them below with our answers. Thank you to everyone who attended, supported and submitted their questions at the launch event

What, in your opinion, are the three most important personality skills/traits to gain/learn to enter the cyber security industry?

Overall skills such as willingness to learn, being able to ask for help and being flexible are very important. Cyber is an industry that is constantly changing and I have learnt to keep up I need to try and change with it. Willingness to learn also heavily links to this as you must learn to adapt. I believe technical skills can be taught but it’s skills like them that make the difference. Asking for help can also be critical, especially when starting as there is an awful lot to learn!

What thoughts do you have on finding the right job for a student as opposed to the first one they find? Ie: red flags for employers

One way of finding out is to look at multiple companies with similar values to you and don’t be afraid to stand up for yourself! A good company will support you throughout your career and if you are an apprentice accommodate for that. Any company that doesn’t seem to respect you is a red flag for me.

How did you decide on pursuing an apprenticeship? How did your school inform your choice? How did your parents inform your choice?

Emilia – I have always been a practical learner and couldn’t see myself enjoying university as the courses I looked at was more theory-based. At first, I was torn between the two as I didn’t have much information on apprenticeships but as I did more research I decided that was the better choice for me. I enjoy being able to start my career and partake in real projects whilst learning on the job. My school did not advertise apprenticeships as much as university which I believe discouraged me slightly as I was uninformed about them.

Do you plan on increasing your network in the future?

Yes! We plan to continuously expand our network. As Project Pioneers progresses and our reach grows we want to grow our network with it to new businesses, academic institutions and students.

What are your plans for next event/future events?

We plan for our next event to be our first headliner! As of current, we are asking students and academia for possible talk topics they would like us to cover to ensure the event is engaging and relevant. If you have a suggestion, feel free to drop us an email at contact@projectpioneers.org and keep an eye out for more!

What about AMA’s with employers as a possible activity?

This is a great suggestion. We plan to multiple panels with employers and students as future events and will be sure to include an AMA section in them. We want to make sure everyone can take as much away from the event as possible and believe including AMA and Q&A sections can benefit from this.

What ideas do you have for increasing student knowledge of Project Pioneers?

We plan to keep growing our reach through events and social media. As of current, we are utilising our connections with the CyberFirst school’s scheme to help us reach a wide range of students. We will also be contacting schools and students not in the CyberFirst scheme to try and ensure everyone has an equal opportunity to attend.

How are you reaching out to individuals? Is it only through schools/you own personal connections?

It is a mixture of both! We are utilising our personal connections we have acquired as well as schools. We want to reach as many people as possible and are using any means we can to do.

What’s your plan for the website blog? Industry individuals, pioneer members or founding members?

As of current, our founding members are contributing to the blog however as we grow we have plans to bring on other individuals and students to tell their stories and opinions they have.

Will you have name badges with companies next time so people know who to talk to about different things?

Yes! We plan to have these for future events to help them run as smoothly as possible.

What would you suggest people can do to avoid burnout in the cyber industry? What risks are there that are greater in this industry than others ie: burnout?

Having a work-life balance is very important to avoiding burnout and can be very hard to navigate especially when starting in the industry. Finding the right balance sadly can become trial and error but once you have found it is incredibly beneficial to your mental health! Also allowing yourself to have breaks and reducing the pressure you put on yourself can help to avoid burnout and help keep you enjoying your job.