LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – The cybersecurity industry is facing a talent shortage prior to Covid-19. 

“This is something that is important and students can learn the fundamentals they need to transition into the agency,” says Philip Huff an assistant professor within the Department of Computer Sciences at UA-Little Rock. 

UA-Little Rock is introducing a new four-year degree program in cybersecurity in the fall 2021 semester to help meet the rising demand for cybersecurity professionals.

Huff says the push to work from home during the pandemic is a major reason cybersecurity professionals are now seeing a shortage. 

He says since many of these employees quickly became tasked with helping companies work efficiently and safely from remote locations. 

“The need has been there but we really saw the need this year when everything started,” he says. 

The Bachelor of Science in cybersecurity will prepare students for challenging and rewarding careers dedicated to protecting the privacy of individuals, the security of society’s infrastructure, and national security. Graduates will be prepared for positions in high-demand fields, including security architect, digital forensics analyst, security systems administrator, and security analyst.

“They will filter right into there – just the market, the job market is just exploding for cybersecurity professionals and we are trying to meet that need. 

The new degree program will attract more government and industry jobs to the region, while helping to fill a growing need for more trained cybersecurity professionals. The Global Information Security Workforce study estimates that there will be 1.8 million unfilled cybersecurity jobs by 2022.