Georgia State University is set to receive nearly $4 million in federal grant money over the next five years to help fill a shortage of cybersecurity professionals.
The funding comes at a time of increasing cyber threats.
“Even though a lot of universities are trying to produce more cybersecurity talent, the shortages are still there,” said Daniel Takabi, a computer science professor at Georgia State.
The grant from the National Science Foundation will provide scholarships and stipends for students who agree to take government jobs in cybersecurity at the federal or local level after they graduate.
Takabi says the grant will help the university recruit students who traditionally haven’t been part of the cybersecurity field.
“In addition to increasing the number of cybersecurity professionals that graduate, we can also increase the diversity by trying to attract students from underrepresented groups,” he said. “We’re working with a lot of African-American students, female students and through the veteran’s outreach office to try to reach veterans and attract them to our cybersecurity program.”
He says the $3.9 million grant will provide for 25 scholarships in the next five years and allow the program to bolster its offerings, benefiting all students enrolled In the cybersecurity program.
Georgia State is one of 90 schools across the country, including Georgia Tech and Augusta University, taking part in the CyberCorp Scholarship for Service program.
